Tourney resumes at stake for Xavier, St. John's
Shannon Russell, srussell@enquirer.com 3:03 p.m. EST February 22, 2015
NEW YORK - Nine days after losing to St. John's at Cintas Center, Xavier's men's basketball team is about to get another crack at the Red Storm.
And Monday's 8 p.m. meeting at Madison Square Garden could be just as tough.
Steve Lavin's club has won 4 of its last 5 games, including the 78-70 defeat of the Musketeers Feb. 14 at Cintas Center, and is 14-4 at home. With only a handful of regular-season games left, time is of the essence for both teams as they jockey for placement in the Big East standings and attempt to polish their resumes for postseason consideration.
"We play a team that beat us just a week ago, the most athletic team in our conference, a team that's going to present a lot different challenge than Butler," Musketeers coach Chris Mack said Saturday after Xavier's 73-56 win over the No. 19 Bulldogs.
"We could not keep them out of transition. We could not keep them out of the lane. Because of that, they came in here and beat us. So we have to be able to learn from Game One but, more importantly, be able to bounce back and be ready to go on Monday night, period."
Sir'Dominic Pointer and D'Angelo Harrison combined for 42 points in Game 1. The Red Storm exploited holes in Xavier's transition defense and denied the Musketeers' late takeover bid.
Dee Davis' lay-up inched Xavier within 3 points with 96" to go, but Rysheed Jordan buried a 3-pointer and the Musketeers missed 3 shots in 1 possession before turning over the ball with 22" remaining. Jordan's steal and Pointer's breakaway dunk sealed Xavier's second home loss this season.
Communication breakdowns frustrated players like senior Matt Stainbrook, who said the team quickly needed to rectify its shortcomings on the defensive end. Xavier bounced back at Cincinnati and against Butler.
Now the Musketeers have an opportunity to win a third straight game for the first time since early December. Sophomore guard Myles Davis said Xavier is on a mission to prove itself against the Red Storm in the same fashion it avenged its Jan. 10 defeat at Butler.
"I feel like any team that we lost to didn't get the real Xavier," Davis said.
Both teams played Saturday - St. John's downed skidding Seton Hall before Xavier upended Butler - so the short turn-around for Monday's game keeps them on even footing. Scheduling equality hasn't always existed in conference play for Xavier, but Mack said the Big East "does a good job of making it fair."
"We both have 36 hours to prepare. The teams played each other last Saturday so No. 1, there's going to be a lot of familiarity and No. 2 we haven't had time, nor have they, to put in a bunch of different stuff," Mack said. "So it's going to be, 'Can we do what we wanted to do in Game One, much better and at a higher level than we did?'"
Three games in 6 days and travel to New York could be a lot to shoulder, so preserving energy will be key for the Musketeers before Monday's game. Davis said the recent blast of snow created the perfect opportunity for players to hunker down and recharge before the New York trip, and Jalen Reynolds agreed.
"Just like Myles said, we all need our medicine and that's rest," Reynolds said.
Reynolds in particular could be pivotal in the St. John's rematch. He scored 12 points with 7 rebounds in 19' in Game 1 but was even better last February at Madison Square Garden. That's where he amassed a career-high 16 boards and added a team-high 17 points.
Xavier at St. John's
When: 8 p.m. Monday
Where: Madison Square Garden (19,979), New York City
Records: 18-10 (8-7 Big East), SJU 18-9 (7-7)
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