#18/20 MUBB Hosts Southern Friday Night at 7 p.m. CT

The No. 18/20 Marquette University men's basketball team (10-2, 0-0 BIG EAST) wraps up the non-conference portion of its schedule Friday night when the team hosts Southern (1-11, 0-0 SWAC) at 7 p.m. in Fiserv Forum. FS1 will feature the television broadcast, with Wayne Randazzo (play-by-play) and Stephen Bardo (analyst) calling the action. Friday's outing will also mark the conclusion of a seven-game homestand. MU opens BIG EAST Play on New Year's Day at St. John's.

Howard Nets 40 Points, In The Second Half
Entering halftime of the Dec. 21 matchup with Buffalo, guard Markus Howard had scored five points on 1-of-7 shooting from the floor. Following the intermission, however, he put on an offensive display that few, if any, in collegiate basketball have matched.

The Chandler, Arizona, native scored 40 points in the second half, including 25-straight for Marquette from the 7:11 mark to 1:44 left in the game. He finished the contest with 45 points on 12-of-25 shooting from the floor, including a 9-of-13 effort from behind the 3-point line. He also knocked down all 12 of his free throw attempts.

Howard also scored 45 points earlier this season in the win over Kansas State and is in possession of the school record (52, at Providence in 2017-18). His 40 points in the final 20 minutes set a new personal-best mark for points in a half. He netted 32 in the second stanza against the Friars last season.

MU Pulls Away To Extend Winning Streak
The Golden Eagles pulled away from Buffalo midway through the second half on Dec. 21, claiming a 103-85 victory, the team's seventh in a row.

The team's current winning streak matches the program's longest since the 2015-16 campaign, when MU rattled off eight-straight decisions prior to the start of conference play.

Over the course of the last seven games, Markus Howard leads the team with 28.9 points per game and forward Ed Morrow has picked up his production, chipping in 8.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest. The team is shooting 47.5 percent from the floor in those outings, including a 404.4 effort from long distance.

At the defensive end, Marquette has held opponents to 40.7 percent shooting from the field overall, including a 28.7 percent mark from behind the 3-point line.

Theo John Quietly Making Big Impact
While Markus Howard's offensive outburst received the headlines vs. Buffalo, sophomore Theo John quietly put together one of his best single-game efforts in the win.

He finished with six points, nine rebounds and a personal-best seven blocked shots in just 27 minutes of action. His blocked shots total marked a career high and he also found time to dish out three assists.

The Minneapolis, Minnesota, native is tops in the BIG EAST in blocks per game (2.3) and Marquette is 31st in the nation as a team. John had 26 swats in 33 games in 2017-18 and already has 27 through the first 12 games in 2018-19.