<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cOnce I hit the floor, (there were) some obvious jitters because I haven\u2019t played in three weeks,\u201d Kolek said. \u201cBut I think 37 minutes, most minutes in a game, I thought I did alright with the win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Next up for Marquette is the Florida-Colorado winner on Sunday in the second round of the South Region. The Golden Eagles are going for the program\u2019s first Sweet 16 berth since 2013 after losing in the second round last year as a No. 2 seed.<\/p>\n
Tyrone Marshall scored a career-high 21 points for WKU (22-12), which seized momentum from Marquette midway through the first half in its first NCAA appearance since 2013. But the Hilltoppers shot 33.3% (11 for 33) from the field in the final 20 minutes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe gave them some open looks where we weren\u2019t connected enough defensively with our communication, and they got going,\u201d first-year WKU coach Steve Lutz said. \u201cWhen they get going, they\u2019re hard to stop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jones made 5 of 10 from long range and 10 of 16 overall, and Kolek was 7 of 13 with a pair from long range. Those 3s came on his first two shots, adding to the boost he provided with his presence alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cFortunately, Tyler and Kam kept us afloat,\u201d Smart said. \u201cWe were fortunate to only be down seven at the half.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marquette was up 28-19 with 7:52 left in the first half when Western Kentucky started to take over. Kentucky transfer Dontaie Allen entered and quickly sank consecutive 3s 42 seconds apart, and Marshall added two as the \u2018Toppers surged into the break.<\/p>\n
SECOND TO ONE<\/h2>\n
Kolek has 430 assists, passing Sherman Douglas for second on the Big East Conference career list. He is 25 away from passing Vincent Council for the top spot. <\/p>\n
STAYING ON POINT<\/h2>\n
Marquette entered the game as one of the nation\u2019s best in turnover margin and finished plus-8 in that category while scoring 21 points off 18 WKU turnovers.<\/p>\n
___<\/h2>\n
AP March Madness bracket: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/ncaa-mens-bracket<\/a> and coverage: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/march-madness<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"INDIANAPOLIS (AP) \u2014 Kam Jones and Marquette kept pushing the ball up the floor, and eventually the shots started to fall. Having Tyler Kolek back definitely helped. Jones scored 28 points and Kolek made a successful return from an oblique injury, helping No. 2 seed Marquette rally for an 87-69 victory over No. 15 seed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":4383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[151,223,2075,630,248,629,625,221,2754,626,2937,2002],"yoast_head":"\n
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