The postseason clock is ticking for the Marquette women’s basketball team. After a 71-59 setback at No. 22 DePaul Sunday, the Golden Eagles sit at 4-7 in conference play, 13-11 overall and 12th in the Big East.
Marquette was unable to hold on to a seven-point lead with 17:29 left in the second half, as the Blue Demons finished the game on a 40-21 run.
Sophomore forward Katherine Plouffe, who led the Golden Eagles in scoring for the 12th time this season with 22 points, said that her team seemed to lose control of the game’s momentum.
“Stopping other people’s runs and momentum is something we really have to work on,” Plouffe said. “We had things going good for us early in the second half, but we stopped hitting shots. We were stopping them, and they weren’t getting a lot of touches up to that point, and we were playing with a lot of confidence, but when they made their run we weren’t ready to make a comeback.”
Despite the loss, Plouffe said her team ran the floor well and attacked better than it had in previous games, but that in the end they let the Blue Demons make too many easy transition points towards the end of the contest.
Marquette’s dire situation makes Tuesday’s matchup with South Florida a must-win. The Bulls (13-13, 5-7 Big East) come to the Al McGuire Center having lost four of their last five conference tilts, winnings its last against Villanova 54-39 Saturday.
South Florida tends to keep its opponents from scoring in large amounts. The Bulls have limited Big East foes to 60.6 points per game. In order to keep the Bulls in check, freshman guard Arlesia Morse said zeroing in on defense will be a top priority for the Golden Eagles.
“We need to focus on communicating more on defense, locating shooters and our double teams,” Morse said. “Being aware of where their scorers are at and containing them is going to be big for us.”
Well-rounded scoring will be needed again around Plouffe, as the Bulls’ stingy defense will make it very hard to remain one-dimensional.
“I think we as a team know that working the ball inside works well for us, and I have to be the one that scores inside most of the time,” Plouffe said. “They look for me to be a scorer, and I accept that.”
Beyond statistics, Plouffe said Marquette needs to maintain its poise throughout each game’s entirety, constantly keeping the pressure on and avoiding droughts.
“Keeping focus for the full forty minutes is something we definitely have to work on. We had the scoring lapses we’ve had in previous games, and we let our opponent make a run,” Plouffe said. “Even when we’re up and our team makes a run, we need to push back even harder to maintain it.”
With every remaining game now increased to make-or-break status, the Golden Eagles know their season hangs in the balance. With only five chances left to make big strides in the polls, Plouffe said her team has to make a stand in its final stretch.
“We know the regular season is coming to an end, and we need to focus on winning within our team more,” Plouffe said. “We are going to have to string some wins together if we want to make the postseason.”
