Sweet 16 game thread

[muskieman]

Souley's last great game was Creighton in the last 4 games, he was 8-41 from the field

[yellow20xd]

Great season!!!... Go X!!!... Dan

[muskieman]

The guys beat most of our expectations—2nd in the BE, in the finals of the BE Tournament, they got better as the season went on, and in the Sweet 16. I wanted more, then I always wanted more, but I am proud of their fight. Thank you, Jack, Zack, Souley, Adam, Colby, and Jerome.

[pdxmuskie]

horrific in almost every way.

Why did Miller go zone when X couldn't score in the first half? Texas wasn't scoring until he went zone. Xavier simply couldn't make easy shots.

Nunge generally doesn't play well against smaller post players. Why does Miller game plane going at Nunge against small post players? Nunge does post up well against legit bigs with the exception of when he plays back to back games and the occasional off night. Either fix this issue in practice and via psychological counseling or understand your player.

Thanks for shooting well Kunkel.

So many shots rimming in and out and a number of other shots that seemed good. So many good looks that didn't go. Texas makes a turnaround 3 off 1 leg and an end of half shot.

[yellow20xd]

Dante always gets the interview after loses during tournament season... And he does one hell of a job... Dan

[Anti-Homer]

Disappointing loss

However, great fight to close the gap. X lost the 2nd, 5th, and 7th leading scorers from last year's team, including the best three-point shooter in Nate Johnson, and three of the four best defensive players as well in Scruggs, Jones, and Johnson. The team Miller inherited had 3 7/8 mediocre years of play, and won the NIT - so was the 69th-best team in the country. Yawn, They ended up in the top 12 this year, despite missing their 2nd best scorer halfway in the best league in cbb.

Most teams had 4-5 game-losing streaks when a key player was out (Creighton, K State, TCU). X didn't miss a beat. That's elite coaching. Their pg played off the ball mostly last year, and was asked - coached to play point, in the best conference in cbb, and he did it with excellence. SM has brought X's team back to where it was, sans 2018-2022: making the SW 16 at least every other year. EVERY player on the team has improved in the top 7, with some taking gigantic leaps, like Hunter and Free.

Nunge, Jones, and Kunkel also improved their games, and Boum also improved, compared to last year's stats against inferior competition, as he was a 1st Team All BE player, in the best league in cbb. I thought it would take Miller three years to just be competitive, but Miller accelerated the performance and expectations. Great season for the team and players. The four-year void in cbb in Cincy has now been filled by a familiar face.

[Anti-Homer]

Boum should have been taken out of the game no defense and selfish on offense. Nunge playing like a six footer again. AH, you wonder why we don’t play a zone?

I absolutely do. Texas shot 33% from three for the season. They didn't win the B12 and make it this far due to the three-ball. They made one against Penn St. They won because of their scoring in the paint tonight. The threes were just gravy. When they built their big lead, it was only with one three. Love Boum's effort, but he is the worst defensive guard in Xavier's history. I think the other guard should have to be in leg shackles to even up the odds.

However, X would not be this far without his contributions. An invaluable piece. He can't help that he can't fight through screens, or takes horrible angles on D. BTW, I don't suggest they should play zone exclusively. However, when you're getting beaten like a drum in man, you switch to something else. Did you notice for the few games X played zone this year, their man-to-man was considerably better afterward? Stops instill confidence. You play to the strengths and weaknesses of your personnel, and the opponent's strength. It ain't the three-ball for TX. Texas ran off a pick at the elbow all game, forcing Nunge to concede a lab or lob. I'll take my chances with guys who make one out of three for the season, make 10 of them to beat us.

[X-lucidity]

First off, what a tremendous year. Exceeded my expectations to a large extent. I am pumped and eXcited for the future like never before. Coach Miller has wowed me in every way so far: player development, game prep, in-game adjustments & recruiting. Secondly, last night’s result was kind of what I feared going in. Yes, we can analyze this and that along with the what-ifs, but at the end of the day, when you get to these games for all the marbles it’s about who has more “dudes”. Supposedly X had a dude, Colby, but he did not show up, (until garbage time). Nunge was said by many experts to have a huge advantage going in, which was enhanced when the TX starting center went down very early. But Jack also headed for the hills mentally and wilted under the pressure. We had one player who embraced the stage, one and only one – AK. Adam was 8 for 10 and 5 for 6 from deep. My daughter kept asking, ‘why don’t they let Kunkie shoot more?’. I told her I wish I knew…
So again, fab year and thanks for the ride boys! Now I trust Sean to go out and find a few more Dudes…

[xaviermuskie2003]

Proud of the boys. Strong season.

The NCAA tourney will always be about the luck of the draw (unless you are truly an elite team).

Marquette won the Big East but drew Michigan State in Round 2. That is brutal.

While X had a favorable draw early with Kennesaw State and Pitt, we had no such luck in the 2nd weekend. Being in a pod with Texas, Miami, and Houston was the kiss of death. All 3 of those squads have incredible guard play and athleticism.

Creighton, on the other hand, had a much more manageable road with Princeton and now SDSU.

UConn avoided Kansas which was critical.

Hoping one day the stars align for the X-Men.

[ChitownSteve]

While last night was disappointing, it was a heck of a year.

Watching the last few minutes of the game and the post-game Press Conference Messrs. Nunge, Kunkel, Jones and Boum exhibited considerable emotion and what this Xavier season meant to each of them.

The Team had its strengths and flaws. Coach Miller highlighted the stat that spoke volumes, this Team lead the Nation in assists. Precisely why we enjoyed watching this group throughout the season.

X basketball is relevant again. Thank you Coach Miller and Team 101!