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The Golden Eagles improve to 22-4; 11-2 in the Big East

Feb. 17, 2009

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. (AP) - Wesley Matthews scored 24 points and No. 10 Marquette opened the second half with a decisive run to pull away from Seton Hall for a 79-67 victory Tuesday night.

Lazar Hayward added 14 points for the Golden Eagles (22-4, 11-2 Big East), who trailed by three points at halftime but outscored the Pirates 16-3 coming out of the break - and then Marquette got to shoot six straight free throws after a personal foul and two technicals were called on Seton Hall.

Jeremy Hazell scored 23 points for the Pirates (14-11, 5-8), who have lost two straight games to top 10 teams after having their five-game winning streak snapped by No. 1 Connecticut on Saturday.

The Golden Eagles won despite a slightly off night for Jerel McNeal, who had scored 20 or more points in nine straight games but was held to 13 on 4-for-10 shooting Tuesday.

With the win, the Golden Eagles took advantage of one last chance to pad their conference record before a brutal finishing stretch that ramps up with a game at Georgetown on Saturday, then closes at home against Connecticut, at Louisville and Pittsburgh, and against Syracuse at home.

Trailing by three points at halftime, Marquette opened the second half with a 16-3 run that included two missed free throws by Hazell after a technical foul was called on the Marquette bench.

Matthews continued the run with two free throws, and Hayward scored inside to put the Golden Eagles up 45-40. Then Marquette's defense took over, as McNeal made a steal and converted a three-point play after a layup on the other end.

Dominic James came up with a steal on Seton Hall's next possession, then shot it ahead to Matthews for an emphatic right-handed dunk to put Marquette up 50-40 with 15:10 left. James came up with another steal, but the ball bounced out of bounds as he went up for a layup.

Seton Hall scored on a layup by Jordan Theodore, but Hayward drew John Garcia's fifth foul with 14:24 remaining. The Pirates loudly protested the call and were assessed two technical fouls, one on the bench, the other on Hazell.

Matthews shot the free throws for the technicals, going 3-for-4, and Hayward made two from Garcia's original foul - all with the clock stopped at 14:24, equaling the six free throws Seton Hall shot in the entire first half and putting the Golden Eagles up 55-42.

That effectively ended any hope for an upset by the Pirates, who ended the first half on a 9-0 run to take a 37-34 lead.

The Pirates shot 48.3 percent in the first half, including 5-for-9 from 3-point range, as the Golden Eagles' highly regarded perimeter players repeatedly lost track of the Pirates' outside shooters. Seton Hall shot 34.6 percent in the second half.