Notre Dame's Melissa Lechlitner fights for a loose ball against Marquette. (AP Photo)

No. 17 Marquette Slips By Irish, 71-62

Jan. 23, 2007

Box Score

Box Score (PDF)

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Efueko Osagie-Landry scored 15 points and Krystal Ellis added 12 to lead No. 17 Marquette to an 71-62 victory over Notre Dame on Tuesday night.

Christine Quaye had 12 points for Marquette (18-2, 6-1 BIG EAST), which won its third straight game.

Charel Allen led Notre Dame (13-6, 4-2) with 17 points and Ashley Barlow added 12 points.

After trailing the entire game, Notre Dame closed the gap to 52-48 when Allen hit two free throws with 7:27 remaining.

Marquette then went on an 11-4 run to grab a 63-52 lead with 3:42 remaining when Osagie-Landry grabbed a rebound and scored. She was fouled on the play and hit the free throw. It was the third time during the run that Marquette grabbed an offensive rebound and scored.

Notre Dame could get no closer than seven points the rest of the way when Breona Gray hit two free throws with 35.6 seconds remaining.

Marquette hit five of eight free throws, including three by Osagie-Landry, down the stretch.

The Golden Eagles pulled ahead in the first half, but Notre Dame cut the halftime lead to 31-29 on a 3-pointer by Crystal Erwin.

— ND —

POST GAME NOTES: Notre Dame saw its 10-game series winning streak against Marquette come to an end, with the Golden Eagles collecting their first win over the Irish since Dec. 1, 1992 (66-62 in Milwaukee) … MU’s 71 points were the most allowed by Notre Dame in the series since Dec. 1, 1993 (a 90-76 Irish win at the Joyce Center), and only the third time in 32 series games that the Golden Eagles have topped the 70-point mark … Marquette was the third ranked opponent for Notre Dame this season, with the Irish going 1-2 against Top 25 teams to date (67-59 win vs. #10/9 Purdue, 78-54 loss at #4 Tennessee); Notre Dame also dealt current #16 Bowling Green one of only two losses it has suffered all season, an 85-81 overtime win on Nov. 13 (other loss was to #1 Duke) … Notre Dame’s bench was outscored for just the fourth time all season (1-3 record) … the Irish carded double-digit steals for the 14th time in 19 games, with the 17 steals vs. Marquette being their second-highest total of the season (18 vs. Prairie View A&M on Dec. 28) … MU shot a Notre Dame opponent season-high .549 from the field, exceeding Penn State’s .488 mark on Nov. 16 … the Irish protected the ball well once again (12 turnovers) and are averaging just 11 turnovers in their last three games … Charel Allen tied her career high with five steals (achieved twice before, most recently vs. Prairie View A&M) … Breona Gray’s four steals were a career best, passing the three-steal standard she had set nine previous times (most recently vs. St. John’s on Jan. 16) … Ashley Barlow earned a place on ESPN SportsCenter’s “Top 10 Plays” when her acrobatic fastbreak layup with 11:05 left in the first half was named the #6 play of the night.