Lately it’s really been starting to feel a lot like basketball season at Marquette.

And for the first time since I’ve been here, I can honestly say that pertains to more than men’s basketball.

With the opening of the Al McGuire Center on Jan. 4, the women’s program has entered a new era. The Golden Eagles christened the building with a 34-point blowout of the Columbia Bears — a game that was without question more exciting than any other I had attended despite its lopsided score.

The fans were into the game and the players fed off of the newfound energy it provided. Right from Kelly Schwerman’s opening three pointer on through the game it was a special debut. They followed the win up with a pair of home conference triumphs and a victory over crosstown rival UWM.

And it’s not just the favorable atmosphere that the McGuire Center provides that has made the season great. The team is pretty good, too. Led by a bevy of contributors, the team has put together a 12-3 campaign thus far, including a 2-0 conference record.

In those 12 wins, the team’s average margin of victory has been 13.59 points. Meanwhile, in the three losses to Notre Dame, St. Bonaventure and Iowa, the average margin of victory was five points. The aforementioned bevy of scorers, led by senior Kelly Schwerman’s 13.3 points per contest and sophomore Carolyn Kieger’s 11.1, everybody on the team has been ready to step up.

This was best personified when in the win over UWM, a pair of unlikely suspects took the game over with tough rebounding and timely scoring. Senior leader Crystal Weaver scored 17 points and pulled down eight rebounds. Freshman Christina Quaye had easily her best game of the year, notching a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

I know I’m sounding like a real cheerleader here, but don’t sleep on this team. Who knows? Marquette may see both its men’s and women’s basketball teams playing some NCAA tournament basketball come March.