Blockton shines on offense and defense as Golden Eagles reach title game
By Jack McCarthy
Box Score | Marquette Quotes | Creighton Quotes
CHICAGO — Allazia Blockton scored a career-high 32 points but her biggest play came in the final moments of Monday’s Big East tournament semifinals against Creighton.
With Marquette clinging to a shaky four-point edge and Creighton with the ball, Blockton picked off a pass and bolted downcourt for a layup and a 74-68 lead with 18 seconds left in regulation.
It helped the top seed Golden Eagles lock down a 76-70 victory at Wintrust Arena and clinched a berth in the Big East championship game for the second straight year.
Blockton, the Big East player of the year, also had 11 rebounds as Marquette (23-8) won its seventh straight. Amani Wilborn scored 16 points while Danielle King added 12 for the winners.
Audrey Faber paced the No. 4 seed Bluejays (18-12) with 20 points. Jaylyn Agnew had 15 and Olivia Elger added 12.
Marquette meets either sixth-seeded Georgetown or second-seeded and host DePaul in Tuesday’s championship game. Marquette split its season series with both the Hoyas and Blue Demons.
Blockton had eight first quarter points while Wilborn’s layup with nine seconds left forced a 16-16 tie to end the period.
Blockton added seven more in the second quarter, including a 3-point play in the final 1:55 as Marquette scored seven unanswered points for a 39-33 halftime lead. Until that run, the first half had featured two ties and 10 lead changes.
The Golden Eagles twice led by eight in the third quarter before the Bluejays closed the gap late on back-to-back buckets by Sydney Lamberty and Faber that trimmed the Marquette lead to 59-55 by quarter’s end.
Creighton opened the fourth with a 10-3 run and passed the cold-shooting Golden Eagles for a 65-61 lead with 5:51 left.
With the score tied at 68-68 with 1:37 to play, Marquette jumped ahead for good on a Blockton layup and added two free throws in a 44-second span.