Luka Garza made sure his first-half performance against Southern wasn’t a one-time thing.

The Iowa big man and all-around performer made national waves when he put up an eye-popping 36 points in the first half of the win over Southern. Hitting the court again on Thursday, Garza put up another crazy output.

Facing off against Western Illinois, Garza went to work early and often, finishing the first half with 30 points. And that’s with the game heading to halftime.

In the first half alone, Garza has put up 30 points, nine rebounds, a block, a steal, and an assist. He has shot 11-for-17 from the floor and 2-for-4 from three-point range. He has 30 of Iowa’s 48 total points in the game.

There really is nothing else to say about the senior center at this point. His point totals in three games to start the year are 26, 41, and 30 (and still counting).

It will be interesting to see how long Garza plays in the second half with the Hawkeyes holding a 23-point lead after 20 minutes. He needs 15 points to set a new career-high and 10 more for back-to-back 40-point games. It would be Garza’s third career 40-point game if he is able to reach the plateau.

We would say there is no doubt who the early candidate for Player of the Year is.