Xavier power rankings, week twelve

Don't look now, but Xavier has actually started to perform on the road. After clubbing Georgetown in the mid-week fixture, they were neck-and-neck with Seton Hall with under four minutes left before kind of falling apart and giving the game away. Combine that with the second-half surge against Providence and you're looking at basically 100 minutes of good road basketball from Xavier. A cynic might point out that all it led to was a 1-2 record, but hey, baby steps.

Meanwhile Xavier has only three remaining conference road games, and two of those are @Marquette and @Creighton. The Musketeers could be poised to go on a run down the stretch. We're not here to talk about the schedule or the team though, so let's start picking on individuals.

13. and 12. Edmond Sumner and Makinde London
Keep those grades up, fellas. Your time is coming before too long.

11. Sean O'Mara
O'Mara continues to be mired behind Reynolds, Farr, and Stainbrook. The recent emphasis on a four-out, one-in look isn't going to help Sean get more minutes.

10. Larry Austin, Jr.
Austin continues to be fourth in line for point guard minutes, which would not be a great place to be even if the starter wasn't being ridden for 33 minutes a night right now.

9. Brandon Randolph
In 11 minutes last week, Randolph scored four points on 1-3/0-1/0-0 shooting, got an assist, and turned the ball over twice. He looks timid initiating the offense and is not exactly a stopper on the defensive end. On the other hand, he's really helping Myles Davis develop into a combo guard.

8. JP Macura
Like Myles Davis last year, JP is hitting the freshman wall, and he's hitting it hard. He is 6-27 from behind the arc in conference play, and 4 of those came in the blowout @Nova. I think JP is going to be fine in the long term, but until such time as his shot starts falling again, he might consider doing a little less chirping on the court.

7. James Farr
The first half of Xavier's trick-or-treat combination of power forwards. He starts, but that's apparently just to keep Reynolds out of foul trouble. Last week was a good look at the James Farr experience. He put up an ORtg of 0 and only grabbed 2 boards against Georgetown, then he turned around and went for 8/6/0 on 4-6/0-1/0-0 shooting against Seton Hall. What are you going to get on any given day from James? I don't know.

6. Jalen Reynolds
Jalen had 17 points against Seton Hall, but don't forget that (a) he only had two against Georgetown and (b) he did it in just 15 minutes because he kept fouling. There is a breakout coming for Jalen, but every time it looks like it's here, something slows it down. He can be Xavier's most dangerous big man, so it smarts that he can also be a fairly anonymous role player from time to time.

5. Dee Davis
After three and a half years of watching Dee throw his body around like he gets a new one when he graduates, it might be time to explore the idea that the miles are starting to wear on him. His defense and shooting look like those of a guy with tired legs right now, but he does have 18 assists and 2 turnovers in his last 3 games. Hopefully he's saving something for the stretch run, but he has never played like a guy who was saving anything.

4. Remy Abell
The past couple of weeks have been rough on Remy; his finishing has been below the standard he set for himself in the non-conference, and he seems to be forcing a little bit. He's still the team's best perimeter defender, and he's still shooting 40% from behind the arc in conference play. Maybe it's just me, but he seems a half step off his usual pace right now.

3. Trevon Bluiett
Bluiett averaged 15/3.5/1 in a week in which Xavier really needed scoring help. He had a big first half against Seton Hall to help keep that game close and has generally looked like he's getting his scoring touch and confidence back. Defense is still a work in progress, but he's moving intelligently without the ball and making plays on the glass at big times.

2. Myles Davis
This somehow snuck up on me a little bit, but Myles is suddenly a monster. He averaged 16.5/4.5/6.5 on the week and has become the answer to a lot of Xavier's lingering questions. Who wants the ball in the big situations? Myles. Who is Xavier's backup point when Dee is out? Myles. Who is the vocal leader on the floor? Myles. His TO rate is best on the team in conference and his assist rate trails only Dee and Stainbrook. We may be witnessing a star emerge here.

1. Matt Stainbrook
James Farr rebounds better than Stainbrook, but he's lost on defense and struggles to score consistently. Jalen Reynolds can score, rebound, and block shots at right around the same level as Matt, but he can't stay out of foul trouble and has trouble bringing it every game. Xavier has no other big man who can fill the middle of a four-out, one-in set like Stainbrook does, and he also leads the team in scoring and rebounding and the entire conference in shooting percentage. Nobody can touch him at the top of these rankings right now.