Marquette basketball's Shaka Smart makes 'violence' admission after St. John's loss
02/05/2025 12:33 AM
Marquette basketball head coach Shaka Smart made a striking admission after the Golden Eagles’ 70-64 loss to St John’s. The clash between the No. 11 and No. 12 teams in the country was highly anticipated. And the game was tight, as advertised. Unfortunately for the Golden Eagles, Rick Pitino’s team was able to pull away at the end to give the Red Storm its ninth straight win in the Big East.
The game’s physicality drew an eye-opening statement from Smart in the postgame.
“Heck of a game by St. John’s. Hats off, and much respect to Coach Pitino and the whole program. They played with incredible violence and were the more aggressive team for the majority of the game.”
Marquette basketball is looking to rebound from two straight tough defeats
The Golden Eagles dropped their second game in a row to a ranked Big East opponent. This past Saturday, Shaka Smart’s team lost to No. 25 UConn in a disappointing defeat at home. The subsequent clash at Madison Square Garden was bound to be a tough one for Marquette basketball. Rick Pitino has completely rejuvenated St John’s, and the Red Storm were 10-1 in Big East play heading into this game.
After a close first half, the No. 12 team in the country eventually took control of the game, particularly on the glass. When it was all said and done, St John’s outrebounded Marquette 50 to 28 overall and 21 to 5 on the offensive glass. This game served as a brutal reality check to Shaka Smart’s team that it needs to be more physical going forward.
On the guard front, Kam Jones had an uneven performance, scoring 15 points on 15 shots. The Big East Player of the Year contender struggled to get going throughout the night. The same goes for fellow elite guard Charlie Ross, who went 4 of 13 from the field. The junior out of Dallas, Texas, led Marquette with 16 points on the evening. Marquette basketball will need these two to elevate their form to become a legit Final Four contender.
Overall, Shaka Smart understands the issue his team had on Tuesday night. Although it’s disappointing that the Red Storm overwhelmed the Golden Eagles on the glass in this highly anticipated matchup, Marquette has all of its goals ahead of it.
Marquette’s next six games come against unranked Big East opponents. After those affairs, the Golden Eagles will play another back-to-back against UConn and St. John’s. If the Golden Eagles take care of business, there’s a chance that Senior Day against the Red Storm could decide the Big East regular season championship.
As a projected No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, Shaka Smart’s team still has a chance to clinch the program’s first No. 1 seed. But this squad cannot continue the habits it showcased tonight against the Red Storm.
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