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Novak Sets Single Season MU Record For Threes in Win over No. 17 Georgetown
Feb. 16, 2006 MILWAUKEE (AP) - Steve Novak scored 19 points and set Marquette's season record for 3-pointers, leading the Golden Eagles to a 57-51 victory over No. 17 Georgetown on Thursday night. The 6-foot-11 Novak put on another shooting show at home -- going 5-of-8 from beyond the arc -- while Dominic James scored 16 points and Jerel McNeal added 10 for Marquette (17-8, 7-5 Big East). The Golden Eagles beat a ranked conference opponent for the second time after a 94-79 victory over then-No. 2 Connecticut in their inaugural Big East game on Jan. 3. Roy Hibbert, who had 17 points, made a layup with 6:03 to go to cap a 7-0 run that brought Georgetown (17-6, 8-4) within 44-42. Ashanti Cook's 3-pointer gave the Hoyas their first lead in the second half, 49-48. But James found Joe Chapman for a 3-pointer to give Marquette a 51-49 lead with 2:30 remaining. Neither team scored again until James hit a runner with 48 seconds left that made it 53-49. Darrel Owens of the Hoyas fired an off-balance 3-pointer that missed badly and Marquette sealed the game with 20 seconds left when Novak, a career 93 percent free throw shooter, made two. Novak, who already owns the career mark for 3s at Marquette, broke Travis Diener's season record with his 91st of the year and fourth of the game to give the Golden Eagles a seven-point lead early in the second half. Brandon Bowman and Jeff Green, leading the Hoyas in scoring by averaging 12 points each, combined for nine points on 4-of-14 shooting and 11 turnovers -- eight by Green. It left the 7-2 Hibbert to shoulder the load, but Marquette's defense forced him away from the basket and he was only able to set picks for his teammates until late in the game.
Georgetown went more than 6 minutes without a field goal in the second half while missing eight consecutive shots. That was a far cry from the first half, when Georgetown had no problem establishing its inside game early with Hibbert and hit its first seven field goals. But the Hoyas began settling for jumpers, and quickly lost their composure -- finishing 3-of-17 from the field after the hot start, including 1-of-9 from 3-point range. Marquette took advantage by going on a 14-1 run capped by a dunk by James to take a 29-22 lead just before halftime. |
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