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Muskies Outlast Purdue on the Road
12/1/2012
 | | Freshman Semaj Christon drives for two of 25 points.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |  | | Justin Martin fights for a loose ball.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |  | | Travis Taylor lays in a key basket late in the second half.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |
In a knock down, drag out war at Mackey Arena, the Musketeers survived the Boilermakers, 63-57. And after a quick start, Xavier needed a strong second half to prevail in their first true road test.
The Musketeers (6-1) jumped out to an 11-2 lead on the Boilermakers (3-4) and then ran into their worst nightmare. Purdue, though a flawed team, tested Xavier's depth and rebounding strength down low.
One can make the argument that the Musketeers were exposed today, with the inability to hold their own on the glass. The lack of production from key players was just as disappointing. But Xavier's resilience was more impressive.
Purdue survived the early 11-0 barrage from Xavier and built a 29-26 halftime lead. With 6 offensive rebounds and a 19-14 overall rebounding advantage, the Boilermakers established themselves down low early in the game. Purdue also got to the free throw line 10 times to Xavier's 4.
For the Musketeers, things were far from pretty. Though their defense stifled Purdue from three (0 for 10 in the first half), they found themselves in an early hole. Jeff Robinson picked up three quick fouls, and ended up only playing 9 minutes for the entire game. That put a lot of pressure on the rest of the team.
Luckily for Xavier, the newest Musketeer hero came to the rescue. Semaj Christon, seemingly the latest in a long line of go-to guards for XU, scored 25, with 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Again, he made big shot after big shot, including several twisting drives through the lane. He finished 8 of 12 from the field, playing all 40 minutes.
The Musketeers needed every one of those buckets with Robinson relegated to the bench and Dee Davis largely ineffective. Davis was just 1 of 9 with 5 points, though he did hit a couple of critical free throws down the stretch.
An 8-0 run in the second half, with Xavier trailing 46-44, put the Musketeers in control for good. Justin Martin provided a couple of big second half shots, finishing with 12 points before fouling out. Brad Redford also chipped in a three and 7 points.
Isaiah Philmore provided 35 quality minutes off the bench, particularly with Robinson's foul trouble. He finished with 8 points and 7 rebounds, as he is being phased into the offense more and more. That also means Erik Stenger is being phased out, tallying just four minutes for the game. Travis Taylor finished with 6 points and 7 rebounds, as he was often out-muscled down low.
Despite 17 offensive rebounds to Xavier's 3, and 12 second-chance points to the Muskies' 4, the Boilermakers fell apart down the stretch. Purdue got 19 points from Terone Johnson, but was hurt by 32 ineffective minutes from D.J. Byrd. The Boilermakers' top three point shooter was 0-9 from three, with his last shot flying over the backboard.
The Xavier defense clamped down in this game, holding Purdue to 35% shooting and 0-17 from three. Though much of that could be attributed to poor shooting, the Musketeers' relentless on-ball pressure cannot be ignored. Even Landen Amos came off the bench for a key play late in the game. His block on what looked like an easy layup essentially sealed the game, preventing any late Purdue run.
After a solid road win against a Boilermaker team that will be middle of the pack in the Big 10, Xavier will take on Vanderbilt Thursday at the Cintas Center.
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