Kam Jones Oso Ighodaro helps Marquette beat Providence Big East semis

Marquette’s Oso Ighodaro accepts Big East scholar-athlete of year award

Oso Ighodaro accepted the Big East scholar-athlete of the year on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.

NEW YORK – Get ready for Marquette-Connecticut III.

The teams have played two top-10 clashes already this season, with the second-ranked Huskies taking both games.

The No. 10 Golden Eagles will get another shot Saturday night in the Big East tournament championship.

BOX SCORE: Marquette 79, Providence 68

That’s because MU easily dispatched Providence, 79-68, on Friday in the semifinals at Madison Square Garden.

The Golden Eagles (25-8) won the tournament title for the first time last season.

Kam Jones scored 23 points to lead MU, and Oso Ighodaro added 20.

The Golden Eagles had to survive a late push by the Friars.

MU looked like it might roll into the title game after taking a 35-18 lead in the first half.

But Providence kept hanging around, and got within 62-57 when Ticket Gaines hit two free throws with 7:50 remaining.

But Ighodaro responded with a dunk off an alley-oop pass from Chase Ross.

The Friars pushed back to get within 68-65 on a layup from Devin Carter, the Big East player of the year.

After Carter hit a free throw, Jones hit a tough, twisting layup in the paint to make it 70-66. He hit another that all-but-sealed the win at 74-68.