clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Big East Tournament Quaterfinal- Xavier v. Marquette: Live Chat, Team Stats, Keys to the Game

By Bryan D
Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports

Xavier Musketeers 26-4 (14-4)
vs.
Marquette Golden Eagles 20-12 (8-10)
Xavier Stats
Rk Player FG% 3P% FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS
1 Trevon Bluiett .420 .387 .778 6.4 2.4 1.0 0.3 1.7 2.3 15.2
2 Myles Davis .407 .395 .859 3.5 4.1 0.9 0.1 1.7 2.0 11.3
3 Edmond Sumner .415 .324 .741 3.1 3.3 1.3 0.2 2.1 2.3 11.0
4 James Farr .551 .143 .765 7.9 0.5 0.8 1.0 1.3 2.3 10.5
5 J.P. Macura .468 .337 .818 2.6 2.1 1.0 0.0 1.0 2.4 9.5
6 Jalen Reynolds .505 .333 .647 6.4 0.7 0.7 0.7 1.6 3.0 9.5
7 Remy Abell .408 .338 .770 1.5 1.6 0.5 0.1 1.1 1.4 6.3
8 Kaiser Gates .431 .343 .575 2.7 0.2 0.3 0.2 0.5 1.6 3.3
9 Sean O'Mara .618 .579 1.8 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.6 1.2 3.2
10 Larry Austin .404 .000 .643 1.2 1.2 0.6 0.0 0.8 1.3 2.0
11 Makinde London .391 .412 .500 1.3 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.6 0.8 1.8
12 Ashanti Burgess .000 .500 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.3
13 Alex Bergen 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0
14 Kevin Coker .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.2 0.0
15 Tim Stainbrook 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0
Provided by Sports-Reference.com/CBB: View Original Table
Generated 3/10/2016.

Marquette Stats

Rk Player FG% 3P% FT% TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS
1 Henry Ellenson .446 .287 .746 9.9 1.8 0.9 1.5 2.4 2.5 17.1
2 Luke Fischer .618 .681 6.1 1.0 0.4 1.5 1.8 3.0 12.2
3 Haanif Cheatham .494 .400 .815 3.4 2.2 1.1 0.0 2.8 2.1 11.8
4 Duane Wilson .430 .351 .657 2.5 2.6 1.3 0.2 2.0 2.3 11.8
5 JaJuan Johnson .515 .393 .770 3.2 1.9 1.6 0.3 1.5 1.5 9.9
6 Sandy Cohen .441 .365 .741 3.3 1.8 0.7 0.5 1.1 2.6 6.0
7 Traci Carter .348 .314 .730 2.6 4.8 1.5 0.2 2.3 3.0 5.5
8 Wally Ellenson .383 .278 .556 2.2 0.4 0.4 0.1 0.3 1.3 1.8
9 Sacar Anim .471 .400 .167 0.4 0.1 0.3 0.0 0.3 0.6 1.2
10 Matt Heldt .400 .556 0.9 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.4 0.9 0.7
11 Michael Mache .000 .500 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3
12 Cam Marotta .000 .000 .500 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3
Provided by Sports-Reference.com/CBB: View Original Table
Generated 3/10/2016.

Live Audio - Game Preview

-Make Ellenson work. It's basically a foregone conclusion at this point that Ellenson is going to get his, especially after his 27 and 14 demolition of St. John's. What Xavier can't do is let him get into a rhythm with easy buckets. Change between the zone and man, run Tre, Jalen, and Kaiser at him, double him andPLAY straight up. The more Ellenson has to think and adjust each time down, the better chance Xavier has of turning Marquette's offense into something less efficient than it was last night.

-Start with stops. There are lots of things worse than starting the game by hemorrhaging points, but you understand what I mean when I say there's nothing worse than starting a game by hemorrhaging points. Marquette - as we've seen - is a team capable of scoring in bunches. Xavier is not a team that tends to play its best ball when trying to eat into a lead, as demonstrated by the fact that Xavier has been behind in each of its four losses. The margin forERROR is slight in single-elimination play, and you don't want to start a game by making your opponent feel like they might do something special tonight.

-Don't play hero ball. Everyone who grew upPLAYING basketball grew up wanting to have a big game at Madison Square Garden, and the tournament there is one of the things that attracts people to the Big East. Xavier isn't a team built to have someone try to take on the load all by himself from the word go, but that hasn't stopped them from trying at times this year. The Muskies need to stay calm, move the ball, and let the game come to them in the individual level. If theyPLAY together how they're capable of, the results will take care of themselves.