C.J. Gunn led the Blue Demons with 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists.
He accomplished this while shooting 6-14 (42.9%) from the field and 2-8 (25%) from downtown.
Marquette was led by Kam Jones, who had a similar stat sheet compared to the last time these teams faced off. Tonight, he scored 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He shot 8-18 (44.4%) overall, 1-6 (16.7%) from beyond the arc, and 2-4 (50%) from the line.
Here are three takeaways from this DePaul basketball loss.
Jones led the way despite a poor perimeter performance. David Joplin and Stevie Mitchell also complimented him.
For Joplin, he scored 7 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 3-11 (27.3%) from the floor and 1-6 (16.7%) from long range. For Mitchell, he scored 17 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals. He shot 5-8 (62.5%) overall and 7-10 (70%) from the free-throw line.
This three-headed chimera was the driving force in this matchup against DePaul basketball. This is despite a poor shooting performance from them, as well as the Blue Demons.
This was not the best shooting performance from either team, especially on the perimeter. This game saw both teams shot a combined 8-49 (16.3%) from beyond the arc.
For DePaul basketball, they shot 4-24 (16.7%) from the perimeter. For Marquette, they shot 4-25 (16%). The Blue Demons saw another familiar issue as well from the line, shooting 4-9 (44.4%) from the charity strike.
DePaul basketball saw two players not nail a three-pointer, Jacob Meyer (0-2) and Layden Blocker (0-5). Gunn himself didn’t have the best of nights either.
The Golden Eagles didn’t see a single-player convert on more than one three-point shot. Jones and Joplin each shot 1-6 from beyond the arc. Ben Gold and Royce Parham shot a combined 2-8 (25%).
Damarius Owens had a rough night, shooting 0-3 (0%) from downtown.
Overall, both teams were better. DePaul shot 25-60 (41.7%) from the field. While the Golden Eagles shot 25-67 (37.3%).
N.J. Benson suffered an injury against Marquette and was pulled with under 15 minutes to go in the game.
After converting a pair of free throws, he was looked at by the team’s athletic trainer and his right hand/wrist was being looked at. He eventually went to the locker room before returning to the bench.
During the postgame conference, head coach Chris Holtmann did not have an update on his injury, only that he couldn’t return to the game.
He only played 21 minutes in the game, and his impact was missed by the team. He scored 4 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 assists while shooting 1-3 (33.3%) from the field and 2-2 (100%) from the line.
DePaul basketball already suffers from the losses of Conor Enright and Troy D’Amico, the former of which is out for the season. The loss of Benson impacted the team greatly, with the Blue Demons being outrebounded 36-44 by Marquette. This also includes the Golden Eagles doubling DePaul in terms of offensive rebounds, recording 16 to DePaul’s 8 offensive rebounds.
While it’s still unclear on a timeline for Benson, he is a crucial piece for this team. In the interior, both offensively and defensively, he can force his way inside for boards, despite being a bit undersized at 6 feet 8 inches. His large wingspan (7 feet) makes up for that and allows him to have such an impact on the glass. Without him, DePaul basketball will have to rely on a collective effort to grab boards, potentially leaving opposing shooters open.
at Xavier (14-10, 6-7) – Feb. 15 at 11 a.m. CST
vs.Seton Hall (6-18, 1-12) – Feb. 18 at 8 p.m. CST
