In a surprise to no one, Marquette had themselves an easy finish to the non-conference season. Central Arkansas is the worst team that Marquette will face all season. Golden Eagles did not take them lightly. They came out and laid the hammer against the Bears from start to finish. It was refreshing to see Marquette not even screw around with these guys and come out victorious. They won 106-54. It’s been a while since the Golden Eagles had this type of victory.

Player of the Game: Markus Howard – The Marquette star had 30 points in 20 minutes. As others pointed out, Howard could have easily had 50 or 60 points in this game. He didn’t exactly need to with the level of competition. He found fire right away with three straight made 3-pointers and a majority of Marquette’s points early in this one. Another nice thing about this easy street victory is Howard gets some rest heading into the Big East season.

Honorable Mention: Symir Torrence – Keep an eye out for this guy int he Big East season. Torrence is a freshman who came to Marquette a year early. He looked fantastic on Saturday night. Yes, they’re playing an inferior opponent, but this guy is a dude. Torrence finished with nine points, five assists, and four assists. He is an awesome passer. Marquette’s point guard transition will be easier than others likely to believe next season.

One Thing to Watch: Koby McEwen injury – Marquette lost Koby McEwen to a thumb injury for this game. McEwen has a sprained thumb. It is unknown if he will be ready to go for Wednesday’s Big East opener against Creighton. McEwen isn’t that good offensively to start the year, but he has been a rock defensively. Hopefully, McEwen can be ready for that one, but thumb injuries can be tricky.

Next up: As mentioned, Marquette goes to Omaha to take on Creighton on Wednesday night. These games have been WILD at Creighton. Marquette has a four-game winning streak against Jays in Nebraska. Last time around, it was a wild overtime game where Sam Hauser hit a buzzer-beater and Markus Howard had 53 points. Marquette scored 90+ in the last three trips to Omaha.

Charlie.