2011 Xavier Musketeers Basketball: Xavier @ St. Bonaventure

Chris Mack’s team didn’t get off to the best start offensively, missing their first four shots after turning the basketball over on their first possession of the game in falling behind 7-0. But the Musketeers (12-5, 4-0) were able to eventually settle down despite the fact that they didn’t lead at all in the first half. And once they took a 40-39 lead on a Jeff Robinson dunk with 15:47 remaining in the game Xavier didn’t look back, going on to beat St. Bonaventure (9-8, 1-3) 79-65 at the Reilly Center to remain in first place in the Atlantic 10. Tu Holloway led five Musketeers in double figures with 22 points and reserve forwards Jeff Robinson and Andrew Taylor combined for 18 points and six rebounds off the bench. Ogo Adegboye led the Bonnies with 16 points but once center Andrew Nicholson fouled out with just over seven minutes remaining their hopes of coming back were dashed.

“The second half they came out and Holloway took over, and we had a hard time stopping him off the bounce,” said St. Bonaventure head coach Mark Schmidt. “He got a few open looks. The ones we contested in the first half he missed, and the ones we contested in the second half he made.”

Rebounding also had an impact on the outcome, with the Musketeers out-rebounding the Bonnies 31-17 on the night, a margin that helped make up for 17 Xavier turnovers. But while Xavier enjoyed an edge in the frontcourt in regards to muscle it should be noted that guard Mark Lyons (eight rebounds) was their leader in that category. But it took them time to put their stamp on the game thanks to their offensive struggles early. An Adegboye three pointer with 12:16 remaining in the first half put the Bonnies up 17-7 going into the under-12 timeout, but Xavier was able to answer shortly thereafter with a 10-1 run to close to within a point at 20-19. The Musketeers weren’t able to take the lead but their prowess inside kept them well within striking distance going into the intermission.

The second half belonged to Holloway, who scored all 22 of his points in that period beginning with a three to make the score 39-38 with 16:15 remaining. And it was on their next possession when the Muskies took the lead for good, going up by as many as 11 while Nicholson was still on the floor. But Holloway was able to force his 5 th foul with 7:08 remaining, robbing the Bonnies of their most influential player on both ends of the floor. Xavier was able to get to the foul line with regularity in the second half, making 14 of 17 from the charity stripe while also shooting 68.2% from the field and those numbers made the difference. Next up for Xavier is Temple at the Cintas Center on Saturday while St. Bonaventure visits George Washington.

Atlantic 10 Conference Basketball Fans

Musketeers Beat St. Bonaventure