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Scouting report: No. 18 Xavier going for ninth straight win, first at Villanova

adam baum, cincinnati enquirer
·4 min read
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Xavier heads to Villanova on Saturday in search of its first Big East road win against the Wildcats since joining the Big East Conference.
Xavier heads to Villanova on Saturday in search of its first Big East road win against the Wildcats since joining the Big East Conference.

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. ‒ How a team responds to success, Xavier men's basketball coach Sean Miller said, is more important than the initial success.

That's where the Musketeers find themselves this week coming off a marquee win over UConn with a road trip to Villanova, a place Xavier has never won (0-8) since joining the Big East Conference.

"We've had an initial burst of success, awesome, we're all thrilled to have had it, but the reality of it is we have 16 games ahead of us, the lion's share of our season remains to be seen," Miller said. "Those teams and players that continue to stay hungry and work and practice and improve, I think those are the players and the teams and the programs that kind of get where they want to go when it comes to March."

Miller said that since Saturday's win over a ranked UConn opponent, there have been some nice moments in preparation for Villanova, but there have also been moments that reminded him "that we have a long way to go to be able to handle success and be at our best playing Villanova on Saturday."

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Xavier has a lot of momentum right now ‒ eight straight wins and its best conference start since joining the Big East ‒ but the Musketeers can't get fooled by Villanova's 8-7 record or the Wildcats' new head coach, Kyle Neptune.

"If they'd been healthy from the start, I think they would have several more wins," Miller said. "They also played just an unmerciful nonconference schedule."

Villanova's the best free-throw shooting team in the country. The Wildcats take care of the basketball. They depend a lot on the 3-point line, and Xavier's going to have to prove it can defend the perimeter.

Xavier's offense has to take care of the ball against a Villanova defense that will throw some three-quarter court pressure at the Musketeers, and then Xavier has to attack against a defense that doesn't have a great deal of size and switches on ball screens.

"If we don't have great effort and great concentration we're not going to be able to win at Villanova," said Miller.

There's no need for a history lesson, said Miller. His team's well aware of how this trip has gone for Xavier.

"I think our team knows that," Miller said. "But a lot of good things have happened. We've won eight in a row. We had a big emotional win. We've had a week since that win. And I guess my hope is that we haven't gotten fat and happy with our success.

"Because if we have we're gonna go in the wrong direction."

The Game

  • Tipoff: 4:30 p.m. on Saturday at Finneran Pavilion

  • TV/Radio: FS1 with play-by-play from Matt Schumacker and analysis from Sarah Kustok. Byron Larkin and Joe Sunderman will have the radio call on WLW-AM (700).

  • Series info: Villanova leads the series 32-6 with five straight wins. Xavier has never won at Villanova (0-8) since joining the Big East.

Scouting report

Xavier Musketeers (12-3, 4-0)

Coach: Sean Miller, 18th season (434-159 overall)

Offense: 83.8 ppg

Defense: 73.9 ppg

Projected lineup

Player (Position, Height, Key Stat)

Adam Kunkel (G, 6'4", 9.8 ppg)

Zach Freemantle (F, 6'9", 14.4 ppg)

Colby Jones (G, 6'6", 14.3 ppg)

Souley Boum (G, 6'3", 16.9 ppg)

Jack Nunge (F, 7'0", 15.2 ppg)

Villanova Wildcats (8-7, 2-2)

Coach: Kyle Neptune, second season (24-23 overall)

Offense: 70.8 ppg

Defense: 67.6 ppgProjected lineup

Player (Position, Height, Key Stat)

Caleb Daniels (G, 6'4", 16.0 ppg)

Eric Dixon (F, 6'8", 16.0 ppg)

Cam Whitmore (F, 6'7", 11.7 ppg)

Brandon Slater (F, 6'8", 11.4 ppg)

Chris Arcidiacono (G, 6'4", 5.1 ppg)

Players to watch

Eric Dixon

Eric Dixon, right, is a 6-foot-8 forward who is Villanova's co-leading scorer at 16.0 points per game.
Eric Dixon, right, is a 6-foot-8 forward who is Villanova's co-leading scorer at 16.0 points per game.

Dixon may be undersized but he uses his strength, physicality and skill to make up for it. Xavier needs to win that battle around the basket.

Souley Boum

As the Musketeers' primary ball-handler, Souley Boum will be tasked with getting Xavier into its offense against Villanova's defense, which sometimes features a three-quarters court press.
As the Musketeers' primary ball-handler, Souley Boum will be tasked with getting Xavier into its offense against Villanova's defense, which sometimes features a three-quarters court press.

It's imperative that Xavier doesn't get sloppy with the ball, especially on the road. Boum had one of his quieter performances against UConn. The Musketeers need him to bounce back with an efficient game and provide his usual spark for Xavier's offense.

Key to the game

Discipline

To beat Villanova requires discipline. The Wildcats are going to use a ton of shot-fakes to test Xavier's defensive discipline. The Musketeers will only win this game if they play disciplined basketball, which means taking care of the ball, staying down on shot-fakes, rebounding, and defending without fouling.

Rankings

KenPom: Xavier (24), Villanova (54)

NET: Xavier (25), Villanova (87)

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: No. 18 Xavier going for ninth straight win, first at Villanova