Normally when the crowd erupts and reaches its loudest volume with 1 second to go in a game you’d expect that someone from the home team had just sunk a game winning shot, or an opponent had just missed a game winner. However, there is one exception to that- an exception Marquette fans did not get the chance to experience the four seasons prior to this one. So that’s why when Kevin Menard caught a pass from Ron Howard and put it in the basket to give MU its second official 100-point game of the season, it didn’t take a free taco (see: Dallas Mavericks) to get the 10,132 in attendance up out of their seats.

When the last two guys on your bench get in the game in the first half, you know that either you have a very shallow bench or you’re playing Arkansas Pine-Bluff. Wednesday night at the U.S. Cellular Arena, Marquette was playing the Golden Lions of APBU. And Wednesday night the Golden Eagles won the battle of the golden animals (does that seem sacrilegious?). Six MU players scored in double-figures in the 100-49 win.

With Odartey Blankson back in the lineup and Todd Townsend taking Blankson’s place on the injured list, Travis Diener got the start against a small Arkansas-Pine Bluff team. Although the new starting lineup of Diener, Henry, Wade, Harris, and Nnamaka was one that has already played many minutes this year, something was not clicking early in the game for MU. It may have been the long layoff for exams, or the new surroundings of the Arena, or just a little uncertainty about how to approach this game that they were so heavily favored in. Whatever it was, it allowed the Golden Lions to get out to a 6-5 lead as Kory McKee threw down a dunk with 16:00 to go in the first half.

That dunk woke Marquette up. Big time. The Golden Eagles scored the next ten points of the game to take a 15-6 lead on an Oluoma Nnamaka dunk. Then they scored the next ten points of the game. A Travis Diener free throw made it 25-6. Then they scored the next ten points. An Odartey Blankson made it 35-6 MU. Dwyane Wade and Cordell Henry, who both finished in double-figures despite not being at the top of their games, did not score in the 30-0 MU run.

Although the run brought back memories of MU getting down 23-2 versus Cincinnati a few years back, and it reminded Tom Crean of a 42-6 run he was a part of at Western Kentucky, no one could seem to remember anything like the 30-0 run MU put together Wednesday night.

Marquette shot 60.3% for the game (falling 7.4% shy of a team record), in large part because they dominated the boards, 50-23. MU had 54 points in the paint and 13 offensive rebounds. Scott Merritt showed some very positive things on a night when MU was not playing like a team worthy of a #14 ranking. Merritt hit 6 of 6 shots from the field and 3 of 4 free throws to finish with 15 points. Being four inches taller than the tallest APBU starter, he was able to clean up on the glass, grabbing 13 rebounds (that tied his career best). It was Merritt's second double-double of his career and his first of the season.

Odartey Blankson also showed a few flashes of what we’ve been missing the last three weeks, dazzling the crowd with some fine reverse layups and even getting his first dunk of the season. He finished with 13 points and 7 rebounds.

Marquette, which committed 22 turnovers, will need to be much more sure-handed with the ball Saturday afternoon when they venture into their first truly hostile environment of the season. A sold-out crowd at the Kohl Center in Madison will play host to the Golden Eagles-Badgers game at 1:00 p.m. CST.