Providence 62 Marquette 86

After watching Chris Otule and Junior Cadougan turn in career performances in the Marquette Golden Eagles' 86-62 win over the Providence Friars on Sunday afternoon at the Bradley Center, coach Buzz Williams was asked if he could have envisioned earlier in the season getting such big contributions from either in a crucial game down the stretch.

Williams, well-known for his brutal honesty in his postgame gatherings, once again didn't mince words.

“No,” he said. “I knew they would be better than anybody thought. But not what they are now.”

The sophomores now are, quite simply, indispensible for a Golden Eagles team that has won three consecutive games for the first time since early December and is getting hot at just the right time with the postseason fast approaching.

Otule scored a Big East-best 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting, grabbed six rebounds and swatted four shots in a career-high 31 minutes. Cadougan, meanwhile, posted career highs of 10 points and 10 assists to go along with six rebounds in 30 productive minutes in his third straight start at point guard for MU (18-11, 9-7 Big East).

A year ago at this time, the 6-foot-11 Otule was redshirting after suffering his second broken foot in as many seasons. The 6-foot-1 Cadougan was just working his way back from a ruptured Achilles tendon and was nowhere near 100%.

Against Providence (14-15, 3-13), each was a force.

Otule scored repeatedly on post-ups and follow slams on one end and intimidated drivers on the other end with his long arms, while Cadougan ran the show effectively, penetrating and creating wide-open shots for teammates like Darius Johnson-Odom (17 points) and Jimmy Butler (15 points).

For a team that didn't appear to have either a true center or point guard even as recently as a few weeks ago, both have been revelations. Not only are they directly contributing to wins, they're also helping to free up Johnson-Odom, Butler and Jae Crowder, each of whom has carried the load for much of the season for the Golden Eagles.

“It helps us a lot,” said Crowder, who had 12 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. “During this time of the year, that's when other guys have to step up because other teams know your strengths. This is a big part of the season, and I feel like they're doing a great job stepping up right now.”

In a far cry from previous games, MU opened against Providence by actually looking to get Otule the ball in the post. He responded by scoring eight of the team's first 14 points as the smaller Friars struggled to keep him from catching it or stopping him once he did.

His third dunk of the game gave him 10 points and staked the Golden Eagles to a 24-11 lead with 8 minutes 44 seconds remaining in the first half, demonstrating the good the big Texan can do when presented with an opportunity.

“We've definitely emphasized it as Chris has continued to mature,” Williams said of looking in to Otule. “And I think the other thing is, when Chris is posting, he's a lot harder to get around than you may think. So if you're going to stand dead behind him, we are going to throw it to him.”

A 12-5 run to close out the first half gave MU a 40-27 lead, and the Golden Eagles continued to build on it early in the second half with Cadougan continuing either to get the ball into the open court or penetrate and dish to waiting teammates.

It was his layup that stretched the lead to 64-41 with 12:31 left, ending any mystery in a game MU led from start to finish.

Butler, meanwhile, also earned praise for the job he did defensively on the Friars' Marshon Brooks, who came in averaging a league-best 25.4 points per game after a record 52-point night in his last outing.

Against Butler and MU, though, Brooks managed just 17 on 7-for-16 shooting. As a team, Providence shot 31.5% and was out-rebounded, 48 to 33.

MU faces Cincinnati in its final regular-season home game at 7 p.m. Wednesday.