Marquette University
UConn
WBB Faces No. 9 UConn in BIG EAST Semifinals Sunday
3/4/2023 8:36:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Golden Eagles and Huskies split regular season series 1-1
UNCASVILLE, Connecticut — The Marquette women's basketball team (21-9, 13-7 BIG EAST) continues postseason play this weekend as it takes on 1-seed UConn (27-5, 18-2 BIG EAST) in the BIG EAST Tournament Semifinal round on Sunday, March 5. The Golden Eagles and the Huskies will tip-off at 2 p.m. (CT) from Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The game will be broadcast on FS1 with Matt Schumacker (play-by-play), Kim Adams (analyst) and Meghan Caffrey (sideline) on the call. A link to live stats is available on GoMarquette.com.
In the BIG EAST quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon, Marquette picked up a 57-47 win over 4-seed St. John's at Mohegan Sun Arena. The Golden Eagles lockdown defense down the stretch and huge performances from Chloe Marotta, Jordan King and Liza Karlen to secure the win, as the trio combined for 50 points to help MU advance to its seventh-straight BIG EAST Tournament semifinal.
The Huskies won the BIG EAST regular season title after finishing 27-5 overall and 18-2 in league play. They are ranked ninth in the most recent AP Poll. UConn punched a ticket into the semifinal round with a 69-39 win over 8-seed Georgetown on Saturday afternoon.
UConn is led by junior Aaliyah Edwards, a forward who is averaging a team-best 16.4 points to go along with 9.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per contest. Graduate forward Dorka Juhász leads the team on the glass with 10.0 rebounds per game, while junior guard Nika Mühl ranks second in the NCAA with 7.8 assists per outing.
Marquette and UConn have met up 17 times in a series which began in 2006, the Huskies winning 16 of those meetings. The teams split the regular season series this year, UConn winning 61-48 in Storrs on Dec. 31, Marquette winning in Milwaukee 59-52 on Feb. 8.
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
• Connecticut enters Saturday's contest ranked No. 9 in the AP Poll with a 27-5 record, and won the BIG EAST regular season title after going 18-2 in conference play.
• The Huskies won the 2021-22 BIG EAST Tournament and were the NCAA Tournament runners-up after a 30-6 campaign.
• UConn is 4-0 in neutral site games this season.
• It advanced to the tournament semifinals with a 69-39 win over 8-seed Georgetown on Saturday afternoon.
• The team has been led by junior Aaliyah Edwards, a forward who is averaging a team-best 16.4 points to go along with 9.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per contest. Graduate forward Dorka Juhász leads the team on the glass with 10.0 rebounds per game, while junior guard Nika Mühl is second in the NCAA with 7.8 assists per outing.
• The Huskies rank third in the NCAA in field goal percentage at 49.5 percent. They also rank fifth in assists (18.7), ninth in rebound margin (10.2) and 13th in 3-point percentage (37.5).
ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST UCONN
• Saturday's meeting will be the 18th all-time between Marquette and UConn, a series which began in 2006.
• UConn has won 16 of the 17 games in the series.
• The teams split the season series, each winning on their home court.
• MU and UConn met up in last year's tournament semifinals, the Huskies earning a 71-51 victory in that outing.
Last 5 Meetings
DATE LOCATION RESULT SCORE
2/8/23 H W 59-52
12/31/22 A L 61-48
3/6/22 N L 51-71
2/23/22 A L 38-69
2/13/22 H L 58-72
REGULAR SEASON SERIES
• In the first meeting between MU and UConn this season, the Huskies came out on top with a 61-48 win at Gampel Pavilion.
• Marquette got out to a slow start and despite a resilient effort, played from behind through the entire contest. It was able to cut the Husky lead to just six points midway through the fourth, but UConn shot 8-of-13 in the final quarter to secure the win.
• MU was led by Liza Karlen's 15 points, while Lou Lopez Senechal scored 22 points to pace the Huskies.
• In Milwaukee on Feb. 8, the Golden Eagles used suffocating defense to earn their first-ever victory over UConn, winning 59-52.
• Marquette forced 19 Husky turnovers, while holding them to a season-low 52 points.
• Jordan King and Chloe Marotta combined for 37 points in the contest, while Liza Karlen brought down a team-high 10 boards.
STARTING FIVE
• The Golden Eagles are 54-23 against BIG EAST opponents under Coach Duffy.
• Coach Duffy is off to the best coaching start through four seasons of any coach in program history. She boasts a 87-35 overall mark (.713) at Marquette.
• The Golden Eagles are 74-3 under Coach Duffy when leading at halftime and 56-8 when they turn the ball over the same or fewer times than their opponent.
• MU is 46-4 when scoring more than 70 points under Coach Duffy and 55-5 when shooting more free throws than its opponent.
• In the 122 games of the Coach Duffy era, the Golden Eagles have out-rebounded their opponent 96 times.
LAST TIME OUT
• Marquette opened its postseason with a 57-47 win over 4-seed St. John's in the quarterfinal round of the BIG EAST Tournament on Saturday afternoon.
• The Golden Eagles used a late surge and big scoring performances from Chloe Marotta, Jordan King and Liza Karlen to secure the win, as the trio combined for 50 points.
• The first 16 minutes of the second half were played within a single possession, neither team leading by more than three at any point, before Marquette surged ahead with a 10-0 run to open up a double-digit lead and remained on top the rest of the way.
• Marotta led MU in both scoring and rebounding, going for 18 points and 14 boards, while King and Karlen finished with 16 points apiece.
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• Sunday's game will be the seventh-straight BIG EAST Tournament semifinal appearance, with the Golden Eagles winning to advance in five of the previous six.
• Marquette is 19-17 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament games, and 5-3 in the semifinals.
• This will be the third-straight year MU faces UConn in the tournament, the Huskies defeating Marquette in the championship game in 2021 and in the semifinals last season.
ALL-BIG EAST HONORS
• The senior duo of Jordan King and Chloe Marotta were each named to the All-BIG EAST First team, the league office announced Thursday morning, the first time that Marquette has ever had two first-teamers in the same season.
• King was a unanimous selection to the All-BIG EAST First Team after leading the team with 16.3 points and 3.9 assists per game, ranking seventh and fifth in the league in those categories, respectively. King also led the squad in 3-point percentage as she hit 37.5 percent of her shots from distance, and averaged a team-best 1.9 steals per contest.
• Marotta also landed a spot on the All-BIG EAST First Team after averaging career-bests in almost every statistical category this year. She led MU's efforts on the glass with 8.9 rebounds per contest, ranking third in the BIG EAST. She also ranked second on the squad and 12th in the league in scoring at 14.8 points per outing while shooting 46.3 percent from the floor, the most efficient mark on the squad.
FRESHMAN FIREPOWER
• The freshman pair of Emily La Chapell and Mackenzie Hare were each named to the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team, the first time that Marquette has had two freshmen earn that honor in the same season since Natisha Hiedeman and Allazia Blockton in 2015-16.
• La Chapell was a unanimous selection to the All-Freshman Team after bursting on to the scene this year. She made 17 starts for the Golden Eagles, including each of the final 16 games, and was twice named the conference Freshman of the Week. She ranked fifth among the league's freshmen with 5.1 points per game and third in rebounding with 3.0 per contest. She also ranked among the top-5 in assists, steals and blocks.
• Hare also landed a spot on the team after a stellar rookie campaign in which she ranked fourth on the team with 7.1 points per game. While coming off the bench and playing 17.5 minutes per outing, she was the league's fourth-leading freshman scorer and led all BIG EAST freshmen with 45 made 3-pointers. She was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week after going for back-to-back games of 23 points and 18 points against Seton Hall and Xavier.
UP NEXT FOR MU
• If Marquette wins, it will face the winner of Villanova and Creighton/Seton Hall in the BIG EAST Tournament championship game on Monday, March 6, at 6 p.m. (CT) at Mohegan Sun Arena.
• The game will be broadcast on FS1 with links to live stats available on GoMarquette.com.
