By Justin Haberstroh | @JustinHaberstr1
Sports Capital Journalism Program
INDIANAPOLIS – For the first time since February 28, when Tyler Kolek suffered a grade two oblique strain that turned the All-American guard into a spectator and temporarily changed the direction of Marquette’s season, the Golden Eagles were complete.
Kolek scored 10 of his 18 points in the first 8:39 of Marquette’s first-round 87-69 victory over Western Kentucky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. His 11 assists – tying Dwyane Wade’s school record in an NCAA tournament game — were a sign of the structure created by a first-team All-American.
Second-seeded Marquette (27-9) advanced to a second-round game for the second straight season. On Sunday, when the Golden Eagles meet Colorado, they will play for a chance to reach a regional semifinal for the first time since 2013.
Marquette junior guard Kam Jones scored 28 points on 10-of-16 shooting, including 5-of-10 3-pointers. Jones scored 18 of his points in the second half. Jones could tell the difference in Kolek’s influence as soon as he was able to get back to work.
“The first practice he came in, he came in and just does what he does,” Jones said. “He came back in, got the ball, made the plays he normally makes, and we just do what we do and were glad to have him and grateful to have him back.”
Kolek did not notice much of a change once he could return to practice. “I really haven’t felt out of the groove at all, even in practice,” he said. “The two days that I did go full go, it’s been basketball. I’ve been playing this game a long time.”
Western Kentucky (22-12), the 15th seed in the South region, challenged Marquette from the start. The Hilltoppers led 43-36 at halftime, a lead built upon 6-for-12 shooting from the 3-point line, eight Marquette turnovers, and a defense that the Golden Eagles to 39.4% shooting. Western Kentucky’s fourth-leading scorer, senior forward Tyrone Marshall, had 17 points, five assists, and five rebounds in the first half, and the Hilltoppers led by as many as 10 points with 1:40 to go in the half.
Marshall, who had averaged 8.4 points, reached double figures just twice in the previous 10 games. But suddenly he had become a threat that could cause an embarrassing early exit for the Golden Eagles.
Marquette head coach Shaka Smart knew that his team had to do better against Marshall and that meant more effort.
“Play harder, try harder,” Smart said. “I just thought he (Marshall) was the aggressor. He was terrific with how aggressive he was in the first half. It’s as fundamental as changing the look on our face when we’re guarding him.”
The results of their adjustments were clear in the second half. A 17-5 run in the first 5:25 of the half, punctuated by Oso Ighodaro’s two-handed slam dunk, gave Marquette a 53-48 lead with 14:35 to go. Western Kentucky would tie the score at 55-55 on Don McHenry’s only 3-point shot of the game. But Ben Gold’s 3-pointer, with an assist from Kolek, put Marquette ahead to stay with 11:27 to go.
Kolek ended with 10 of his 11 assists in the second half. His career total of 430 assists moved Kolek past Sherman Douglas of Syracuse and into second place in the 45-year history of the Big East conference. Kolek knew if the Golden Eagles were to win this game, he had to become much more aggressive in the second half.
“They were doing a good job keeping me out of the paint,” Kolek said. “We kind of went away from the 1-5 ball screens because they were doing a good job hedging, getting out there. We were going more me and Kam playing in a two-man game, playing on the side of the floor with a guard or wing. And we were struggling with that keeping me out of the paint, so we just changed that up, and we got to do what we want to get to.”
Sometimes, extending a season is that simple. “We talk about building championship habits,” Smart said. “One of the most important of those is the way we respond to adversity, and the guys did a great job of that today.”
