WBB Defeats Providence 57-51

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Marquette women's basketball team (19-9, 12-7 BIG EAST) earned a win in its final road contest of the regular season, defeating Providence 57-51 on Friday night at Alumni Hall.

The Golden Eagles were propelled by a dominant performance from sophomore forward Liza Karlen, who recorded a double-double with a career-best 24 points to go along with 10 boards.

"At this point in the season we'll take a win no matter how gritty or ugly it is, so we're extremely happy," said Marquette head coach Megan Duffy "Liza Karlen was huge down the stretch, making big shots and big stops on the defensive end."

After a low-scoring first half of action, the game was tied up at 24-24 after two quarters. Marquette then found some offensive rhythm out of the locker room as it opened the third quarter on a 10-2 run.

The Friars fought back into the contest, eventually taking their first and only lead of the second half at 49-47 with 3:41 to play in the fourth quarter, but the Golden Eagles once again responded, this time with an 8-0 run to regain control and seal the victory.

Marquette had a strong night on the glass, pulling down a season-high 22 offensive boards, nine of which came from senior forward Chloe Marotta. Marotta finished with a season-high tying 13 total rebounds.

Providence (11-16, 6-12 BIG EAST) was led by Janai Crooms, who finished with a team-best 11 points on the night.

Liza Karlen had a career-high 24 points on 9-of-21 shooting from the floor, 2-of-3 shooting from 3-point range and 4-of-4 shooting at the free throw line.
This was the fourth double-double and the second 20-plus point game of Karlen's career.
Chloe Marotta's 13 rebounds tied a season-high, and were just one shy of tying her career-high.
Marquette brought down a season-high 22 rebounds while holding Providence to just eight.
The Golden Eagles won the battle of the boards 46-36.
Providence's Alyssa Geary fouled out with :34 remaining in the game
With the win, Marquette is now 22-5 all-time against Providence, and has won 10-straight against the Friars.
With the win, Marquette swept the regular season series against Providence.
Marquette can now guarantee that it finishes no lower than the 5-seed in the BIG EAST Tournament, and can clinch a first-round bye with a win on Sunday over St. John's.

UP NEXT: Marquette will return home for its final game of the regular season on Sunday, Feb 27, as they face St. John's at the Al McGuire Center at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on FloHoops, with live stats available on GoMarquette.com.

Keep up with the Marquette women's basketball program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteWBB) and Instagram (@marquettewbb) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteWBB).