What we learned from Xavier Musketeers’ win over DePaul

[ad_1]

Xavier is over .500 in Big East play for the first time this season following an 85-68 win over DePaul Saturday afternoon at Cintas Center.

A win over one of the worst teams in the Big East won’t do much for Xavier’s thin NCAA Tournament chances, but the Musketeers did what a bubble team needed to do against an inferior opponent.

With a 1-8 record in Quadrant 1 contests, the biggest strength on Xavier’s resume is its clean sheet against sub-par competition. Xavier is now a combined 9-0 in Quadrant 3/4 games.

DePaul (11-15, 2-13 Big East) has now lost eight times on the road by double figures. Xavier (16-10, 8-7 Big East) improves to 12-2 at home this season.

Observations from Xavier Musketeers’ win over DePaul Blue Demons

Xavier’s offense sizzles in win over DePaul

One hour before tip-off, it was announced that DePaul forward NJ Benson would miss the game against Xavier due to a hand injury suffered on Tuesday in the Blue Demons’ road loss to Marquette.

DePaul already featured the second-smallest lineup in the Big East and Xavier big man Zach Freemantle went to work against a shorthanded frontcourt. Freemantle led Xavier with 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting to go with a game-high 7 rebounds in the first half.

Xavier forward Zach Freemantle had 19 points and 9 rebounds in Saturday’s win over DePaul.

Xavier shot 60.7% in the first half and did the majority of its damage from inside the arc. The Muskies were just 3-of-9 from three-point range but 14-of-19 from two.

The second half was a similar story as Xavier struggled from distance (1-of-6) but got whatever it wanted near the rim with 40 points in the paint and 16 on the fast break.

Freemantle finished one rebound shy of a double-double with 19 points and 9 boards. Ryan Conwell (14 points) and Dailyn Swain (17) combined to go 12-of-15 from the floor. Swain had 8 points and 7 assists. Each of Xavier’s starters were in double figures as Dayvion McKnight poured in 14 and Marcus Foster added 11.

Did Xavier’s defense bounce back against…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/learned-xavier-musketeers-win-over-190602190.html

Author : Cincinnati.com | The Enquirer

Publish date : 2025-02-15 19:06:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.