Xavier’s resume is better than you might realize

Xavier is currently 10-3 on the season. They are 5-0 in Q4, 2-0 in Q3, 2-0 in Q2, and 1-3 in Q1. Enough ink has been spilled on how close all three of those losses have been, but the bottom line is that a resume is a results-oriented thing and all three of those games ended with Xavier losses.

So you might be as surprised as I was to see Joe Lunardi tweet this out the other day:

A five seed? Not at all what I might have been expecting to see. My general attitude towards the non-con had been acceptance that it was a solid showing mixed with a little frustration at the opportunities left on the table. Here’s Xavier - number 35 in the NET and 28 in the KenPom - sitting at one of the top 20 resumes in the country.

It may not be as farfetched as it feels. Sure, Xavier is not long on resume wins, but they are obviously unfettered by bad losses. Their win over Florida is now a Q2 game, but West Virginia has made up for that by charging to 11th in the NET. If Florida can get their crap together, X might add a second Q1 win without playing a game.

Maybe more interestingly, Xavier has 1.1 WAB according to Bart Torvik. That put the Muskies at 25th in the nation, which isn’t that far adrift of where Joe Lunardi has them in the seed list. In the next 10 days, there are 1.5 WAB on offer for X. Not only has Xavier done better for themselves than you might have realized if all you focused on was the missed opportunities, but they’re within one hot streak of being in the conversation for a top 10 resume. Coming out of the holiday break and heading into the teeth of the Big East schedule, Xavier is in the best position they’ve been in since...

...last year, when they were 13th in the country with 2.1 WAB on Boxing Day. It’s all about how they navigate then next three months.