NCAA Basketball Power Rankings: Indiana, Marquette quietly rising

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - DECEMBER 08: Joey Hauser #22 and Sam Hauser #10 of the Marquette Golden Eagles celebrate after beating the Wisconsin Badgers 74-69 in overtime at the Fiserv Forum on December 08, 2018 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

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MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – DECEMBER 08: Hauser #22 of the Marquette Golden Eagles attempts. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

20. Marquette Golden Eagles

Last Week: Unranked

Marquette almost sneaked into my top-25 last week following a win over Kansas State. However, that victory was not quite enough to push them over the edge. Now, though, after two wins over UTEP and Wisconsin this week, the Golden Eagles definitely belong in the top-25. They stand at 8-2 overall on the year with three very strong wins and two losses that came against high-quality teams in Indiana and Kansas.

As was expected heading into this season, superstar guard Markus Howard is leading the team offensively. He has led the team in scoring in each of the past four games and is starting to distribute a bit more as well. The junior guard is up to 22.9 points and 4.7 assists per game as the leader of the team.

The main difference between this season and some in the past, though, is that Marquette can consistently lock down opponents defensively. Thanks to some upgraded scheming and defensive additions to the roster, Marquette can win low-scoring battles this season. That is not something that we have previously seen under head coach Steve Wojciechowski.

Marquette, in my opinion, has really flown under-the-radar since their loss to Indiana early in the year. The Golden Eagles seemingly changed their mindset after that performance in Assembly Hall and, aside from one poor stretch against Kansas, it is showing on the court. This is an extremely talented team that should compete for the Big East title.

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