The day before Marquette University hosted Villanova at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, Golden Eagles men’s basketball coach Steve Wojciechowski ran his team through a relatively standard 90-minute practice the Al McGuire Center.

This year, such practices were an all hands on deck affair, including walk ons, team managers, assistant coaches and the one member of the team that couldn’t suit up on game day, junior Wally Ellenson.

But when his teammates broke up after practice, Ellenson hustled to a car, which whisked him from the west side of the city to the east side, specifically the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Klotsche Center.

He then went through a different "practice" regimen, re-warming his legs, re-activating his fast twitch muscles for a high jump competition at the Panther Tune-up track and field meet, which the Golden Eagles were using as, well, tune-up in advance of the Big East indoor championships on Feb. 28 and March 1.

After a 20-minute warmup, Ellenson laced up his spikes, ran up eight steps – not his usual 12, due to the configuration inside the Klotsche – he cleared 7-feet, 3-inches to set a facility record.

This after he caught the attention of the nation with a 7-5.75 leap in Madison at the Camp Randall Memorial Sports Center in Madison, on the campus of the University of Wisconsin at on Jan. 17.

"I think that really – it was spot on in Madison but I think overall that was probably more impressive," Marquette jumps coach Rick Bellford said of the jump on Feb. 20. "The fact that he jumped what he did there, from a short run, coming straight from basketball practice. I think that kind of legitimized what he did in Madison."

And, it allowed Ellenson and the Marquette track coaching staff to believe that he could win an NCAA national title this weekend at the indoor championships in Fayetteville, Ark.

"We had pretty good idea he was going to be in the mix at Arkansas but I feel like he’s going to be right up there," Bellford said. "He might be the guy to beat."

To get here, we have to remember where Ellenson came from.

He’s always jumped in the spring, after basketball season, and cleared seven feet while at Rice Lake High School. He continued to do so even the University of Minnesota, and finished second in the outdoor NCAA Championships at 7-4.5 last year, leading to his second All-American honor in the event.

So when it looked like he may transfer to Marquette at the start of the year, Bellford and the track coaches got excited about the prospect. That turned up a notch when Wojciechowski invited Bellford to meet Ellenson to talk about the program during his official visit.

"Of course I was pretty ecstatic," Bellford said. "So I came and met him and we just had a great conversation and like you said it was entirely basketball based but I think he liked what he had to hear and he loves track. Obviously basketball is his first love and he wants to pursue that as far as he can go, but no, I think he just legitimately wanted to come to Marquette and liked the coaches and everything about the university."

A plan was mapped out around basketball, and Bellford and Ellenson say little thought was given to the indoor campaign. But, unlike his two years at Minnesota, he wasn't playing – or traveling – during the season. That opened up some unique windows that the coaches discovered late in the fall.

So, head coach Bert Rogers and Bellford approached Ellenson and Wojciechowski to see if he could compete at some indoor meets when the basketball team was on the road. They were given an enthusiastic blessing, and the rest, literally, is history.

Ellenson not only met the qualifying standard for world outdoor championships with his height in Madison, but that 7-5.75 in the top three in the world. He then won the Big East championship with a jump of 7-3.25.

"What Wally’s doing is remarkable," Wojciechowski said. "Wally’s been a great addition to our program. Behind the scenes he’s really one a great job in practice. He’s a competitor. And he’s going to be a very good basketball player. In track and field, he’s world class. He’s a guy who’s got a chance to be an Olympic medal winner. That’s incredible. It’s incredible for somebody who can practice four days a week with the basketball team, hop on a plane, get to the Big East track and field competition and win. It speaks to his ability, but it also speaks to who he is as a competitor."

Now, he is competing at the indoor national championships, as a favorite – and with fresh legs.

"My mom’s like, don’t jump through the ceiling," Ellenson said with a laugh. "But, you know, I’m excited, because you can never jump too high. So, I’m excited to get my legs under me and just really be prepared for this meet because it’s something I haven’t seen all indoors yet."

He admits that his dual duties aren’t ideal for a high jumper, and his legs haven’t been totally under him all year due to basketball. But, he credits Bellford’s plan, along with the oversight of Todd Smith, the university’s director of sports performance, for keeping him healthy and strong.

"They’re the best in the country," Bellford said of Smith and his staff. "They’ve got the right leg as strong as i’ve ever seen. They’ve got him prepared. They’ve definitely done their job on their end."

Ellenson’s job, now, is to visualize success, and then to execute.

He’ll lay on the mat, eyes skyward, and watch himself run up to the bar, leap, bend and kick over it, before finishing right where he, victorious.

"That’s huge, to put that in my head," Ellenson said. "I just think visualization is huge. You’ve got to see yourself do it before you do it."

Those around him believe they’ll be seeing him doing this on the biggest stage of them all, the Olympic Games.

"I think we knew what type of athlete we were getting, but just the more and more I work with him the the more I was just kind of like, wow, he’s really only scratching the surface," Bellford said. "I feel like he’s taken that next step since he’s come here and I feel like he’s got one or two more steps to even improve upon."