CHICAGO (AP) — David Joplin went 8 for 11 from 3-point range for a career-high 28 points, Tyler Kolek had a double-double and No. 16 Marquette defeated DePaul 89-69 on Saturday.
Marquette has won eight of its last nine games, and moved into a tie with No. 13 Xavier atop the Big East.
Marquette (17-5, 9-2 Big East) pulled away in the second half. Oso Ighodaro’s basket started an 11-0 run and Joplin followed with three consecutive 3s to extend the lead to 50-38 with 14:30 left.
Ighodaro finished with 10 points, making all five of his shots, Olivier-Maxence Prosper scored 13 and had 8 rebounds, and Kolek had 24 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds.
Umoja Gibson scored 25 points for DePaul (9-13, 3-8) on 8-of-12 shooting.
Marquette leading scorer Kam Jones appeared to injure his right side during the game. He was checked on by a team trainer and returned, but was grimacing on the court. He played limited minutes and was held to seven points.
HOME CROWDS
DePaul had its first home sellout since it started playing at Wintrust Arena in the 2017-18 season. But Marquette has a strong alumni base in the area, so its fans made up about half the crowd.
BIG PICTURE
Marquette: It is unclear whether Jones will miss any time with his injury, but if the Golden Eagles get what they did from Joplin, Kolek and Ighodaro moving forward, they should stay in the hunt for a regular-season conference championship.
DePaul: After an unsettling loss at Georgetown earlier in the week and Saturday’s blowout, the Demon Deacons are hovering at the bottom of the Big East standings.
UP NEXT
Marquette: Hosts Villanova on Wednesday.
DePaul: Hosts Connecticut on Tuesday.
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