CINCINNATI _ Marquette had a nine-day break between games.
Against No. 8 Xavier on Wednesday, it looked like the Golden Eagles forgot in that span everything they have ever known about defense.
The Musketeers pretty much scored at will and handed MU an 89-70 defeat at the Cintas Center.
It was a dispiriting loss for the Golden Eagles (13-7, 4-4 Big East), who have to regroup and get ready for top-ranked Villanova at the BMO Harris Bradley Center on Sunday.
Sophomore guard Markus Howard was MU's only bright spot on offense, scoring 33 points on 14 of 27 shooting. Sophomore center Harry Froling was the next-highest scorer with seven points.
But it was the Golden Eagles' effort on the other end of the floor that let this game get out of hand.
The Musketeers (19-3, 7-2) shot 35 of 63 (55.6 percent) and had five players score in double figures, led by Quentin Goodin's 15 points.
Even a brief delay and a change of the net on Xavier's basket in the second half couldn't slow down the Musketeers.
MU was out of sorts on the defensive end from the start.
The Musketeers attacked the paint continuously and the Golden Eagles had no answers.
Xavier put up 51 points in the first 20 minutes, shooting 19 of 33 (57.6 percent). The Musketeers did damage from all over the court, getting 24 points in the paint and also making 6 of 11 on 3-pointers.
MU centers Matt Heldt, Theo John and Froling each picked up two fouls in the first half trying to stop Xavier's parade to the rim.
Goodin, a sophomore guard, had 13 points on 5 of 7 shooting in the first half. He came into the game averaging 7.4 points per game. He also sank his first three 3-pointers after going 3 of 26 from long distance in the first 21 games.
Howard was the only reason MU wasn't completely blown out by intermission.
The sophomore guard scored 24 of the Golden Eagles' 33 points in the first 20 minutes, with most of his field goals coming on acrobatic layups.
Howard shot 11 of 18 in the first half. The rest of his MU teammates shot 2 of 13 against Xavier's lengthy defenders.
It wasn't all good for Howard, though. He missed his first free-throw attempt after sinking his first 57 of the season.
Howard had a streak of 66 made free throws dating back to last season. He fell short of Steve Novak's program record of 68.
