"We've never been that short in practice, ever, in my time here," Marquette head men's basketball coach Tom Crean said.,”There have been times this fall when the Marquette men's basketball team finished its practices in less than two and a half hours. That might not mean a lot to the general fan, but those efficient workouts sure impressed the man in charge.

"We've never been that short in practice, ever, in my time here," Marquette head men's basketball coach Tom Crean said. "When the guys are there at a high level and the maturity is there on a day-in, day-out basis, we flow. That's how I measure improvement. That's the only way I can measure a season."

Toward the end of a 24-10 campaign last season that concluded with a 61-49 thumping at the hands of Michigan State in the first round of the NCAA tournament, the Golden Eagles certainly lacked flow.

Yes, Jerel McNeal, the player from which the team's attitude most emanates, was out with a thumb injury, but Crean said the issue extended beyond the resilient guard.

"I just don't think at the end of the year we played with a great physical sense," Crean said. "We weren't wimpy. It wasn't that we weren't tough. We just weren't as physical as we needed to be."

For instance, players were willing to set picks for each other last season, but there was little force and even less efficiency to their screens. There was enough motion but not enough flow.

With junior guards Dominic James, Wesley Matthews and McNeal once again the foundation of the team's performance, the Golden Eagles will feature an up-tempo style, replete with transition offense and high-pressure defense.

The trio accounted for 59 percent of Marquette's scoring, but the depth of the team's production may account just as much for how well the season turns out.

"We cannot lose the speed and quickness and pace that we play at, but at the same time, we have to become a much more physical team," Crean said.

Senior forward Ousmane Barro averaged 8.1 points and a team-leading 6.9 rebounds per game last season. He will show the way for Patrick Hazel, a freshman forward out of Queens, N.Y.

The burden on the young frontcourt players like Hazel grew heavier this past week when it was announced freshman forward Trevor Mbakwe will redshirt this season to recover from a ligament sprain in his left knee.

"I feel like my main attributes are defending, running, blocking shots and rebounding, and Marquette basketball really needs that because there's a lot of guard play here," Hazel said.

Indeed, Crean acknowledged he will not shy away from employing four guards on the floor at the same time. In fact, Crean said he hopes the names in the starting lineup change often early in the season. He said that will mean the internal competition is at a suitable level.

With a top-15 national ranking heading into Saturday night's season opener against IUPUI, the Golden Eagles are predicted to make a deep run into March by many media syndicates.

"Expectations are always high," Matthews said. "That's the only way we know how to do it."

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