Observations as Xavier Musketeers fall to 2-2 after road loss to Iowa Hawkeyes

IOWA CITY, IA − With a new coach and a new roster, the 2025-26 season will be one full of learning experiences for the Xavier Musketeers.

On Nov. 14, Xavier faced its first road test of the season and dropped to 2-2 after an 81-62 loss to Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

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Xavier head coach Richard Pitino looks on during the Musketeers’ game against Iowa at Carver-Hawkeye Arena Nov. 14.

Xavier was able to hang around for the majority of the first half, but sloppy ball security, foul trouble and poor rim protection eventually caught up to the underdog Musketeers as Iowa pulled away.

Xavier defense punished in the paint again

Iowa had shot 42.5% from 3-point range over its first two games, but the Hawkeyes weren’t interested in settling for perimeter attempts against a Xavier defense that allowed 52 points in the paint against Santa Clara earlier this week.

Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz drives past Xavier guard Malik Messina-Moore during the Musketeers game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa Nov. 14.

Iowa threw its up-tempo pick-and-roll offense at Xavier’s inexperienced defense and produced 24 first-half points in the paint. The Hawkeyes finished with 50 paint points to Xavier’s 26. The Hawkeyes were 17-of-22 on layups and won the rebounding battle, 41-24.

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Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz led all scorers with 21 points while forward Tavion Banks added 13. Iowa was 26-of-30 from inside the arc.

Foul trouble haunts Xavier in loss to Iowa

With three days to stew on Xavier’s most lopsided loss at Cintas Center in 14 years, the Musketeers had better energy and effort out of the gate in Iowa. However, it led to a big disparity in the foul department as the early whistle went against the visitors.

Iowa was in the bonus less than five minutes into the contest and Xavier committed 13…

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Publish date : 2025-11-15 03:08:00

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