Big East Sports Blog

Five players scored in double figures, as West Viriginia handed Rutgers their fifth consecutive loss 81-63 on Thursday night.  The Mountaineers have struggled of late, winning for just the second time in their last five outings.  West Virginia led 42-27 at the break and Rutgers never threatened in the second half.  Rutgers couldn’t keep a hold of the basketball, committing 17 turnovers that resulted in 29 easy points for the Mountaineers, who turned the ball over just four times. 

The Golden Eagles swarmed the Panthers, using a 17-0 run early as the second half began and No.25 Marquette routed No.24 Pittsburgh on Friday night, 72-54.  Jerel McNeal had 17 points for Marquette, and while Dominic James was held to just five points, he dished out an array of beautiful assists, 12 in all, and James didn’t turn the ball over once.

Pittsburgh got a huge emotional boost, returning guard Levance Fields to the lineup, who missed the last 12 games with a broken left foot.  Fields, as expected, struggled to get his legs under him the first time out, shooting 1-of-7 from the field for four points.  Sam Young led the Panthers with 18 points.  Pittsburgh had a hand in helping Marquette during their 17-0 run, committing eight turnovers in the opening nine minutes of the second half and misfiring on nine of their first 11 shot attempts.  The Golden Eagles dominated the Panthers in the paint as well, pounding Pittsburgh 16-2 in the lane.  Freshman DeJuan Blair was silenced, finishing with just six points and five rebounds, and it was a tough night as well for Ronald Ramon, who had four points on 1-of-7 shooting.  Overall, Marquette’s defense limited Pittsburgh to 37 percent shooting from the field.  The Golden Eagles picked up their first win against a ranked opponent this season.

No.23 Louisville 88  DePaul 68

Terrence Williams matched his season high of 22 points and David Padgett added 20 to help No.23 Louisville cruise past DePaul 88-68.  The Cardinals once again used a stifling defense to win their fourth straight, holding DePaul to 37 percent shooting.  Louisville (19-6, 9-3) jumped all over DePaul early, leading 23-8, and led 37-21 before DePaul’s 10-2 cut the lead to 39-31 at the half.  Dar Tucker’s 22 points off the bench couldn’t help the Blue Demons (10-14, 5-7) avoid their fifth loss in the last six games, and the Blue Demons are clinging to life in the playoff picture in the Big East, sitting in the 11th spot.

No.25 Marquette 89  Seton Hall 64

No doubt about this one, the Golden Eagles made it look effort-less against Seton Hall.  Marquette smothered the Pirates (15-10, 5-7) early and often, scoring the game’s first 15 points and leading 21-4 after just seven minutes of action.  Marquette (17-6, 7-5) led 40-22 at halftime, putting this one away in the first 20-minute frame.  Lazard Hayward led four Marquette players in double figures with 23 and a game-high nine boards.  The Golden Eagles pounded on the Pirates 43-29 on the glass.  Jeremy Hazell led Seton Hall with 18 points and Brian Laing finished with 17 and pulled down just three rebounds.  Marquette sweeps the season series with Seton Hall, and the Golden Eagles are winners of four of their last six.

No. 24 Pittsburgh 82  Providence 63

Providence hung around in the first half, trailing by five at the break, as the Friars wouldn’t allow the Panthers to run and hide.  Then, the second half came.

Pittsburgh held Providence to just six points in the first 11 minutes of action in the second half, allowing Pittsburgh to pull away from Providence 82-63.  Sam Young’s career-high 22 points propelled the Panthers (19-5, 7-4) to their 14th home win of the season and Ronald Ramon and DeJuan Blair finished with 15 points apiece.  It hasn’t been pretty for Providence (13-11, 4-8) lately.  They’ve lost six of their last seven, and are now winless against Pittsburgh in their last eight tries.  To make matters worse, the loss drops the Friars to 1-6 on the road this season in the Big East.

Monday, Feb.4th

• Louisville 71, #16 Marquette 57
• St. Joseph’s 77, Villanova 55

Tuesday, Feb.5th

• #6 Georgetown 63, South Florida 53
• Providence 79, DePaul 65

Wednesday, Feb.6th

• #19 UConn 63, Syracuse 61
• #22 Notre Dame 95, Seton Hall 69
• St.John’s 52, Rutgers 45

Thursday, Feb.7th

• #25 Pittsburgh 55, West Virginia 54

Friday, Feb 8th. - No games scheduled

Scoreboard for Monday, Jan.28th

UConn 69, Louisville 67

The Huskies prevail on Big Monday behind a big night from guard A.J. Price, who poured in 20 points.  UConn pounded Louisville on the glass, winning the rebounding advantage 40-29.  Very uncharacteristic night for Louisville.  The Cardinals jacked up 33 3-point attempts, connecting on 11; Juan Palacios and Terrence Williams combined to hoist 17 3’s.  UConn played with a short bench, due to suspensions to Doug Wiggins and Jerome Dyson last week.  The frontcourt duo of Stanley Robinson and Jeff Adrien combined for 28 points and 20 rebounds to help UConn to win their 4th straight.

Tuesday, Jan.29th  - #17 Marquette 62, South Florida 52

With Jerel McNeal and Dominic James struggling, Lazar Hayward scored 23 points and Wesley Matthews dropped in 16 to help Marquette past South Florida.  McNeal was held to six points, James managed only three for the Golden Eagles.  In a surprising twist, (not really) Kentrell Gransberry turned in another double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds, but the Bulls were unable to overcome an eight-point halftime defict.

Wednesday scoreboard - Jan.30th

• #6 Georgetown 74  St. John’s 42
• #18Pittsburgh 69  Villanova 57
• Syracuse 60  DePaul 55
• Cincinnati 62  West Virginia 39
• Seton Hall 84  Rutgers 71

Saturday, January 26th

• Notre Dame 90  #18 Villanova 80
• UConn 68  #7 Indiana 63
• Louisville 67  St. John’s 57
• Rutgers 77  #13 Pittsburgh 64
• Marquette 79  DePaul 71
• #9 Georgetown 58  West Virginia 57

Sunday, January 27th

Seton Hall recorded their 4th straight win with a 64-61 win over Cincinnati.  Center Brian Laing dominated with 23 points and eight rebounds, and Jamar Nutter finished with 20 points.  Deonta Vaughn tried to keep Cincinnati within strking distance, scoring 15 points in the game.  Vaughn was the sole Bearcat in double figures.  Cincy trailed by 56-53 down the stretch but the Bearcats couldn’t get over the hump and pull out the victory.  The Pirates improve to 14-6 and 4-3 in the Big East.  Cincinnati falls to 9-11 and .500 in the conference at 4-4.

Freshman Donte Greene powered Syracuse with 24 points, as the Orange were able to fend off pesky Providence 71-64 on Sunday afternoon.  The freshman came up large in the final minutes of the game, breaking a 56-all tie with a 3-pointer and Syrcause sealed the game at the free throw line with 8-of-10 attempts in the final 90 seconds of action.  Providence was led by Dwain Williams with 21 points and Jeff Xavier with 16.  Weyinmi Efejuku and Geoff McDermott both finished scoreless on a combined 0-of-9 shooting.  Syracuse pounded the Friars on the glass, outrebounding Providence 47-32; six Syracuse players had at least four rebounds, with Arinze Onuaku leading the charge with 14 boards.  Syracuse pulled to .500 in Big East play (4-4) and 14-7 overall, while Providence fell below the .500 mark (3-4) and 12-7 overall.

Huskies hand Golden Eagles 2nd straight loss

Both UConn and No.13 Marquette were coming off losses last Thursday, to Providence and Louisville respectively.  On Sunday, UConn was determined to rebound from the loss at the expense of Marquette.  Connecticut dominated Marquette in Storrs, 89-73, handing the Golden Eagles their 2nd straight double-digit defeat in the Big East on Sunday.

A.J. Price led five Connecticut (12-5, 3-3) players in double figures, with 17 points and eight assists.  Craig Austrie and Jeff Adrien added 15 each, and Hasheem Thabeet turned in a good afternoon with 15 points, seven rebounds and six blocks.  As a team, UConn recorded 10 blocks in the game.

No.13 Marquette (13-4, 3-3) suffered their 2nd straight double-digit defeat on the road, and the Golden Eagles were held to just 40 percent shooting.  Lazar Hayward paced Marquette with 14 points and Wesley Mattews added 13.  In the loss last Thursday to Louisville, Marquette shot only 30 percent from the field and missed all 12 3-point attempts.  The backcourt duo of Jerel McNeal and Dominic James each added nine points apiece on a combined 7-of-20 shooting.

UConn was impressive from the free-throw line, sinking 33-of-39 attempts, with Marquette got to the line just 18 times, connect on 11.  The Huskies led 39-24 at the half, and went on a 12-5 early run in the second half to balloon their lead to 51-29, as the Golden Eagles missed on seven of their first nine shots to open the second half.  UConn’s largest lead of the game was 67-38 with nine and a half to play.

Connecticut will travel to Cincinnati on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m., while Marquette will have five days off to regroup.  They’ll return to action on Saturday against DePaul.

Mountaineers use big 2nd half to storm past Bulls

Four players scored in double figures for West Virginia, as the Mountaineers picked up a 69-52 road win against South Florida on Sunday afternoon.

West Virginia (14-4, 4-2) was powered by Da’Sean Butler and Darris Nichols, who each finished with 15 points; Butler added 12 rebounds.  Alex Ruoff added 14 and Joe Mazzulla had 11.  Despite shooting only 29.6 percent in the first half, the Mountaineers picked their game up in the second, shooting 48 percent and dropping in 43 second-half points.

Kentrell Gransberry led South Florida (10-9, 1-5) once again, pouring in 22 points and grabbing seven rebounds.  Gransberry, however, had a day to forget at the free-throw line, going 2-of-11 from the charity stripe.  As a team, South Florida was just 4-of-15 from the line.  The Bulls also struggled from beyond the arc, going 4-of-19, including shooting 2-of-12 in the second half.

West Virginia, which has won three in a row, will host Marshall on Wednesday at 8 p.m.  South Florida, which has lost five straight and five of six Big East Conference games, will try to end their five-game slide on Wednesday at 7 p.m. against visiting Louisville.

There were 4 games on the Big East slate on Thursday night, with Seton Hall, Providence, Louisville and West Virginia all picking up key victories in conference play.

Seton Hall 74, South Florida 64

The monkey finally comes off their backs, as Seton Hall gets their win this season in Big East play, defeating South  Florida 74-64.  Seton Hall (11-6, 1-3) had four players score in double figures, with Jeremy Hazell leading the charge with 22 points.  Jamar Nutter added 13 points and John Garcia pitched in with 10 points and 13 rebounds. 

South Florida (10-8, 1-4) was led by Kentrell Gransberry, who had 21 points and 10 boards.  The Bulls doubled-up the Pirates early, leading 12-6 before Seton Hall raced back with a 15-0 run, all coming on 3-pointers, to go up 21-12.  The Pirates led at the break 36-30.  South Florida would get no closer than three points the entire second half, as they lost their fourth straight game.  They’ll try to end their four-game slide on Sunday afternoon when they West Virginia at 2 p.m.  Seton Hall returns to action on Saturday night when they host Louisville at 8 p.m.

West Virginia 73  St. John’s 64

With the scored tied at 29 at halftime, West Virginia used 59 percent shooting from the field in the second half to knock off St. John’s 73-64 on Wednesday night.  Da’Sean Butler led WVU (13-4, 3-2) with 19 points and Joe Alexander added 15 points.  John Flowers and Darris Nichols each finished with 10.  The Mountaineers have now won three of their last four.

St. John’s (7-9, 1-4) dropped their third straight despite 15 points off the bench from Larry Wright and 14 points from Anthony Mason Jr.  The Red Storm outrebounded the Mountaineers 39-30, but never came closer than six points in the second frame. 

It boiled down to a couple big runs by WVU in the first and second half.  Down 19-13 in the first half, the Mountaineers went on a 13-2 run to go up 26-21, however St. John’s late 8-3 run closed out the first half at 29 apiece.  With just under eight to play in the second half, WVU went on a decisive 19-6 run to led 55-43.  The win marks the 15th straight at home for West Virginia.  They’ll travel to South Florida on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m., while St. John’s will be idle for five days until they return to action next Wednesday, Jan.23rd, when they host Pittsburgh at 7 p.m.

Providence 77  Connecticut 65

Providence pulled off a little bit of shocker in Gampel Pavillion on Wednesday night, defeating Connecticut 77-65.  Dwain Williams scored 23 points for the Friars, who hit 14 3-pointers on the night, topping their 13 they hit earlier in the week against South Florida.  Williams was 6-of-9 from behind the arc and Brian McKenzie was a perfect 4-of-4 from downtown, finishing with 20 points.  Geoff McDermott added 12 points and Jeff Xavier finished with 11.  The Friars are officially on a winning streak, having won three straight conference games.

Jeff Adrien led UConn (11-5, 2-3) with 16 points and 15 rebounds, Doug Wiggins had 15 and A.J. Price added 12.  The turning point of the game game when Price picked up his fourth foul with just under 13 minutes to go with UConn trailing 43-40.  With Price on the bench, Providence (12-5, 3-2) went for the kill, going on a 17-8 run to lead 60-48.  Price would return to action, but was unable to spark a Huskie run.  UConn couldn’t get the Friars lead under nine points the remainder of the second half.  While Providence flourished from 3-point range, UConn floundered, shooting just 4-of-19 from beyond the arc and 24 percent shooting in the second half.  The Huskies shot 37 percent for the game, while Providence shot 43 percent.  UConn will look to rebound off the home loss with a home victory, when they face off against Marquette on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.  Providence will have a week off and they’ll return to action next Thursday, Jan. 24th at home against Seton Hall.

Louisville 71 #13 Marquette 51

Don’t look now, but Louisville is healthy and starting to play with a lot consistency.  Just ask Marquette, who saw first hand, how dangerous Louisville is becoming.  Louisville dominated No.13 Marquette from start to finish, smashing the visiting Golden Eagles 71-51 on Thursday night. 

Louisville (13-4, 3-1) shot 49 percent from the field, as Terrence Williams led the way with a game-high 20 points and David Padgett finshed with 17 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for the Cardinals, which outscored Marquette 35-12.  The Louisville defense limited Marquette to just 30.4 percent shooting and held the Golden Eagles without a 3-point field goal; Marquette went 0-of-12 from beyond the arc.  Louisville has won four straight and moved into a 4-way tie atop the Big East standings at 3-1.

Marquette (13-3, 3-2) was reduced to a jump shooting team largely because the tenacious Louisville defense allowed close to zero dribble-drive penatration from the Golden Eagles.  Jerel McNeal led Marquette with 16 points and Wesley Matthews finished with 14.  As if the brow beating wasn’t bad enough, Marquette lost guard Dominic James in the second half, after James reaggrivated a wrist injury with about six minutes to go.  James did not return and finished with a season-low three points.  The Golden Eagles also lost the battle on the glass 40-28.

No.13 Marquette will try to rebound on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. when they travel to Connecticut to take on the Huskies.  Louisville will aim for their fifth straight win on Saturday night at 8 p.m. against Seton Hall.

While the Fighting Irish have enjoyed the home cooking at the Joyce Center, Marquette was ready and willing to be rude hosts on Saturday night.  Notre Dame played on the road for just the second time this season as No.15 Marquette pasted the Fighting Irish 92-66 on Saturday night, behind five Golden Eagles  in double figures.

Jerel McNeal led the Marquette squad with 18 points and Lazard Hayward had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds.  Dominic James had 16 points, Wesley Matthews added 15 and David Cubillan chipped in with 11.  Marquette (13-2, 3-1) shot the ball well against the Irish, shooting 46.6 percent for the game, while hitting on 50 percent of their 3-pointers (12-24) and shooting 80 percent from the line.

As for the Irish, despite outrebounding Marquette 46-36, their shooting touch abandoned them in the second half.  After shooting 48 percent in the first, Notre Dame went ice cold in the second, shooting 31 percent on just 9-of-29 shooting.  Luke Harangody continues to be a workhorse for Notre Dame (12-3, 2-1), leading the Irish with 29 points (18 in the first half) and 14 rebounds, but received little help from his teammates.  Rob Kurz and Klye McAlarney combined for just 19 points on 6-of-16 combined shooting.  McAlarney was fresh off a career night against UConn, scoring 32 points, but had just eight in this one.  A season-high 24 turnovers, and just 13 assists helped plague the Irish as well.  Notre Dame missed their first eight 3-point attempts to start the game and finished 4-of-19 from downtown, good for just 21 percent.

Notre Dame trailed at halftime for the first time all year, 44-36, and were quickly blitzed as the second frame began.  Marquette used a smothering 20-5 run to race away from the Irish. 

A great job by the Golden Eagles to protect home court against hot Notre Dame club that hasn’t lost since Nov.19th.  This loss, however, ends Notre Dame’s 10-game winning streak.  Marquette set the tone from the opening tap and round their rhythm early, and Irish were simply overwhelmed and overmatched on this afternoon.  The Golden Eagles’ 12 three’s were a season high, as were their 17 steals, and to help matters, Marquette’s 20 fastbreak points to just two for Notre Dame made life on the road very unpleasant for the Irish.

No.15 Marquette will hit the road this Thursday at 7 p.m. when they travel to Freedom Hall to face off against Louisville.  Notre Dame will look to regroup and rebound back home against Cincinnati on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

No.15 Marquette won their 11th straight home game on Tuesday night with a 61-56 win over visiting Seton Hall.  Marquette (12-2, 2-1) was coming off a difficult loss this past weekend at the hands of West Virginia, but once again the Golden Eagles had their fare share of difficulties generating and sustaining offense.  Their backcourt trio of James-McNeal-Matthews combined to shoot 33 percent and the Golden Eagles finished the night shooting just under 33 percent as a team.

Jerel McNeal led Marquette with 14 points and seven rebounds and forward Dan Fitzgerald had 12 points off the bench on 4-of-9 shooting from 3-point range.  Depth played a factor in Marquette’s ability to pull this one out, with the Golden Eagles finishing with 22 bench points to just nine from Seton Hall.  Fitzgerald’s fourth and final 3-pointer was the final dagger for the Pirates.  Fitzgerald drained a three with less than 10 seconds left, capping the win for Marquette.

This one didn’t turn into a track meet, rather a hard-fought defensive struggle in which Marquette played better defense down the stretch than Seton Hall.  Neither team shot the ball particularly well; Seton Hall finished the night shooting 36 percent and Marquette shot 32.8 percent.  Before Tuesday night’s contest, both squads came into the game averaging above 80 points per game.

Eugene Harvey led Seton Hall (10-5, 0-2) with 18 points and Brian Laing finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.  Both players combined for 11 of Seton Hall’s 21 field goals.  Jamar Nutter finished with nine points on 3-of-8 shooting.  All eight shots Nutter took from beyond the arc.  The 3-point shot wasn’t kind to Seton Hall on this night, as the Pirates shot 3-of-18 from 3-point range (16.7 percent).  Seton Hall starters were 0-of-10 from beyond the arc.

Both teams tooth-and-nail during the final six minutes of play.  Marquette finally took the lead down the stretch, but didn’t take more than a four point lead until Fitzgerald’s final 3-pointer allowed Marquette to win by six.  Seton Hall hurt themselves at the line, missing four free throws down the stretch, while Marquette converted on 6-of-9 attempts at the line.

Seton Hall controlled things for almost the entire game, forcing Marquette to play catch-up and come from behind.  The Pirates led in the first half 22-9 at one stretch and Marquette was completely caught on their heels.  Seton Hall led at halftime 31-24.  Marquette’s first lead since the first few moments of the game, came at 49-47 with less than six minutes to go; Marquette never trailed again in the game.

The win for Marquette may have been costly.  Guard Dominic James left the game with under six minutes to play after an intentional foul by Nutter sent James to the floor.  James suffered a sprained right wrist, and his availability for the game against Notre Dame this weekend is uncertain.  James finished the game with 13 points.

Marquette will host one of the hottest teams in the Big East, in the form on Notre Dame on Saturday at 2 p.m.  Seton Hall will aim for their first conference win on Saturday when they travel to Pittsburgh at 2 p.m.

Marquette should have expected the unexpected when they ventured into Morgantown, but then again can you blame Marquette and head coach Tom Crean for being taken by suprise?  After all Huggins used a defensive scheme he’s never instituted before.  The gamble payed big dividends.

West Virginia abandoned their man-to-man defense and used a triangle-and-2 scheme to surprise and defeat No.10 Marquette 79-64 on Sunday afternoon.  The Mountaineers (11-3, 1-1) won their 13th straight home game and sixth straight Big East opener, while the loss ends a seven game winning streak for Marquette (11-2, 1-1).

The Mountaineers were able to avoid an 0-2 start in the Big East behind the tandem of Alex Ruoff and Joe Alexander.  Both players scored 19 points apiece and combined for eight 3-pointers against the Golden Eagles.  The dominant backcourt of Dominic James and Jerel McNeal didn’t have it on Sunday afternoon, with duo combining for only 20 points on 8-of-20 shooting.  Lazard Hayward and Wesley Matthews led Marquette with each scoring 13 points.  As James and McNeal go, so will Marquette, and unfortunately, the tandem couldn’t get into a rhythm or flow offensively, and neither could the Golden Eagles.

West Virginia’s defense caused havoc within the first 10 minutes of the game, causing nine Marquette turnovers that allowed West Virginia to go up 21-11 early.  Marquette settled down and countered with a 12-0 run to go up 23-21 with four and a half minutes to play in the first half.  After a see-saw first 20 minutes, West Virginia led at the break 29-28.

The Golden Eagles went on an 8-0 run in the first few minutes of the second half to lead 43-40, but West Virginia again countered, going on an 11-2 run to lead 51-46.  Marquette couldn’t match the energy or tenacity, as the home crowd got into it and behind West Virginia, and the Mountaineers pulled away, leading by as many as 17 near the end of the game.  West Virginia nailed an impressive 13 straight free throws over the final two minutes of play get the victory.  The Mountaineers also held the rebounding edge, 38-26.

The loss marks the first time since Nov.21st Marquette has suffered a loss.  Their 64 point effort is the lowest point total of the season for the Golden Eagles.  No.10 Marquette will look to get back in the win column on Tuesday night when they host Seton Hall at 9 p.m.  West Virginia will head to Louisville to take on the Cardinals on Thursday at 7 p.m.