The AP National Player of the Week shoes perfectly fit senior forward Liza Karlen’s feet Thursday afternoon.
Picking up her third double-double of the season, the St. Paul, Minnesota native scored a game-high 17 points and 13 rebounds in No. 18 Marquette women’s basketball’s 67-39 rout over Bucknell (3-8) at the Al McGuire Center.
The Golden Eagles (12-0, 1-0 Big East) are one of 12 college basketball teams that still boast an unblemished record.
Strong start
Bucknell couldn’t get the lid off its basket for the first 8:47 of the game, as Marquette ran out to a 21-0 lead before first-year forward Ashley Sofilkanich’s layup gave the Bison their first points.
The run was spearheaded by Karlen and sophomore guard Mackenzie Hare’s offensive efforts, who combined for 13 points. During the stretch, the Golden Eagles shot 9-for-15 from the field while the Bison went 0-for-9 and committed six turnovers.
Karlen had six boards in the first frame, which included five on the offensive glass. She also tallied four points and two assists. Hare cashed in nine points, including one triple, and grabbed two boards.
Bucknell’s four first-quarter points are the least Marquette has allowed in the opening frame all season. The Golden Eagles finished the frame with a 23-4 lead.
Demanding defense
The defense that Marquette displayed in the first quarter stuck around all game. Bucknell’s 14 first-half points were the least allowed by the Golden Eagles in a half all season.
The Bison made only five field goals in the first half to the Golden Eagles’ 17.
Marquette forced ten turnovers in the first half, which included five steals. Senior guard Rose Nkumu led the way defensively in the first 20 minutes with three steals. Marquette also out-rebounded Bucknell on the defensive glass with 19 rebounds to Bucknell’s three offensive boards.
Marquette finished the game forcing 16 Bucknell turnovers.
Bucknell’s 39 points are the second-lowest Marquette has allowed all season. The Golden Eagles were flirting with their best defensive performance of the season until the Bison closed the game on a 7-0 run over the final 1:28. Sofilkanich had two layups and sophomore guard Blake Matthews added a 3-pointer.
Frannie’s familiar foe
This was the first meeting between Marquette and Bucknell. However, graduate student forward Frannie Hottinger had been on the other side of the floor against the Bison 12 times during her career at Lehigh prior to today’s matchup.
In her three games against the Bison last season, Hottinger averaged 21.6 points and nine rebounds.
Her experience against the Bison showed as she finished with nine points and a game-high-tying 13 rebounds. This is her fourth 10-plus rebound game since joining Marquette.
Statistical leaders
Hare finished with the game with 15 points. Senior guard Jordan King added nine points, five rebounds and four assists. On top of the combined 26 rebounds from Hottinger and Karlen, first-year forward Skylar Forbes added seven boards. Marquette’s 55 rebounds is a season-high.
Sofilkanich led Bucknell in scoring with 12 points on 5-f0r-15 shooting. She also had three rebounds and three blocks. Sophomore forward Emma Theodorsson added 10 points and three rebounds on 4-f0r-9 shooting from the field.
Up Next
Marquette travels to Storrs, Connecticut for a New Year’s Eve matchup with the No. 17 UConn Huskies (7-3). Tip-off is scheduled for 12 p.m. CST. The Golden Eagles got their first win in program history over the Huskies last year at the Al McGuire Center.
Megan Duffy can reach 100 career wins as Marquette head coach with a win.
This story was written by Trevor Hilson. He can be reached at [email protected] or @hilsontrevor on Twitter/X.
