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Offensive Help Abandons Christon, Taylor in Muskies' Loss
1/25/2013
In what has been a week of Atlantic 10 shakeups, with undefeateds Butler and VCU falling and Saint Joseph's racking up their third loss to St. Bonaventure, the Musketeers added to the trend. A 63-57 loss to the Charlotte 49ers was as brutal and frustrating a defeat that Xavier has experienced all season.
Xavier (11-7, 4-1) lost an imminently winnable game against a team that ranks towards the top of the standings in the Atlantic 10. Charlotte (16-3, 4-1) gains some traction after a blowout loss to Richmond last week. It was a must-win game for both teams, and the 49ers took advantage of sloppy play by the Musketeers.
Charlotte's defense, one of the best in the conference, didn't help Xavier's offensive struggles, either. The Musketeers did everything they wanted to do -- take away the 49ers' offense down low, attack the glass, and force turnovers. Xavier outscored Charlotte 36-26 in the paint. They outrebounded them 44-33, including 21-6 on the offensive glass. And Charlotte turned the ball over 19 times (10 Xavier steals).
The difference in the game? Xavier couldn't buy a basket from anyone not named Semaj Christon and Travis Taylor. They also committed a ghastly 27 personal fouls.
Charlotte shot 29 free throws Wednesday night, but only made 15. So fouls didn't kill Xavier at the free throw line, but it didn't help. The Muskies were just 4-9 from the charity stripe.
Taylor was 9-16 from the field, finishing with 18 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes of play, before fouling out late in the game. Christon was 8-16, also with 18 points, before fouling out with under a minute to go. The rest of the team was 8-32 shooting.
Not surprising, certain players absolutely disappeared for Xavier. Justin Martin was 1-5 from three, finishing with seven points and six rebounds. He continues to be a near-non-factor every game. Jeff Robinson played 24 minutes and amassed exactly no points. Instead, he contributed three turnovers and fouled out of the game.
Brad Redford played 30 minutes, but never was given the opportunities to shoot like he had the previous three games. He finished with five points on just 2-3 three shooting (1-2 from three). There was little other production from the offense, which managed just five assists to 17 turnovers. Their 36.4% from the field was the second lowest total of the season.
Xavier is now just 1-5 on the season when they fail to hit the 60 point mark. That's telling about how good the Musketeers' defense has been this season. It's also telling about how poor the offensive talent is, particularly with only two reliable threats. It's obvious how good the Muskies are when multiple players are clicking -- early in the season Robinson and Dee Davis helped Xavier kick it into gear. During the four game winning streak, Redford and Robinson were the other two consistent players.
But at Halton Arena, it was just Taylor and Christon. That will hardly be enough for the rest of the year, particularly not on the road, and not in this conference -- as evidenced by Wednesday night, when La Salle upset Butler in Philadelphia.
Xavier's defense wasn't particularly good Wednesday, but they stuck to their gameplan and had a chance to win. Willie Clayton finished a perfect 6-6 with 14 points and 8 rebounds, while Chris Braswell was 4-7 with 12 points. Denzel Ingram (12 points) and DeMario Mayfield (13) also finished in double-digits.
Despite packing the paint to force Charlotte to shoot the three, the 49ers were 17-28 from inside the arc. That seems deadly, but it could have been worse on the scoreboard. Making just 5-16 threes and missing numerous free throw opportunities kept Xavier in the game.
There was just no one else besides Taylor or Christon to capitalize.
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