Solo Ball’s big night powers No. 25 UConn to 77-69 road win at No. 9 Marquette

Solo Ball scored a career-high 25 points while shooting 7-of-9 from 3-point range as No. 25 UConn never trailed in a 77-69 victory over No. 9 Marquette on Saturday night.

Ball’s seven 3-pointers matched a career high.

The loss dropped Marquette (18-4, 9-2) a game behind No. 15 St. John’s in the Big East standings. St. John’s edged Providence 68-66 earlier Saturday.

Alex Karaban had 15 points and Samson Johnson added 13 for UConn (16-6,8-3), which led by as many as 22 in the first half and answered every Marquette comeback attempt the rest of the way.

Kam Jones scored 22, Chase Ross 19 and David Joplin 13 for Marquette.

Takeaways

UConn: The Huskies again played without freshman Liam McNeeley, whose 13.6 points per game make him the Huskies’ third-leading scorer. McNeeley, who has been dealing with a high ankle sprain, last played Jan. 1.

Marquette: The Golden Eagles dug themselves too deep a hole with their poor shooting early on. Marquette shot 8-of-25 from the floor and 10-of-20 on free-throw attempts in the first half. The Golden Eagles also missed their first seven 3-point attempts.

Key moment

After Joplin made a 3-pointer to cut UConn’s lead to 72-66 with 2:12 remaining, Ball answered with his own 3-pointer 24 seconds later. Ball continually sank 3-pointers to thwart Marquette rallies throughout the second half.

Key stats

UConn committed a season-high 25 turnovers but shot a season-best 59.5% (25-of-42) overall and 63.2 (12-of-19) from 3-point range.

Poll implications

This result assures UConn will remain in the Top 25. Marquette figures to drop out of the top 10.

Up next

Marquette is at St. John’s on Tuesday, while UConn visits St. John’s on Friday.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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