With classes resuming Monday morning, Marquette women’s basketball had one more thing left to accomplish: win its third straight conference game.
The Golden Eagles did just that as they relied on 43 second-half points to defeat the Seton Hall Pirates 81-60 Sunday afternoon.
“Just two great wins for us this weekend, beating St. John’s on Friday and finishing up with a great quality Sunday afternoon win,” head coach Megan Duffy said.
Neither team got off to a strong start as MU finished the quarter going o-5 in shots. SHU led 24-19 heading into the second quarter.
A 6-0 run to open up the second quarter allowed Marquette to get back into the game with a one-possession score. Seton Hall’s 3:17 scoring drought, seven turnovers, and four personal fouls allowed the Golden Eagles to head into halftime with 38-34 lead.
MU shot 41% from the field and 10% from beyond the arc in the first half. There were a combined 20 turnovers in the opening half.
The Golden Eagles picked up where they left off to open the third quarter, putting themselves on a 13-0 run over a span of 3:50. Despite scoring 11 points in the final three minutes and forcing MU to not make a single field goal, the Pirates still found themselves down 11 heading into the final quarter.
“It was everything to get a lead and get the confidence going,” Duffy said.”(I) didn’t like the back end of it … but a team like Seton Hall will make their run and when down, (the Pirates) will be the aggressor. This will help us down the road when we have a lead and how we keep it.”
Marquette outscored Seton Hall 21-11 in the fourth quarter, allowing the Golden Eagles to cruise to a 81-60 victory.
First-year forward Camryn Taylor led the Golden Eagles with a career-high 23 points and 11 rebounds while earning her first career double-double.
“She has been so good for us in the last couple of games, getting the and one’s, dominating the paint,” Duffy said. “(I’m) just really proud of her and her focus to continue to stay on the course and get better. (She’s) just really fun to watch from the sidelines.”
Taylor credits her performance against the Pirates to the atmosphere and environment that Duffy has established in the locker room.
“(It’s) hard work,” Taylor said. “Just my teammates and coaches pushing me every day in practice through my highs and the lows and being prepared and learning from the upperclassman as a freshman and gaining that experience and information.”
Marquette shot just 45% from the field and 24% from beyond the arc on the afternoon.
The Golden Eagles scored 21 points off the Pirates’ 21 turnovers.
Marquette (12-4, 3-2 BIG EAST) will head to Butler Jan. 17 to kick off a two-game road trip.
Despite going on the road to begin the second semester, Duffy wants her players to get back to prioritizing academics.
“Next few days is about our players getting back to being the student in student-athlete with classes starting back up,” Duffy said. “As coaches, we will look at the film and get ourselves ready for the road.”
This story was written by John Leuzzi. He can be reached at [email protected] and on Twitter @JohnLeuzziMU.
