A balanced scoring approach, a strong defensive presence and a one sided affair were all on the forefront Sunday afternoon as the Marquette women’s basketball team took down cross-town rival University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 73-47 at the Al McGuire Center.
Here is the breakdown of Marquette’s win:
Game MVP:
Senior forward Chloe Marotta recorded a double-double with 19 points and 16 rebounds in 30 minutes of action. This was her 6th double-double that she has earned in her collegiate career.
“(I am) just really thrilled with how Chloe Marotta played,” head coach Megan Duffy said. “Just a collective group of people ready to defend. It was like a different team today. Chloe led the way (with) 16 boards, (that) is just ridiculous.”
Marotta touched on how she prides herself not just on her versatility, but also on her ability to hold a strong presence on the court.
“You (have) to be hard to guard,” Marotta said. “That’s (the) most important (thing). You (have) to be able to shoot (and) drive, but also just be confident to be the solid person. You can hit your teammates here and there and that’s when you get your openings.”
In addition, Marotta recorded six assists and was 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Key Stats:
- After the first half, the Golden Eagles were shooting 66.7% from the 3-point line.
- The Golden Eagles began the second quarter with a 7-0 run with senior guard Nia Clark accounting for three of those points.
- Senior guard Claire Kaifes made her way into the starting lineup for the first time in her collegiate career. She recorded nine points in 16 minutes of action, going 3-for-3 from behind the arc.
- Junior forward Liza Karlen netted 13 points, grabbed four rebounds and had three blocks.
Notes:
- Marotta hit her first 3-pointer of the season in the second minute of the first quarter. That was her first successful attempt since Nov. 12 of last season.
- First-year guard Emily La Chapell sank a free-throw in the final minute of the second quarter, marking her first point in her collegiate career. She finished with five points and four rebounds in 12 minutes of action.
- The Golden Eagles out-rebounded the Panthers 58-26 with 24 of those rebounds being offensive.
- This marks Marquette’s sixth win against University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in their last seven matchups.
Quote of the day:
Marotta harped on junior forward Julianna Okosun’s performance in the fourth quarter.
“Gosh, she got a lot of rebounds today, didn’t she? That was awesome,” Marotta said. “Every rebounding drill we do in practice, she’s always on top of it. When she has that chance to come in here and produce those numbers that she did, (it was) awesome.”
Next up:
Marquette (3-0) will now prepare for the Battle 4 Atlantis Women’s Tournament. The Golden Eagles will kick off their three-games in Paradise Island, Bahamas Saturday against No. 3 Texas at 4 p.m. CST.
This article was written by Kaylynn Wright. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @KaylynnWrightMU.
