By of the

On Friday afternoon, the Marquette men's basketball team held its fourth of 10 practices as it prepares for its upcoming European trip. I wrote about Steve Wojciechowski starting to fit his pieces together, including putting Haanif Cheatham at point guard and Sacar Anim at power forward, for the paper, but there were plenty of other takeaways from practice.

Here are some of my observations and notes:

Junior center Luke Fischer looks strong and confident just four months removed from left shoulder surgery. He is playing without a brace on that shoulder and is 100% healthy. During Friday's practice, he showed good touch offensively with both hands and at one point threw down a strong driving slam against freshman center Matt Heldt. Fischer also was stout defensively, using his body well to avoid fouls while making things difficult, especially for team's two freshman bigs (Heldt and Henry Ellenson). In addition to playing with more confidence, Fischer was more vocal than he has been in the past.

"I think Luke's very comfortable," Wojciechowski said. "You've got to remember, really, he's played only one semester of college basketball. Last year was really a rookie campaign for him because he didn't play much when he was at Indiana. That playing time was a valuable experience and he's healthy now, which he wasn't last season."

"I think Luke's very comfortable," Wojciechowski said. "You've got to remember, really, he's played only one semester of college basketball. Last year was really a rookie campaign for him because he didn't play much when he was at Indiana. That playing time was a valuable experience and he's healthy now, which he wasn't last season." Along with Fischer, returning players Duane Wilson, Jajuan Johnson and Sandy Cohen III all showed improvement. Wilson, who played mostly on the wing, dazzled with his dribble on a few occasions and shot well from the outside. Johnson also displayed a much-improved outside shot and Cohen, who has bulked up, took the ball into the paint more often and found success.

"I think all those guys have improved as players," Wojciechowski said of his returning players. "We want that to be a trademark of our players. ... "Those guys are all hungry. They want to be good; they want to be part of a winning team. I've noticed a great commitment by those guys."

"I think all those guys have improved as players," Wojciechowski said of his returning players. "We want that to be a trademark of our players. ... "Those guys are all hungry. They want to be good; they want to be part of a winning team. I've noticed a great commitment by those guys." Each of Marquette's five freshmen demonstrated the ability to stretch the floor a bit. Point guard Traci Carter, Cheatham and Anim all hit three-pointers when given the opportunity during live drills or the team's 10-minute scrimmage. Ellenson also stepped out for multiple mid-range jumpers as well as some threes. Heldt battled in the post but also was solid on baseline 15-footers.

While each of the freshmen seemed to fit well, there were invariably still some rookie mistakes. Most of the teaching from the coaches was directed at the freshmen, pushing them to pay attention to little things. Something as small as not touching a teammate's arm to start a drill was called out, for example.

Junior Wally Ellenson, who sat out last season after transferring from Minnesota, has also sat out the first week of practices. This time his absence is due to illness. He was in attendance on Friday but did not compete. He is expected back this weekend.

UNC-Asheville transfer Andrew Rowsey brought his scoring skills with him from North Carolina. The 5-10 guard, who averaged 19.7 points per game in his first two collegiate seasons, was lights out from three-point range. He also navigated the paint well on multiple occasions. He'll have to sit out this season due to NCAA transfer rules, but Wojciechowski expects him to be an asset nonetheless.

"We're not going to play against anybody that shoots the ball better than Andrew," Wojciechowski said. "There may be some guys that shoot it as well, but nobody we play is going to have somebody that shoots it better. To be able to have to go against that level of competition each day in practice, for our guys, it's a big thing."

"We're not going to play against anybody that shoots the ball better than Andrew," Wojciechowski said. "There may be some guys that shoot it as well, but nobody we play is going to have somebody that shoots it better. To be able to have to go against that level of competition each day in practice, for our guys, it's a big thing." Marquette stressed defense and implemented some half-court offense and inbound plays during Friday's practice. On the defensive end, everything was strictly man-to-man. Wojciechowski wants to play more man-to-man this season and hopes to use the preseason to instill the requisite habits to make that possible. That said, the team will have a zone option ready, which they will begin work on Saturday.

You may have seen pictures on social media of players like Carter and Heldt wearing numbers on their practice jerseys that don't match their listed numbers. That's because the team's new practice uniforms haven't come in yet. Those are expected to arrive in the next 10 days and the team will wear them during competition abroad.

The practice court at the Al McGuire Center featured some new lines, as the team prepares to take on foreign competition. The team team added tape to mark off the court used in FIBA competition, which they will compete on in Europe. They also used a 24-second shot clock during their 10-minute scrimmage. It bears mentioning that there were no shot-clock violations and both offenses flowed nicely.

Marquette expects to open the Big East season at home, but it might not be as part of a New Year's Eve marathon as the conference has done each of the past two years. The Golden Eagles anticipate their conference opener will be on Dec. 30, not Dec. 31. That change could be due to the College Football Playoff, which will hold its semifinals and draw a lot of television viewership on Dec. 31.