FLOOR SLAPS: Villanova buries Marquette with shooting

Brendan Ploen, Assistant Sports Editor • March 8, 2018

Photo by Helen Dudley

Senior Andrew Rowsey (right) scored 1,000 points in a Marquette uniform. He is only the fifth player in NCAA history to score 1,000 points with two different teams.

The Villanova Wildcats shot lights out in the second half, draining 15 of 29 shots from beyond the arc including 11 of 17 in the second half en route to a 94-70 dismantling of the Marquette Golden Eagles.

Now the Golden Eagles will have to wait until Selection Sunday this weekend to find out its postseason fate.

VILLANOVA 3-POINT BARRAGE DOOMS MARQUETTE

Villanova head coach Jay Wright thought that the building was a good omen for his players and it showed particularly in the second half.

I’m glad we do shoot it well in this building,” Wright said. “I love this building, but I don’t help the shots. But thank God they do, because when you play in this building they’re always big games.”

Marquette head coach Steve Wojciechowski switched to zone defense in a desperate attempt to slow down the Wildcats. It didn’t matter in the slightest.

“Boy, they can really shoot,” Wojo said. “But they started the second half, they scored five of six of the first possessions in man (to-man defense). So we wanted to try something else. And then they went five of six in zone.

ROWSEY HITS MILESTONE IN MU UNIFORM

Redshirt senior Andrew Rowsey scored his 1,000th point in a Marquette uniform, becoming only 48th player in program history to achieve that feat. He also became just the fifth player in NCAA history to score 1,000 or more points with two different teams.

Before the game, Marquette Wire Sports proxuer Nathan DeSutter caught up Rowsey’s mother, Melissa, on her way into Madison Square Garden.

“That would mean a lot,” Melissa said. “That’s a special thing he’s worked all his life for basketball, so it would mean a lot to us.”

While Rowsey added much-needed scoring for Marquette, dropping 22 points, he also missed four of his final six shots as the Golden Eagles withered down the stretch.

LIFE ON THE BUBBLE

Golden Eagle fans will be on pins and needles heading into the final weekend of the college basketball season. BracketMatrix, a site that aggregates March Madness predictions, had Marquette as the first team out of the tournament at the start of the day’s action.

“I think our team has had a really good year, especially considering our youth,” Wojo said. “I think our team is capable of winning games in the NCAA Tournament.”

In a conversation with the Marquette Wire, ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi felt confident that Marquette’s 9-9 conference record would put Marquette in the tournament conversation, so long as they didn’t lose to a bottom-seeded BIG EAST team. However, Lunardi does not have Marquette in the field of 68 in his latest projection.

UP NEXT

Marquette will play the waiting game to find out if they will make the NCAA Tournament. The tournament’s Selection Show is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. on CBS.