If you didn't drag yourself out of bed and over to the Al McGuire Center Sunday afternoon, you missed it.

Not the women's basketball team's 79-59 win over West Virginia, although the final half of that decision was so impressive it caused a colleague of mine to proclaim "This is the best they've played all year" — and there was still 10 minutes left.

No, you missed it. You missed the single most toe-warming, smile-bringing, back-of-the-neck-hair-tingling performance that a Marquette basketball player will offer this season. Guaranteed.

You doubt me? I've got proof.

Check out the stat line of senior guard Erin Monfre, who entered Sunday's game with 29 career starts, only six of which had come since the end of the 2006-'07 season.

Monfre scored 21 points, grabbed three rebounds and dished out four assists. She did it on 7-of-10 shooting from the field (7-of-9 from the 3-point line) and led the team in spirits-lifted with a little more than 3,100.

It was a career performance — her 21 points were a career high; the seven 3-pointers broke an Al McGuire Center record and tied the Marquette record for most triples in a game.

Sound impressive? You don't know the half of it.

See on Sunday, Marquette was supporting the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's "Pink Zone" initiative for breast cancer awareness. Most of the reported 3,117 fans in attendance sported pink clothing in support of cancer victims.

For Monfre, Sunday was special. In late January of last year, she lost her mother to a prolonged bout with breast cancer. She kept playing and credits the support of the Marquette community with helping her recover.

On Sunday, she was able to give back.

The chills came when Monfre made shots with all the success of someone throwing baseballs into Lake Michigan. ("There's no really explanation other than it was a special day, and you get that extra help from up above and there's nothing you can do," she said, smiling after the game.)

They came when, after pulling her at the 3:06 mark in the second half with Marquette leading 70-52, coach Terri Mitchell pulled Monfre aside and whispered something in her ear as the crowd gave a standing ovation. ("She just told me 'Great game,' and that she was proud of me, just the maturity that I had for this day," Monfre said.)

They came when Monfre addressed the crowd on the P.A. system after the final buzzer sounded. "Thank you for coming out on this special day," she said, still breathing a touch heavy. "Thank you very, very much."

They came when she stayed after the game with fellow senior Krystal Ellis signing autographs and smiling for photos with young fans (who can only hope they'll grow as strong as her) decked in pink. ("It means so much that people are here," she said.)

But most of all, the chills came when Monfre talked about her mother. "She'd be so proud. I always joke about my dad is the basketball guy, she's the academic. So she knows a little bit about basketball," Monfre said. "Obviously she's helping me, looking down on me, and I did what I could with that."

And what Monfre did Sunday, was exactly what the Golden Eagles needed to avoid a three-game losing streak. It was as much as an appreciative Marquette community could have hoped for.

That alone was enough to inspire chills as I left the Al on Sunday afternoon.

I wish you could've seen it.