The women didn’t hesitate to climb to a 12-0 lead against the Louisville Cardinals Wednesday night at the Al McGuire Center. Maintaining a strong lead throughout the game was key to the Golden Eagles’ success, as Marquette cruised to a 76-65 victory.
Seniors Tatiyiana McMorris, Angel Robinson and Paige Fiedorowicz, along with freshman Katherine Plouffe, all scored in double figures.
Robinson had 16 points and eight assists. Fiedorowicz had 14 points, and fought for five rebounds along with three assists. Plouffe added 13 points and a total of eight rebounds to finish the night.
Overall McMorris hit five of the six three-point shots the team made, making two in the opening minutes of the game and ending the night with a career high of 21 points.
The key for the women tonight was strong defense. Shutting down Louisville freshman Shoni Schimmel was tough but manageable, as Robinson and McMorris shared the responsibility well.
“We just wanted to make her uncomfortable and let other players on their team hit some shots because we knew she was a key player,” McMorris said.
When the Cardnials made a 10-0 run the team got the defensive stops they needed said coach Terri Mitchell.
Schimmel was the only real threat against Marquette for a while, hitting three three-pointers to bring the Cardinals out of their first half dry spell. During the first half Marquette went on their longest run of the game scoring 14 points to Louisville’s two.
Louisville cut the deficit to five points midway through the second half, but was not able to capitalize further. Plouffe made her entrance and scored eight points in the first half, adding another five during the second with some aggressive moves in the post.
After a questionable shot clock violation call, Louisville coach Jeff Walz received a technical foul, followed minutes later by another technical on Schimmel. McMorris made all four free throws.
With 1:08 left Louisville resorted to fouls and gave Marquette free throw opportunities to finish the game.
Besides holding onto the lead and focusing on defensive plays, Marquette’s passing game played a major role. Freshman Sarina Simmons had a career high of six assists. Making that “extra pass” and being an unselfish team is what Mitchell is looking for, she said.
Saturday, the women travel to Pittsburgh to battle the Panthers in another conference rivalry. Pittsburgh is 9-10 for the season and 1-5 in the Big East. No team in the conference can be overlooked though, said Mitchell.
To win on the road, Fiedorowicz said they have to play “Marquette basketball.”
