Kolek sparks 2nd-half rally as No. 7 Marquette beats St. John's 86-75 for 7th straight win
MILWAUKEE (AP) Everything he saw from his players midway through Saturday's game made Marquette coach Shaka Smart believe his team would bounce back from a sluggish first-half performance.
His faith was soon rewarded.
Tyler Kolek scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half and also had 13 assists as No. 7 Marquette rallied from a 15-point deficit to beat St. John’s 86-75 for its seventh consecutive victory.
“You could see from the look on the guys' face at halftime,” Smart said. “We knew we needed to be tougher. We knew we needed to be stronger - and more desperate.”
Nobody was tougher than Kolek.
The reigning Big East player of the year put Marquette ahead for good with a basket that broke a 69-all tie with 5:58 remaining. Kolek proceeded to score or assist on Marquette's last five baskets as the Golden Eagles put the game away.
“When I’m playing the game, I kind of just take what they give me, sometimes to my fault,” Kolek said. “But in the first half, they were playing zone, it wasn't really like I was coming off a lot of screens. I didn't really have the ball much. We were trying to move it around and get it in the middle of the zone. So I didn't really have many opportunities. ... We come out and we bang two 3s (early in the second half). They have to come out of the zone, start going man.”
Kolek took over from there. During the second half, he shot 9 of 13 overall and 4 of 6 from 3-point range while also dishing out seven assists.
“This is one of Tyler Kolek's best games that he's ever played at Marquette,” Smart said.
Stevie Mitchell added 14 points, David Joplin had 12 and Kam Jones 10 to help Marquette (18-5, 9-3 Big East) beat St. John’s for a sixth straight time.
Daniss Jenkins had 22 points, six rebounds and six assists for St. John’s (14-10, 6-7). Joel Soriano, who entered averaging a team-high 15.9 points per game, scored just two and played only 17 minutes while struggling with foul trouble.
St. John's led 45-30 with 2:30 left in the first half and took a 47-38 edge into the break after shooting 8 of 18 from 3-point range and owning a 17-0 advantage in second-chance points over the first 20 minutes.
But the Red Storm couldn't maintain that momentum as St. John's coach Rick Pitino called the second half “just an abysmal performance defensively.” Marquette ended up shooting 55.9% overall and 14 of 27 from 3-point range for the game.
“We're improving offensively, but defensively we still have the same problems," Pitino said. “It is what it is. It's the first year. We're building a program, and you've got to build a program on defense.”
St. John’s still had a chance down the stretch.
The Red Storm trailed 75-73 when Nahiem Alleyne, who scored 12 points, missed a layup that would have tied it with 3:25 left. Marquette outscored St. John’s 11-2 the rest of the way.
BIG PICTURE
St. John's: The Red Storm desperately need a signature win to boost their postseason profile as they seek their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2019. This is a game they might look back on with regret next month.
Marquette: The Golden Eagles won in part because they were much more competitive on the glass in the second half. They allowed only three second-chance points after halftime. After getting outrebounded 23-12 in the first half, they had a 21-12 edge over the final 20 minutes.
“Our guys looked at each other and made an eyeball contract,” Smart said. “They said, ‘We’re not going to go down by somebody bullying us,' and they stepped forward.”
UP NEXT
St. John's: Plays at Providence on Tuesday.
Marquette: Plays at Butler on Tuesday.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | Joel Soriano vs. Oso Ighodaro (Daniss Jenkins gains possession) | |||
19:34 | Daniss Jenkins misses three point jump shot | |||
19:32 | Chris Ledlum offensive rebound | |||
19:28 | +2 | Chris Ledlum makes two point layup | 2-0 | |
19:07 | +3 | Kam Jones makes three point jump shot (Tyler Kolek assists) | 2-3 | |
18:56 | Daniss Jenkins turnover (bad pass) (David Joplin steals) | |||
18:45 | Kam Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
18:43 | RJ Luis Jr. defensive rebound | |||
18:38 | Chris Ledlum misses three point jump shot | |||
18:36 | David Joplin defensive rebound | |||
18:28 | Oso Ighodaro misses two point layup | |||
18:26 | Chris Ledlum defensive rebound | |||
18:05 | Jordan Dingle misses three point jump shot | |||
18:03 | Oso Ighodaro defensive rebound | |||
17:47 | +2 | David Joplin makes two point layup | 2-5 | |
17:46 | Red Storm 30 second timeout | |||
17:24 | Jordan Dingle turnover (bad pass) (Tyler Kolek steals) | |||
17:19 | RJ Luis Jr. shooting foul (Oso Ighodaro draws the foul) | |||
17:19 | Oso Ighodaro misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
17:19 | +1 | Oso Ighodaro makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 2-6 | |
17:04 | +3 | Daniss Jenkins makes three point jump shot | 5-6 | |
16:48 | +2 | Oso Ighodaro makes two point jump shot (Tyler Kolek assists) | 5-8 | |
16:24 | Daniss Jenkins misses two point layup | |||
16:22 | Joel Soriano offensive rebound | |||
16:15 | +2 | Daniss Jenkins makes two point jump shot (Joel Soriano assists) | 7-8 | |
16:03 | Oso Ighodaro turnover (bad pass) | |||
15:38 | Chris Ledlum misses two point layup | |||
15:36 | Oso Ighodaro defensive rebound | |||
15:30 | Tyler Kolek misses two point layup | |||
15:28 | Joel Soriano defensive rebound | |||
15:13 | +2 | RJ Luis Jr. makes two point layup | 9-8 | |
14:56 | Kam Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
14:54 | Joel Soriano defensive rebound | |||
14:45 | RJ Luis Jr. turnover (traveling) | |||
14:45 | TV timeout | |||
14:29 | +2 | Tyler Kolek makes two point layup | 9-10 | |
14:14 | +3 | RJ Luis Jr. makes three point jump shot (Daniss Jenkins assists) | 12-10 | |
13:53 | Nahiem Alleyne shooting foul (Kam Jones draws the foul) | |||
13:53 | +1 | Kam Jones makes regular free throw 1 of 3 | 12-11 | |
13:53 | +1 | Kam Jones makes regular free throw 2 of 3 | 12-12 | |
13:53 | +1 | Kam Jones makes regular free throw 3 of 3 | 12-13 | |
13:32 | +2 | RJ Luis Jr. makes two point layup | 14-13 | |
13:23 | +3 | Ben Gold makes three point jump shot (Tyler Kolek assists) | 14-16 | |
13:04 | Nahiem Alleyne misses three point jump shot | |||
13:02 | Daniss Jenkins offensive rebound | |||
12:57 | Nahiem Alleyne misses three point jump shot | |||
12:55 | Zuby Ejiofor offensive rebound | |||
12:47 | +2 | Zuby Ejiofor makes two point layup | 16-16 | |
12:39 | Ben Gold misses three point jump shot | |||
12:37 | Zaide Lowery offensive rebound | |||
12:32 | Zuby Ejiofor blocks Zaide Lowery's two point putback layup | |||
12:30 | Nahiem Alleyne defensive rebound | |||
12:23 | +2 | RJ Luis Jr. makes two point layup | 18-16 | |
12:20 | Tyler Kolek turnover (bad pass) | |||
12:00 | +2 | Zuby Ejiofor makes two point dunk (Daniss Jenkins assists) | 20-16 | |
11:43 | Oso Ighodaro turnover (bad pass) | |||
11:43 | TV timeout | |||
11:19 | Sean Conway misses two point layup | |||
11:17 | Sean Conway offensive rebound | |||
11:12 | Daniss Jenkins misses three point jump shot | |||
11:10 | Chase Ross defensive rebound | |||
10:58 | Oso Ighodaro misses two point layup | |||
10:56 | Sean Conway defensive rebound | |||
10:49 | Oso Ighodaro blocks Zuby Ejiofor's two point layup | |||
10:47 | Zuby Ejiofor offensive rebound | |||
10:42 | +3 | Jordan Dingle makes three point jump shot (Sean Conway assists) | 23-16 | |
10:30 | Stevie Mitchell turnover (lost ball) (Jordan Dingle steals) | |||
10:20 | +2 | Sean Conway makes two point jump shot (Jordan Dingle assists) | 25-16 | |
10:20 | Golden Eagles 30 second timeout | |||
9:58 | +2 | Oso Ighodaro makes two point layup (Chase Ross assists) | 25-18 | |
9:39 | +3 | Chris Ledlum makes three point jump shot (Jordan Dingle assists) | 28-18 | |
9:23 | Tyler Kolek misses three point jump shot | |||
9:21 | Chase Ross offensive rebound | |||
9:17 | Chase Ross misses two point layup | |||
9:15 | Zuby Ejiofor defensive rebound | |||
9:14 | Chris Ledlum offensive foul | |||
9:14 | Chris Ledlum turnover (offensive foul) | |||
8:50 | +2 | David Joplin makes two point layup | 28-20 | |
8:29 | +3 | Nahiem Alleyne makes three point jump shot (Chris Ledlum assists) | 31-20 | |
8:17 | Tre Norman misses three point jump shot | |||
8:15 | Chris Ledlum defensive rebound | |||
7:57 | Nahiem Alleyne turnover (bad pass) (Tre Norman steals) | |||
7:44 | +2 | David Joplin makes two point layup | 31-22 | |
7:21 | +2 | Chris Ledlum makes two point layup (Nahiem Alleyne assists) | 33-22 | |
7:21 | David Joplin shooting foul (Chris Ledlum draws the foul) | |||
7:21 | TV timeout | |||
7:21 | +1 | Chris Ledlum makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 34-22 | |
7:02 | +3 | Chase Ross makes three point jump shot (Kam Jones assists) | 34-25 | |
6:36 | Daniss Jenkins misses three point jump shot | |||
6:34 | Chris Ledlum offensive rebound | |||
6:30 | +3 | Nahiem Alleyne makes three point jump shot (Chris Ledlum assists) | 37-25 | |
6:18 | +2 | Kam Jones makes two point layup | 37-27 | |
5:52 | RJ Luis Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
5:50 | Tyler Kolek defensive rebound | |||
5:37 | Nahiem Alleyne blocks Kam Jones's two point driving layup | |||
5:35 | Daniss Jenkins defensive rebound | |||
5:28 | Daniss Jenkins misses two point driving layup | |||
5:26 | Joel Soriano offensive rebound | |||
5:26 | Oso Ighodaro blocks Joel Soriano's two point putback layup | |||
5:24 | Tyler Kolek defensive rebound | |||
5:11 | Kam Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
5:09 | Chris Ledlum defensive rebound | |||
4:54 | RJ Luis Jr. misses two point jump shot | |||
4:52 | Oso Ighodaro defensive rebound | |||
4:43 | +3 | David Joplin makes three point jump shot (Tyler Kolek assists) | 37-30 | |
4:24 | +2 | Daniss Jenkins makes two point layup | 39-30 | |
4:13 | Oso Ighodaro turnover (bad pass) (Drissa Traore steals) | |||
3:50 | +3 | Daniss Jenkins makes three point jump shot | 42-30 | |
3:40 | Oso Ighodaro misses two point jump shot | |||
3:38 | Daniss Jenkins defensive rebound | |||
3:20 | Nahiem Alleyne misses three point jump shot | |||
3:18 | Tyler Kolek defensive rebound | |||
3:12 | Tyler Kolek turnover (bad pass) (Nahiem Alleyne steals) | |||
3:01 | Oso Ighodaro personal foul | |||
3:01 | TV timeout | |||
2:43 | Jordan Dingle misses three point jump shot | |||
2:41 | Chris Ledlum offensive rebound | |||
2:32 | +3 | Daniss Jenkins makes three point jump shot (Chris Ledlum assists) | 45-30 | |
2:19 | +3 | Ben Gold makes three point jump shot (Tyler Kolek assists) | 45-33 | |
1:50 | Chris Ledlum misses two point driving layup | |||
1:48 | Zuby Ejiofor offensive rebound | |||
1:47 | Zuby Ejiofor misses two point putback layup | |||
1:45 | Ben Gold defensive rebound | |||
1:34 | +2 | Kam Jones makes two point driving layup (Tyler Kolek assists) | 45-35 | |
1:11 | Jordan Dingle misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
1:07 | Golden Eagles defensive rebound | |||
0:55 | Joel Soriano shooting foul (Oso Ighodaro draws the foul) | |||
0:55 | Joel Soriano technical foul | |||
0:55 | Joel Soriano turnover | |||
0:55 | Stevie Mitchell technical foul | |||
0:55 | Oso Ighodaro misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
0:55 | Oso Ighodaro misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
0:55 | Jordan Dingle defensive rebound | |||
0:34 | Daniss Jenkins misses two point pullup jump shot | |||
0:32 | Zuby Ejiofor offensive rebound | |||
0:25 | +2 | RJ Luis Jr. makes two point driving finger roll layup (Daniss Jenkins assists) | 47-35 | |
0:03 | +3 | Tyler Kolek makes three point jump shot (Oso Ighodaro assists) | 47-38 | |
0:00 | End of period |