Tyler Kolek paces No. 7 Marquette comeback against St. John's

Field Level Media|published: Sat 10th February, 20:38 2024

Feb 10, 2024; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; St. John's Red Storm guard Chris Ledlum (8) shoots in front of Marquette Golden Eagles guard Tyler Kolek (11) during the first half at Fiserv Forum. credits: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Kolek scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half as seventh-ranked Marquette rallied for an 86-75 victory over St. John's in a Big East matchup Saturday in Milwaukee.

St. John's, which led by 15 in the first half, pulled within 75-73 on Chris Ledlum's layin with 4:11 remaining. Kolek scored on a drive and then fed Oso Ighodaro underneath to push the lead to 79-73.

Daniss Jenkin's jumper made it 79-75 with just over two minutes left, but the Red Storm did not score the rest of the way.

Kolek hit 11 of 17 shots, including 5 of 8 beyond the arc, and dished out 13 assists as Marquette (18-5, 9-3 Big East) extended its winning streak to seven. Stevie Mitchell had 14 points and David Joplin added 12 for the Golden Eagles.

Jenkins had 22 points, RJ Luis Jr. added 13 points and Nahiem Alleyne 12 for St. John's (14-10, 6-7).

Marquette hit 19 of 32 shots in the second half for 59.4%, including 8 of 15 from beyond the arc. The Golden Eagles, who were pounded on the glass in the first, came back to cut St. John's final rebound advantage to 35-33.

Marquette quickly erased a 47-38 halftime deficit with a 17-7 run after the break. Kolek hit back-to-back 3-pointers to pull the Golden Eagles within 51-50. Jenkins countered with a three, but Kolek scored on a drive and Joplin added a 3-pointer to put Marquette up 55-54 with 15:16 left.

St. John's hit 8 of 18 from deep in the first half. Jenkins hit consecutive 3-pointers to give St. John's its largest lead of the half at 45-30.

The Red Storm also outrebounded Marquette 23-12 in the first half, including 11-2 on the offensive glass, that led to a 17-0 edge in second chance points.

—Field Level Media