MBB Minute -- BIG EAST Teams Start 6-0
All six BIG EAST teams in action Friday won their season openers with several newcomers grabbing the spotlight in their debuts. Two more league squads begin their seasons on Saturday.
Marquette was the only team to open away from home and the Golden Eagles pulled away in the second half to post a 95-71 victory over Vanderbilt in the Veterans Classic at Annapolis, Md. Jajuan Johnson led the way with 21 points and six steals. Marquette trailed 40-39 at halftime, but used a 16-0 run early in the second half to secure what ended up being a comfortable victory. Luke Fischer added 18 points, seven rebounds and three blocks. MU converted 19 Vandy turnovers into 35 points.
Villanova played its first game since winning the national championship last April and handled Lafayette 88-48. It was the Wildcats’ 40
th straight win at The Pavilion. Jalen Brunson scored 17 points and Kris Jenkins and Mikal Bridges each chipped in 16 points. No Wildcat played more than 28 minutes.
Seton Hall also played on campus and defeated Fairleigh Dickinson 91-70 at Walsh Gymnasium. Angel Delgado had a career-high 22 points to go with 14 rebounds. Khadeen Carrington matched his career high with 27 points. The two combined to shoot 20-of-29 from the floor.
Xavier won its 26
th straight home opener with an 84-81 win over Lehigh. Guards Trevon Bluiett and Edmond Sumner sparked the victory. Bluiett posted 25 points and 11 rebounds. Sumner notched a career-high 24 points.
Creighton enjoyed its 22
nd straight season-opening win, an 89-82 decision against UMKC. The Bluejays built a 26-point lead early in the second half en route to the win. Marcus Foster scored a team-high 19 points in his CU debut. Marcus Patton, a redshirt freshman center was also playing his first game in the Blue and White. He started and finished with 12 points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes.
St. John’s shot 62.3 percent from the field in its 100-53 triumph over Bethune-Cookman at Carnesecca Arena. Redshirt freshman guard Marcus LoVett came off the bench and produced 19 points and seven assists in 24 minutes. Federico Mussini, also in a reserve role, scored a team-high 20 points in 18 minutes. He was 5-of-6 from 3-point range.
FS2 will televise both BIG EAST games on Saturday. Georgetown hosts USC-Upstate at noon ET and Butler takes on Northern Colorado at 7:30 p.m.