Photo by Sarah Kuhns

Graduate student guard Karissa McLaughlin looks up the court in Marquette women’s basketball’s 93-36 win over Alcorn State Nov. 9.

Marquette women’s basketball opened up Year 3 of the Megan Duffy Era with a convincing 96-35 victory over the Alcorn State Braves Tuesday night at the Al McGuire Center.

Game MVP: Karissa McLaughlin

Graduate transfer Karissa McLaughlin led the team with 21 points on the night, going 8-for-15 from the field and 3-for-9 from beyond the arc. In addition, McLaughlin added three assists and three steals.

“Karissa is a great shooter and definitely has a scoring mentality and we always tell her whenever she gets an open look she has the green light to shoot it. She missed some early and then settled back down” Marquette women’s basketball head coach Megan Duffy said. “The other part I loved about her today is that she was getting out in the passing lane, got some steals and got some easy baskets that way, so it was not just from the three-point line which was good to say.”

Graduate student forward Lauren Van Kleunen said she is excited to play alongside McLaughlin this season.

“Karissa is able to stretch it, she is a great shooter from the outside,” Van Kleunen said.

Key Stats: 

• Marquette outrebounded Alcorn State 52-19 on the night.
• Alcorn State shot 24 % from the field, while Marquette shot 55 %.
• Marquette finished a total of 22 assists and 16 steals.

Notes:

• Marquette caused 25 turnovers, while having 15.
• Van Kleunen finished with 17 points and 8 rebounds on 7-for-8 shooting and 3-0f-4 from the free throw line.
• Redshirt sophomore forward Kennedi Myles finished with 14 points.
• Redshirt first-year Liza Karlen and redshirt junior Chloe Marotta combined for 18 rebounds on the night.

Quote of the Day: 

Following the win, Van Kleunen mentioned Duffy told the team a saying her dad would say to her during her playing days.

“You can’t win em all if you don’t start out with a win on the first one,” Van Kleunen said.

Next Up: 

Marquette will host New Jersey Institute of Technology Friday  at 6p.m. CST at the Al McGuire Center

This article was written by Kelly Reilly. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @kellyreillyyy