Maly’s Sharpshooting Steals the Spotlight Against Marquette

OMAHA, Neb. — Morgan Maly scored 28 points on 10-of-11 shooting to guide the Creighton women’s basketball squad to a 71-68 triumph over visiting Marquette on Wednesday evening.

With this victory, Creighton elevated its record to 13-3 and achieved a 5-0 mark in BIG EAST competition for the second time in its program’s history (the previous being 2021-22). Marquette fell to 10-5 this season and holds a 2-2 record in league play.

Creighton took a 37-26 lead at halftime, igniting its momentum with sharp shooting from beyond the arc late in the second quarter.  Jayme Horan and Maly hit consecutive three-pointers, while Lauren Jensen capped a 17-8 run to end the half with a corner trey that brought the total to five triples in just four minutes.

Maly led CU with 16 points in as many minutes prior to halftime, successfully sinking 6-of-7 shots. Lee Volker led MU with 10 points in the initial half. Creighton forced Marquette into 15 turnovers in the first half, translating that into 21 points.

The three-pointer remained crucial at the beginning of the third quarter as back-to-back trifectas from Jensen and Maly pushed CU to its largest advantage at 45-30.  Despite trailing, Marquette managed to stay competitive, making 10-of-15 shots in the third quarter to narrow CU’s lead to 58-50 after three quarters.

Creighton sustained its advantage through the fourth quarter but had to fend off a fierce comeback from the Golden Eagles. MU executed a 6-0 run to close to within three points (71-68) and got the ball back with 25 seconds remaining for a final attempt. MU guard Jaidynn Mason attempted a three-pointer from the top of the key, but it missed as Mallory Brake secured the defensive rebound for CU. With multiple fouls to spare, Marquette was still unable to stop CU from running down the clock, allowing Creighton to clinch the win.

Maly converted 8-of-9 three-pointers during the game, a personal best, and tied for the third-most by a Bluejay in the history of the program. Her 28 points were only two shy of her career zenith. Jensen also contributed with 17 points and recorded six assists. CU completed 45.6 percent of its shots throughout the game, including 14-of-26 (53.8 percent) from three-point range.

Marquette’s offense was spearheaded by Volker with 19 points, while Mason added 18 points to the tally. The Golden Eagles shot 56 percent overall, managed to win the rebounding contest 29-24, and outscored CU 38-12 in the paint.

Creighton will be back in action on Saturday at 11 a.m. Central, visiting Seton Hall (12-3, 4-0 BIG EAST) in what shapes up to be a showdown between BIG EAST unbeaten teams.

NOTES: Morgan Maly (299) surpassed Dayna Finch (294) for second on Creighton’s all-time three-pointers made chart with a late trifecta in the second quarter … Maly (691) also moved ahead of Christy Neneman (685) for 10th in Creighton’s all-time rebounding list … Creighton’s 21 points off turnovers before halftime were a season-high for any half … The all-time record against Marquette now stands at 19-14 in favor of Creighton, which includes a strong 13-2 mark in Omaha …  … Creighton became the first team to shoot above 45 percent against Marquette this season.

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