The Marquette women’s basketball team improved to 8-1 in BIG EAST play after a 66-53 win over the Creighton Blue Jays. The Golden Eagles were led by sophomore forward Camryn Taylor, who had 27 points on an efficient 12-for-14 shooting performance from the field on the afternoon.
MU struggled early and often in the first half, as they went 3-for-16 from the floor in the opening frame, but their defense kept them in the game. Marquette forced 11 Creighton turnovers, which allowed the Golden Eagles to get out in transition often.
It was a different story in the third quarter however, as Taylor exploded for 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting to give Marquette a 16-point lead going into the fourth quarter. Marquette shot 65% from the field in the third quarter and scored more points in the third quarter alone (28) than they did in the first half (26).
Marquette would again struggle offensively in the fourth quarter, as they only scored 12 points with the same amount of turnovers as made field goals, but the Golden Eagles’ lead from the third quarter was too much for to come back from for Creighton.
It was not the typical Marquette offensive performance, as Taylor was the only Golden Eagle to score in double digits. Marquette’s leading scorer, senior guard Selena Lott, was held scoreless in the first half, but her late 3-pointer in the fourth quarter sealed the game. She finished with nine points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Marquette’s second leading scorer, redshirt senior forward Lauren Van Kleunen, also struggled throughout the afternoon. She posted just two points on 1-for-10 shooting from the floor, but was a force on the glass with eight rebounds.
Marquette also had key contributions off the bench from Taylor Valladay. The sophomore guard was active everywhere on the floor with six points, four rebounds and two blocks and first-year forward Liza Karlen had eight points on 3-for-5 shooting to go along with five rebounds.
Despite their poor shooting performance, Marquette’s strong defensive effort paved the way for their road win. The Golden Eagles forced 17 turnovers which resulted in 11 fast break points and a total of 16 points off turnovers. MU was also effective on the glass, as the Golden Eagles tied or won the rebounding battle for the 42nd time in the 45 games since head coach Megan Duffy took over the program last season.
Creighton was led by first-year forward Emma Ronsiek, who had 16 points on 7-for-15 shooting and eight rebounds. First-year guard Molly Mogensen added 13 points on 5-for-11 shooting.
Senior guard Temi Carda, who entered as Creighton’s leading scorer at 14.5 points per game, was held just to five points and shot 1-for-13 from the field.
Marquette (11-2, 8-1 BIG EAST) now faces a quick turnaround and will travel to Georgetown to take on the Hoyas Wednesday afternoon. The Golden Eagles defeated the Hoyas 72-40 the last time they met in Milwaukee.
This story was written by Sam Arco. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @sam_i_am119.
