Marquette survives against St. John's in overtime to reach the Big East basketball tournament semifinals
NEW YORK – It’s the same question every time there is a day-and-night performance like the one the sixth-ranked Marquette men’s basketball team had over two halves - plus a little more - on Thursday in the quarterfinals of the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden.
What kind of fire-and-brimstone speech did the coach deliver at halftime to elicit such a striking turnaround?
Well, it turns out the inspiration behind the Golden Eagles’ spirited play after a lackluster first half was not head coach Shaka Smart.
It wasn’t even one of MU’s scholarship players who lit a spark under the team in order to crawl out of a 14-point deficit and claim a 72-70 victory over St. John’s in overtime.
Box score:Marquette 72, St. John's 70 (OT)
Yes, it was 5-foot-11 walk-on guard Cameron Brown who, despite the bulky brace he’s been wearing since a knee injury in the off-season, who stood tall in the New York Knicks’ locker room that MU occupies as the tournament’s top seeding and delivered the rousing speech.
The Golden Eagles will play Connecticut in the semifinals on Friday night.
“Our theme for the game, and for the whole tournament, was passion,” Brown said. “I was screaming about the passion that we had.
“Even before the season started, when the coaches weren’t there, we played some games against each other and we competed. We talked about how some of the alumni called us pretty boys, they called us a little soft. We felt like we had to prove something.
“And that’s the passion that we have for each other. To prove we can do it ourselves. From that point on, I just said that we need to keep that same passion when we go out there and play against another team. Because no one else out there believed in us.”
Marquette fell behind by 14 points to St. John’s in first half
That chip-on-the-shoulder mentality has served MU (26-6) well this season as it went from a team picked to finish ninth in the preseason to outright Big East champions for the first time.
But against eighth-seeded St. John’s (18-15) in noon start, the Golden Eagles looked out of sorts.
One of the best offenses in the country had nine turnovers and shot 4-for-19 on three-pointers in the opening 20 minutes. The Golden Eagles’ defense also allowed the Red Storm to pull down 10 offense rebounds.
St. John’s had a 34-20 lead in the first half and got the home fans smelling an upset in the building in which the Red Storm plays a handful of regular-season games.
MU battled back to get within 36-26 at the break.
“We knew that it was one of our worst halves,” Smart said. “And we knew that we had to lead with the defensive end of the floor.”
Tyler Kolek has another clutch performance as Golden Eagles battle back
The Golden Eagles have talked all season about how the connections among every one in the program is their biggest advantage.
That’s why a walk-on like Brown feels comfortable calling out teammates who include the Big East’s player of the year, sixth man of the year and three guys who made all-league teams.
“They’re all my brothers,” Brown said. “We’ve all been there for each other at different times. I’ve been injured a little bit and they’ve been there for me.
“It’s just a trust thing and going with each other. We’ve always had each other’s backs, never downplayed each other and we always believed that we could do anything if we stayed together and stayed as group.”
The flip was switched. MU held St. John’s scoreless over the first four minutes of the second half.
“I feel like it's our resiliency,” said MU’s Olivier-Maxence Prosper, who had 16 points including several highlight dunks. “That's what we're about. Doesn't matter how down we are or whatever, we feel like we come back and win any game. That's our relationships, the way we feel about each other and how connected we are.
"That's how we came out in the second half. We came out with that belief and that energy. And that's how we were able to come back and win this game.”
The big screen at the Garden acknowledged Tyler Kolek’s Big East player of the year honor early in the second half. It seemed to serve as a reminder for him. All 19 of his points came after halftime, and he added nine rebounds and six assists.
“Just kind of getting outside myself,” Kolek said. “Not focusing on personal circumstances and start pouring into the guys and focusing on everything else. On the defensive end, on their motivation, my motivation, and just play free.”
Marquette survives and advances after wild finish
The Golden Eagles battled back to finally tie the game at 38-38 when freshman Chase Ross, who had a strong performance off the bench with nine points in his first postseason game, nailed a three-pointer at the 15:41 mark.
It was a tight game the rest of the way.
MU’s Kam Jones, who shot just 4 for 16, seemed to ice the game with a three-pointer for a 60-56 lead with 25 seconds remaining.
“As soon as I shot it, I knew it was good,” Jones said. “That’s how I feel about all my shots until the ball tells me different.”
But the Red Storm’s A.J. Storr was fouled on a three-pointer by Stevie Mitchell, and he made all three free throws.
St. John’s then stole the inbound pass, but Prosper snatched it right back and was fouled with 12 seconds left. He made 1 of 2 free throws for a 61-59 lead, but that opened the door for Dylan Addae-Wusu to knife through the Golden Eagles’ defense to tie the game.
Prosper tipped in Kolek’s miss at the buzzer, but waved off after a review proved it came after time expired.
Marquette finds a way to win in overtime
Neither team could get separation in overtime, but MU held St. John's without a field goal. Kolek gave MU the winning margin by draining two free throws with 15 seconds left. It was another clutch performance in a season full of them for Kolek.
“Tyler's a guy, down the stretch, if we can have the ball in his hands we know that he can create a good shot for us,” Smart said. “Today was the day where we missed a lot of good shots. We shot under 40% from the field, under 30% from three. But to be able to find a way to win that type of game is huge.”
St. John’s missed two contested three-pointers in the waning seconds of overtime, and the Golden Eagles survived and advanced.
“We’ve been getting better at closing close games as the year progressed,” Jones said. “We lost a few early in the season. Purdue. Mississippi State.
“So just growing. People like to throw the ‘young team’ label on us. Just keep learning and keep growing and we’ll be even better.”
More:Is there a pathway for Marquette to grab a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament?
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Marquette beat St. John's in Big East tournament, 72-70, in overtime
