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Christon Leads Muskies to Tough Win
11/23/2012
One thing was obvious coming into this season, and became even more apparent over the previous two games. Xavier lacked that go-to player with the killer instinct late in games. For two seasons it was Tu Holloway drilling big threes and slicing through the lane for a game-clinching layup.
It appeared the Musketeers would lack that kind of player until Friday night in Anaheim. With the Drexel Dragons hanging tough the entire game, freshman guard Semaj Christon decided it was his time to shine.
And shine he did.
The Musketeers escaped with a 69-65 win over the Dragons thanks to a 23 point, 6 assist effort from Christon. Xavier (4-1) needed every point from Christon down the stretch to hold off what looked like an inevitable rally from Drexel (1-4).
Xavier trailed 27-26 going into the break, struggling with many of the same issues they faced against Pacific. A slow, methodical offense dominated the pace of the game. Lights-out shooting from the opponent didn't hurt, either.
But the Muskies opened the second half on a 9-2 run, never trailing or looking back the rest of the way. On the back of Christon (and several players who were non-factors the previous night) Xavier escaped with an important win over a Drexel squad that won 29 games last season.
After failing to slow down Pacific in the half court on Thursday, the Musketeers looked like they might succumb to the same dangers a night later. Despite switching to a 2-3 zone that seemed to slow the Dragons down at times, Drexel shot 54.5% for the game and 44.4% from three. Those numbers were even scarier in the second half: 63.6% and 58.3% from three.
What saved the Musketeers was out-rebounding the Dragons 27-19, and 8-3 on offensive rebounds. Getting to the free throw line 17 times in the second half and making 15 also helped stem the tide. A night after getting pounded on the boards, Xavier came back strong, including 9 rebounds from Justin Martin, who also put up 12 points in the game.
The changes from one night to the other continued with Jeff Robinson's play. Robinson knocked down a couple of jumpers, including a three pointer, for 13 points and 4 rebounds -- a much better line than what he managed against Pacific. The trend stuck with Brad Redford, too, who hit two huge threes in the first half, including completing a four point play. He finished with 7 points in 18 minutes of play.
Dee Davis, who struggled again at times, seemed to relinquish control of the offense to Christon, who continuously drove the lane and dished it to his big men. Davis, instead, looked to shoot the ball -- something he needs to do much more of. The sophomore guard hit 3 of 4 threes, finishing with 11 points for the game.
Freshman James Farr also saw the court for the first time in this tournament. But his size advantage was negated by his three fouls in less than two minutes of play.
The Musketeers will take on Drake at 1:30 PM on Sunday.
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