After an eight day break, the Marquette women’s basketball team returned to Big East play taking on Butler inside the Al McGuire Center.
Here is a breakdown of the Golden Eagles’ 67-46 win over the Bulldogs Sunday afternoon:
GAME MVP:
Junior guard Rose Nkumu scored 15 points in 25 minutes of action, scoring nine of those points in the first half. The Iowa City, Iowa native went 7-for-8 from the field, picking up two rebounds and three steals in Sunday’s contest.
“Her defense, her intensity (and) her poise was great,” head coach Megan Duffy said. “She got out in the passing lanes (and) really did a good job of getting in the paint. She works really hard on her game and it (was) nice to see her have a great afternoon today.”
Nkumu said that she prides herself on her defensive abilities for the team.
“My job is to come in and be a defensive stopper for this team,” Nkumu said. “I knew that was my role coming in this year. I (want) to continue to build off that. (It’s about) being able to read the offense of the other team and being able to make timely plays that can get us the ball in certain situations.”
Key Stats:
- After the first quarter, Marquette shot 60% from the field compared to Butler’s 36.4%.
- Marquette went on a 12-0 run to begin the third quarter and outscored Butler 21-8.
- The Golden Eagles finished the game shooting 49.2% from the field and held the Bulldogs to 36.7%.
- Four players finished in double figures for the Golden Eagles.
- The Golden Eagles had 16 bench points compared to the Bulldogs’ 10.
Notes:
- Junior forward Liza Karlen earned a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, grabbing eight rebounds in the first half.
- Coming off a career-high game, first-year guard Emily La Chapell recorded nine points and four rebounds in 19 minutes of action.
- Marquette forced 20 turnovers, while picking up 10 offensive rebounds, compared to the Bulldogs’ two.
- Marquette has now won six straight and 15 of its last 17 meetings against Butler.
- At the 8:24 mark of the second quarter, senior guard Jordan King dished out her 400th assist of her career. She is just the 10th Marquette player in program history to hit that milestone. King became just the eighth player in MU history with 1,000 points and 400 assists in a career.
- With this win, the Golden Eagles are now 6-0 at home.
Quote of the Day:
Nkumu spoke on the mindset the Golden Eagles have going into Wednesday’s non-conference finale against Colorado.
“Defense is our mindset this week and going forward,” Nkumu said. “We know Colorado is a tough team (that) likes to push pace (and) they’re physical. (It’s about) being able to stay disciplined throughout this run and show up on our home floor and get another dub.”
Next up:
Marquette (9-2, 2-1 Big East) will finish its non-conference game play at home against Colorado (9-3) Dec. 21 at 12 p.m. CST.
This article was written by Kaylynn Wright. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @KaylynnWrightMU.
