In his seven years at Marquette, head coach Steve Wojciechowski’s vision for the way his team plays, and wins, has started and ended with toughness and defense.
It’s how the former National Defensive Player of the Year performed at Duke in his playing days.
Seven games into their 2020-21 season, the Golden Eagles look the part of a tough team, one that embodies what Wojciechowski has been striving for in Milwaukee. This Marquette team fits the “Wojo Way.” They have the results to prove it, adding a second Top-10 win in comeback fashion to start the week, an 89-84 victory at Creighton in the BIG EAST opener for both teams.
On Monday night, though, Marquette needed its offense to help put together a complete showing with an explosive Bluejays team on the other side. The Golden Eagles answered the bell, with five players scoring in double figures, highlighted by a 54-point second half.
Certainly, it’s not a common occurrence for a team to shoot 7-for-9 from beyond the arc in the second half, but for a Marquette team trying to figure its offensive identity in the post-Markus Howard era, the Golden Eagles’ hot shooting has to be a confidence boost going forward.
Trailing by nine with 17 minutes left in regulation, Marquette was not fazed. Instead, an inexperienced duo rose up to provide the offensive boost. Freshman Dawson Garcia pulled the Golden Eagles within six. After a Creighton bucket, junior Greg Elliott, who’s finally healthy after being hampered by injuries for most of his career, drilled a three to spark a 12-2 MU run.
After a Marcus Zegarowski bucket pulled Creighton within five at 64-59 with 9:23 left, Garcia and Elliott combined yet again for back-to-back buckets to provide the Jays with the nine-point cushion.
The ninth-ranked Jays weren’t going to go down easy, climbing within one with 2:32 left. But, just as he did in the top-five win over Wisconsin 10 days earlier, Ohio State transfer D.J. Carton had the ball in his hands in a critical spot. The sophomore buried the Golden Eagles’ 12th triple of the night - and his fifth of the game - to restore order for Marquette to close it out.
The biggest takeaway of all for this Marquette team is the amount they’re relying on their freshmen, and just how much two Golden Eagle rookies continue to deliver.
Garcia ended up with 14 points and 10 boards on 6-of-10 from the field. His classmate Justin Lewis, who along with Garcia has also racked up a BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honor, poured in 11 and nine off the bench. For a pair of freshmen to combine for 25 and 19 in their BIG EAST opener? Well, it’s got Wojciechowski excited.
“For their first BIG EAST game, on the road, against a top-10 team, those two kids were fantastic,” said Wojciechowski. “They handled the moment, which is a big moment, against an outstanding team with the maturity of someone much older than they are.”
Speaking of maturity, senior Koby McEwen is providing the experience for Marquette. Totaling 18 points in the victory over the Jays, he continues to be that steady presence as the leading scorer with 15.7 points per game. It was a known fact for MU that McEwen would be relied upon to lead, but the youth of this Golden Eagles team was the unknown factor for projecting success.
The middle of the conference was going to carry a level of uncertainty this season, not only because of what COVID-19 has brought to the table, but Marquette has shown two things: they defend and have length. The Golden Eagles rank second in the conference in field goal percentage defense (.371), second in three-point field goal percentage defense (.298), and second in rebounding margin at +9.1.
Marquette still has things to figure out, but who doesn’t at this stage?
They’ve shown that they have the pieces to exceed their sixth-place slot in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll, possessing a core of rising talent and owning two victories as good as any team in college basketball.