It was a very familiar feeling for Marquette coach Shaka Smart.
Kam Jones scored 22 points, Oso Ighodaro had 18 on 7-for-7 shooting and No. 20 Marquette beat Seton Hall 74-53 on Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark.
“It reminds me of last year’s game here in that that I felt like Seton Hall was ready to play, and they were ready to go out and beat us,” Smart said. “But our guys responded and gave a good pushback that allowed us to do what we needed.”
Marquette (16-5, 8-2 Big East) shot 54 percent (29 for 54) from the field in its second straight win since an 80-76 loss to Xavier last weekend.
The Golden Eagles used a 10-2 run to take a 37-29 halftime lead. Jones had 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting in the first half.
“The first half was a very good half for us … and then offensively, we just had to figure out their switching,” Smart said. “They have good aggressiveness and good versatility.”
Ighodaro’s jumper sparked a 13-3 spurt, giving Marquette a 53-36 lead with 15:15 remaining. Jones capped the run with a 3-pointer.
The Golden Eagles led by as many as 22 at 74-52 with 1:48 remaining.
Kadary Richmond led Seton Hall with 10 points and five assists. The Pirates committed a season-high 26 turnovers.
“You don’t prepare well, you’re not playing well. It’s not rocket science,” Seton Hall coach Shaheen Holloway said.
Big picture
Seton Hall: After starting 0-3 in the Big East, the Pirates won four straight — including a win over No. 15 UConn — and five of the last six coming in. Despite the loss, the Pirates have been playing better under first-year coach Shaheen Holloway.
Marquette: Winners of seven of their last eight, the Golden Eagles look like a team prepared to compete for a Big East title in its second year under Smart. They scored 34 points off Seton Hall’s turnovers.