After having their nine-game winning streak snapped by Marquette on Wednesday, the Blue Demons got back on track Saturday by throttling the Butler Bulldogs, 97-64.
“It was really important that we got back on track after the tough night we had at the hands of Marquette on Tuesday,” head coach Doug Bruno said. “I’m really proud of the way the team fought back and came back tonight.”
DePaul (21-6, 13-2) was using their defensive prowess to their advantage early, wracking up four steals in the first four minutes. They also forced a shot clock violation coming out of the first media timeout and had nine of their first eleven points off of Butler turnovers.
Over the next few minutes the Blue Demons turned on the offensive intensity. They went on a 22-4 run over a five minute stretch, making DePaul’s lead 29-8 at the midway point in the first half. Junior Megan Rogowski then hit a quick transition layup, forcing the Bulldogs (12-14, 7-8) to call timeout.
For the next ten minutes the Blue Demons never allowed the lead the dip below 15 points. The Blue Demons ended the half with a Jessica January 3-pointer, going into the locker room with a 51-24 lead. January led all scorers with 13 points while Rogowski put in 11 of her own.
DePaul steadily built their lead up at the start of the second half. The Blue Demons capitalized on the Bulldog’s ten turnovers in the first ten minutes of the second half, gaining an 80-48 advantage at the midway point of the half. By this point, DePaul had forced 24 Butler turnovers in the game. They would end up with one more, which Bruno said is their goal every game.
“Because we have to overcome our size disadvantage we have to force turnovers, this is the style we play,” He said. “We have a goal of a 25 turnovers every game.”
It was more of the same for the rest of the game. DePaul continued to pressure the Bulldogs defensively and ended up with 32 points off of turnovers. That total would account for nearly a third of their points as they finished off the Bulldogs with a final score of 97-64.
Rogowski finished as the game’s highest scorer, notching 22 points alongside four assists. January hit her career high point total with 17, breaking her old record that she also set against Butler in January.
Chanise Jenkins finished with a nine to one assist to turnover ration, an impressive statistic that she says is “very important to her.”
“I love giving my teammates the ball and I love watching them score but at the same time I want to be able to give them the ball efficiently and put them in places to score,” Jenkins said.
Despite having a solid eight points and seven rebounds, she still considers it her role to make sure she’s getting the ball to her teammates.
“If you’re open, you’re going to get the ball, and it’s my job to get you the ball,” Jenkins said.
Next up for the Blue Demons is a twogame road swing starting off in Philadelphia to take on Villanova on Tuesday, then they head to St. Johns for a battle with the two top teams in the Big East conference.
Even with the finale of the season drawing closer, Rogowski said that they’re still taking each game one at a time.
“These next few games are important and it all started tonight with Butler. Our philosophy is ‘Butler is the best team in America,'” she said. “Now, Villanova is the best team in America. We just have to stay in the moment and work on Villanova before any other games.”