After scoring just one point against the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Marquette senior guard Matt Carlino did everything for the Golden Eagles on Thanksgiving night.
Carlino scored 23 of his career-high 38 points in the second half to lead Marquette to a 72-70 victory over Georgia Tech in the opening round of the Orlando Classic at the HP Fieldhouse in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
The victory was a big one for Marquette, as there was a big difference in competition level from the winners’ bracket to the losers’ bracket of the Orlando Classic. A loss would have meant a Friday matchup with Rider. Instead, Marquette will face No. 20 Michigan State, a game that will be beneficial down the road regardless of the end result.
1 big moment: After Carlino hit two free throws with 11.5 seconds left to put Marquette up 71-68, Georgia Tech junior forward Marcus Georges-Hunt committed made a gigantic mistake that all but sealed a win for the Golden Eagles.
Instead of kicking the ball out for a game-tying 3-point attempt, Georges-Hunt drove in for a layup to cut Marquette’s led to 71-70 with 1.5 seconds on the clock. By the time Marquette sophomore guard Jajuan Johnson was fouled, the clock showed 0.1 seconds. The officials added time after a review, but only 0.9 seconds remained. Marquette coach Steve Wojciechowski instructed Johnson to hit the first and miss the second, which he did. Georgia Tech’s last-second heave down court wasn’t close, and Marquette pulled out the win.
2 top performers: Carlino finished with 38 of the Golden Eagles’ 72 points without the benefit of a made 2-point shot. The senior transfer from BYU hit 8 of his 14 3-point attempts, one shy of the Marquette record for made 3-pointers. Carlino went 14 of 16 from the foul line, including connecting on 5 of 6 in the final minute.
Yellow Jackets freshman guard Tadric Jackson came off the bench to score a career-high 17 points on 7 of 15 shooting. Jackson, who came in averaging 5.0 points per game in Georgia Tech’s first three games, scored 13 of his 17 in the second half.
3 key stats: Carlino’s 38 points are the most by a Marquette player since Steve Novak dropped 41 points on Connecticut in the school’s first-ever Big East game on Jan. 3, 2006. It was the third 30-point game of Carlino’s career, with his previous two coming with BYU against San Francisco (Feb. 16, 2012) and Portland (Feb. 22, 2014).
Despite being undersized and allowing 17 offensive rebounds to Georgia Tech, the Golden Eagles were only outscored 12-11 on second-chance points.
Marquette held Georgia Tech leading scorer Quinton Stephens to half of his scoring average of 14.0 points per game. The sophomore forward scored just seven points on 3 off 11 shooting, hitting just 1 of his 7 attempts from beyond the arc.
Said: “As I told the team in the locker room, I’m incredibly happy for them. This was the first time this season where we had a real fighting spirit from start to finish. I thought our guys were tremendous fighters. I thought everyone that got in the game contributed. To winning, and obviously Carlino’s performance was one of the best I’ve ever seen … We were outsized at really every position. I thought our guys battled, diving on the floor for loose balls, seeking out contact instead of avoiding it. I think all of those things were things we haven’t done well enough to win. I thought tonight we did those things.” – Wojciechowski on ESPN Milwaukee following the game.
Seen: Marquette played a seven-man rotation Thursday, with Jajuan Johnson and Deonte Burton the only two players to see significant time off the bench. Freshman Sandy Cohen III played just five minutes, while sophomore John Dawson didn’t play. The Golden Eagles were outscored 35-7 in bench points, as Johnson scored five and Burton two for Marquette.
The Golden Eagles used a 2-3 zone defense for the first time this season, something they may play more than Wojciechowski would like do the shorthanded roster.
Tennessee and Kansas advanced to the semifinals on the other side of the Orlando Classic. The Volunteers beat Santa Clara, 64-57, while the No. 11 Jayhawks defeated Rhode Island, 76-60.
Next: With the win over Georgia Tech, Marquette (3-2) advanced to the semifinals of the Orlando Classic and will face No. 20 Michigan State at 8 p.m. Central time Friday.
The Spartans crushed Rider, 77-45, Thursday to move to the semifinals. Michigan State is 4-1 on the season with its only loss coming to No. 4 Duke.
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