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X Locks Down Purdue, Advance to Sweet 16
By
Jay Skeldon,
3/22/2008
The No. 3 seed Xavier Musketeers continued their magical 2007-08 season on Saturday evening in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. X, fueled by a balanced scoring attack of four players scoring in double figures, knocked off No. 6 seed Purdue, 85-78, at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. With the win, the Muskies (29-6) set school record for wins and advance to the Sweet 16 for the third time in school history. Xavier will face the No. 7 seed West Virginia Mountaineers on Thursday evening at 7:10 p.m. EST in Phoenix.
Once again, Xavier's balance, senior leadership, and team defense were the keys to the game. XU was led by Drew Lavender and C.J. Anderson who scored a team-high 18 points apiece. Lavender finished 4-of-7 from the field including 2-of-3 from 3-point land. In addition, the senior guard dished nine assists and was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line, including several key foul shots down the stretch.
Anderson was instrumental in slicing through Purdue's defense to get to the basket. The junior forward finished 6-of-11 from the field, 6-of-8 from the line, and pulled down seven rebounds.
Senior center Josh Duncan continued to play a central role in the Muskies' success, scoring 16 points and reeling in five rebounds. Fellow senior Stanley Burrell added 11 points and held Purdue guard Chris Kramer to just six points.
The Musketeers were scorching hot from the field, drilling 27-of-50 shots from the field for 54 percent. The X-Men hit just five 3-pointers for the game (5-of-12). Instead of focusing on perimeter shooting, Xavier methodically attacked the Purdue defense through dribble penetration and terrific inside-outside passing. That translated into an 85-point output, the highest allowed by the Boilermakers all season.
Purdue, which closes its season with a 25-9 record, was led by Keaton Grant (19 points), E'Twaun Moore (15 points), and Tarrance Crump (11 points).
Now the Muskies are just one of 16 teams in the nation left standing in the NCAA Tournament. Next up is West Virginia in the Regionals of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday evening at 7:10 p.m. EST at US Airways Center in Phoenix.
The Mountaineers are coached by a familiar foe to Xavier fans - Bob Huggins. Huggins, the former head coach of the University of Cincinnati Bearcats for 16 season, is in his first year at the helm in Morgantown, West Virginia.
The No. 7 seed Mountaineers (25-10) toppled the No. 2 seed Duke Blue Devils in the earlier game in the West Region in Washington D.C. to advance to the Sweet 16.
Xavier lost to WVU in the only previous meeting between the two schools in the 1979-80 season.
The winner of Thursday's game will move on to the Elite 8 to face the winner of No. 1 seed UCLA and No. 12 seed Western Kentucky/No. 13 seed San Diego.
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