Marquette survived two storms this weekend — the St. John’s Red Storm and the copious amount of snow that caused the game to be rescheduled.
Despite Marquette leading by as much as 20 in the second half, St. John’s freshman Federico Mussini had a chance to tie the game with a three on the Red Storm’s final full possession. His shot didn’t fall, and two made free-throws by Henry Ellenson sealed the 78-73 win. The victory ends the Golden Eagles three-game losing streak, gives them the season sweep over St. John’s and keeps any minuscule postseason chances alive.
Ellenson had a strong performance on both ends, getting his 11th double-double of the season. He scored 16 points, grabbed a career-high 18 rebounds and recorded four blocks. He had one of his stronger defensive games against a player he struggled with in the teams’ first matchup, Kassoum Yakwe. The St. John’s freshman scored eight points.
Duane Wilson continued his strong play from the DePaul game, shooting 6-for-10 from the field, 2-for-4 from three-point range and scoring 17 points. Sandy Cohen scored eight points and had a career-high seven rebounds.
Marquette turned the ball over 22 times, seven more than its season average. That allowed the Red Storm to stick around despite shooting 34 percent.
The Golden Eagles went on a 24-4 run between the first and second halves to push the lead to 46-26. The Johnnies responded with a run of their own, bringing the game within two with six minutes remaining in that game.
The loss keeps St. John’s winless in the conference, while the Golden Eagles moved to 3-5 in the BIG EAST.
The Golden Eagles return to Milwaukee for a breather from BIG EAST play, hosting the Stetson Hatters Wednesday. Stetson is ranked No. 299 by KenPom.
