Marquette Cruises Past Seton Hall, 78-56

March 11, 2015

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NEW YORK (AP) - Matt Carlino had all but two of his 26 points on 3-pointers and ninth-seeded Marquette had its best game of the season from beyond the arc in a 78-56 victory over eighth-seeded Seton Hall on Wednesday night in the opening round of the BIG EAST Tournament.

Carlino was 8 for 12 from 3-point range as the Golden Eagles (13-18) finished 13 for 22, just the second time this season they shot better than 50 percent from long range.

Marquette faces top-seeded and fourth-ranked Villanova in the quarterfinals on Thursday.

Luke Fischer had 14 points and Duane Wilson added 13 for Marquette, which was 13 of 25 (52 percent) from 3-point range in a 95-85 overtime loss to Georgetown on Jan. 24.

Derrick Wilson had seven points and a career-high 14 assists for Marquette, which led 35-22 at halftime and went up by as many as 27 points in the second half. Marquette had lost six of its last seven and it snapped a four-game losing streak in the Big East tournament.

Isaiah Whitehead had 12 points for Seton Hall (16-15), which has lost nine of 10. The Pirates were ranked as high as 19th this season but went 4-12 after that point.

Marquette came into the game shooting 33.6 percent from 3-point range, ninth in the 10-team conference.

Seton Hall finished 5 of 21 from 3-point range.

TIP-INS:

Marquette: Steve Taylor Jr. banked in a 3 at the halftime buzzer to end Seton Hall's 8-0 run and give the Golden Eagles a 35-22 lead. ... Marquette's biggest win the Big East tournament was a 74-45 victory over St. John's in 2009.

Seton Hall: The Pirates missed their first six 3-point attempts, then made two in the late 8-0 run. ... The Pirates' worst loss in the Big East tournament was a 75-48 decision against Boston College in 2001.

UP NEXT:

Marquette: Top-seeded and fourth-ranked Villanova in quarterfinals on Thursday.

Seton Hall: Hoping for an outside chance at an NIT bid.