Down Early, DePaul Allows the Redhawks to Self-Destruct
DePaul started out slow getting themselves down 17-12. After a flagrant foul send coast to coast Marin Maric sprawling to the floor, the Demons scored 14 in a row to gain control of the game. After the run, the closest that the Fightin’ Fratboys of Miami came was 26-23. Max Strus hit a buzzer beating 3 pointer to end the first half, giving the Lincoln Park squad a 35-26 halftime lead. Eli Cain woke up in the 2nd half scoring 15 of his 19 points. Strus put the game away with a back breaking 3 pointer with 4:49 left in the 2nd half to give DePaul a 15 point lead. Miami self-destructed with a season high 25 turnovers (compared to 11 by the Demons).
The Setup
Just under 5,500 blue seats watching, along with a couple of thousand humans.
Welcome Back Marin Maric, Game MVP
Marin Maric came back from a knee injury sustained during the UIC game, making an immediate impact. He was clearly the MVP of the game with 22 points in only 24 minutes of playing time, going 6-8 from the field and 9-10 from the FT line. Maric was clearly happy to be back and contributing. Multiple times taking it to the rack, and even trying to go coast to coast, more on that later.
DePaul Covered!
Winning 83-66 made a few Vegas types happy. Must of been a roller coaster ride of a game for the degenerate gamblers of our lovely country.
Turning Point : Maric is Back
9:09 left in the 1st half Marin Maric with the Steal, Coast to Coast, and then gets taken down.
Maric then knocked down 2 free throws, and then DePaul scored 12 more consecutive points.
Buzzer Beater
Strus with a triple to end the 1st half, putting the Demons up by 9.
DePaul Made Free Throws
The Redhawks hoodoo did not effect the Demons. After shooting an abominable 37.5% at the line against Northwestern, DePaul shot 80% on 16-20 shooting, becoming the first team to clearly shoot above their season average against Miami. Miami is now only 8th best in the country at making opponents miss Free-Throws. Clearly, the ghost of Ron Tammen haunted the wrong game.
Cain
Great second half for Cain with 15 of his 19 in the second. He hit consecutive 3 pointers, did his patented sweeping layups in traffic, and knocked down free throws. It was nice to see him get out of his funk.
Leitao Was Happy For Once
Tweet of the Night
Since there wasn’t a lot to be snarky about, a shout out to Peter Ryckbosch.
Up Next, Big East Play Begins: No. 1 Villanova
The Villanova Wildcats are coming to town. It shouldn’t be pretty. Villanova sports the 2nd most efficient offense, and 8th most stingy defense. Compare that to DePaul’s 150th most efficient offense, and 86th most stingy defense, and you are looking at Nova being favored by 14. Good times!
Merry Christmas DePaul Fans
