Following a three-game road trip, the Marquette women’s basketball team returned home to face the Providence Friars. Behind a career-high 31 points from senior guard Jordan King, the Golden Eagles defeated the Friars 80-57 Saturday afternoon at the Al McGuire Center.
“(I’m) just really proud of our overall team contributions,” Marquette head coach Megan Duffy said. “Jordan King was tremendous after having a slow start. She really got hot the rest of the game. (I) just love the versatility and depth of our team today.”
Both teams struggled offensively to begin this contest, but it was Marquette who got on the board first with a layup from senior forward Chloe Marotta.
Sunday was Marotta’s 134th appearance as a Golden Eagle, tying for second most career appearances in program history with former teammate Lauren Van Kleunen.
Marquette’s offense started to find itself as it went on a 6-0 run with first-year guard Emily La Chapell hitting a 3-pointer, which forced Providence to call a timeout. King would extend the run to 9-0 with a made layup and free throw.
The Golden Eagles finished the first quarter shooting 26.7% from the field compared to the Friars’ 17.6%. Both teams combined to commit 15 turnovers in the frame.
Senior guard Nia Clark began the second quarter for the Golden Eagles with a layup. She finished with five points in 16 minutes of action.
Providence did not score until the 7:22 mark of the second frame when senior guard Janai Crooms was fouled and made the basket. Both teams traded baskets after that, but it was King who took control of Marquette’s offense and went on to score 13 points in the second quarter alone.
“Both teams in the second quarter settled down at what we’re both good at and opened things up a little bit,” Duffy said. “We talked about just getting our ball movement going and getting a great shot instead of a good shot. Fortunately, we were able to step up and hit some of those.”
The Golden Eagles went into the locker room leading by 13 points. Marquette shot 61.1% from the field in the second quarter compared to Providence’s 50%. The Golden Eagles also out-rebounded the Friars 22-18.
Providence opened up the third quarter on a 6-0 run to cut its deficit to eight points, forcing Duffy to call a timeout.
The Friars would get as close as six points before the Golden Eagles went on an 13-1 run their own to end the quarter. Four different members for Marquette scored on its run.
At the 5:43 mark of the final quarter, King made a strong post move in the paint and made the basket to finish with a career-high 31 points in the contest. She also grabbed five rebounds and dished out five assists in 34 minutes of action.
31 points and a career-high for King!#MUWBB pic.twitter.com/o547tI8cRA
— Marquette WBB (@MarquetteWBB) January 14, 2023
“I thought she was really versatile today,” Duffy said. “Three-ball was solid, she got downhill, she was good defensively and that’s what Jordan’s capable of. (She) continued to shoot shots and put in her five assists and five rebounds. (It was) just a nice complete game for her.”
King spoke on how it felt to achieve this goal in front of the home crowd.
“It feels great,” King said. “Honestly, it feels even better to be playing back in front of our fans and to get a win. It feels great to be able to get that milestone here at home.”
The Golden Eagles ended the quarter on a 14-5 run to close the door on the Friars. Marquette finishing shooting 48.8% from the floor. Marquette’s bench recorded 25 points compared to Providence’s five bench points.
“Coach continues to instill confidence in every single player no matter what experience, no matter what minutes you’ve played, it’s the same messaging,” King said. “It was great for some of those girls just to get confidence in themselves, being out on that court and making an impact. That was huge.”
La Chapell also achieved a career-high in points, as she netted 13 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the floor in 24 minutes of action.
“She’s a player that’s always asking questions,” King said. “She always wants to get better. She’s getting more confident on the court. As a freshman, you go through the ups and downs of trying to figure things out. The way that she’s been able to stick with it (has) been great. It’s only going to get better for her.”
With the win, Marquette secured its first win at home since Dec. 18. The Golden Eagles have now won 12 straight games against the Friars.
Junior guard Liza Karlen missed her third consecutive game with a mouth injury and is out indefinitely.
Marquette (11-6, 4-4 Big East) will travel to Queens, New York to face St. John’s (14-3, 5-3) Jan. 18 at 6 p.m. CST.
“The league is awesome right now and it’s going to be a tough road game against St. John’s,” Duffy said. “They’re playing really well this year. We’re just going to get a little rest, get to work on the next scout and hopefully be able to get one on the road.”
This article was written by Kaylynn Wright. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @KaylynnWrightMU.
