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Wells, Muskies Slam the Dukes
1/11/2012
 | | Dez Wells jams in one of his six dunks.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |  | | Freshman Dez Wells powers in a slam in the first half.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |  | | Dez Wells catches a pass above the rim and dunks it in for two of his team high and career best 16 points.[enlarge] Photo by Bob Stevens |
It was just one game, against a Duquesne team that is probably a middling A10 team. So it wasn't the type of game that could ease everyone's doubts and wow experts. But Xavier's 78-50 domination of the Dukes was a step in the right direction. No one will know if Xavier (11-5, 2-1) is really back until more of the season has passed. But again, for one night, the Muskies looked like the team that ran off 8 in a row to begin the season, rather than the team that stumbled through a 6 game stretch. Duquesne (10-7, 1-2) certainly didn't have any answers.
"I thought tonight they looked a whole lot like they were earlier in the year," said Dukes' Coach Ron Everhart. "Almost like the same team I watched against Vanderbilt. Sharing the ball, making plays. The last shot of the half there, where Holloway made that three overhand. Tough shot. They functioned really well as a team tonight. Their depth is scary, you can tell, where the kids have had to fill in, they've gotten a lot better. And now the guys that hadn't played during that stretch, coming back in."
The crowd was certainly pleased with the team's effort, giving the Muskies a standing ovation before Tu Holloway drilled a three with a hand in his face to give Xavier a 44-16 half time lead. But tonight, unlike so many of the losses (and even the wins) that have occurred, this wasn't the Holloway or Mark Lyons show. Holloway finished with 11 points and 11 assists, managing the offense with extreme efficiency. Lyons had only 2 points, never getting into a scoring rhythm, though he contributed with 4 assists, staying in the flow of the game. All told, Xavier finished with 20 assists and only 11 turnovers, while shooting an astounding 57.1%, and 60% in the second half. It was the kind of offensive flow this team had been lacking.
Kenny Frease got the team going to begin the game, with a big block and 6 quick points, and continued strong to open the second. He finished with 11 points and 6 boards, in just 13 minutes because of some foul trouble. It seemed like Mack also wanted to run some athleticism at the Dukes. Jeff Robinson had his best game this year, contributing with 12 points on 5 of 6 shooting and 6 boards, all on the offensive glass.
"The coaches are telling us to go to the offensive glass, every time," Jeff Robinson said, "I just made an effort, as well as everyone else, to get to the offensive glass. I just had a few that luckily fell my way."
Brad Redford stroked a couple of threes, while Travis Taylor gave some good minutes. And Justin Martin even came up with 7 points off the bench. Xavier's bench ended up outscoring Duquesne's 34-11.
No one was as dominant on the night, though, as freshman sensation Dez Wells. He made all 7 of his field goals on the night, though 6 of them were slam dunks. He even drilled a three while grabbing 9 rebounds. His energy filled the Cintas Center, bringing the crowd to its feet several times. It was the kind of energy that the team has lacked for many a game since Crosstown Shootout.
"I can do this any night," Dez Wells said with a smile, "It just seemed like tonight, my guys were finding me. And they were finding me at the right time. My legs felt really, really good."
There were smiles, all around, after the game. The team could relax, somewhat. They're closer to looking like they did earlier in the season, than they have in recent days.
"It just felt like we were getting back to normal," said Andre Walker. "Everybody was involved. Everybody that came in off the bench contributed. And everybody was just cheering each other on, and it was a good feeling."
Xavier utilized their big men, pounding the ball down low all game. They finished with 54 points in the paint, compared to the Dukes' 28. And that size came up huge again as they outrebounded them 40-29. Defensively, though, they were the team that Mack loves. They held the Dukes, who average 77.7 points per game (tops in the A10), to 26.1% shooting in the first half, and just 35.2% for the game. They also made just 2 of 16 threes, which is a huge part of their game. The inability to control the tempo killed the Dukes. Xavier's guard pressured ended up being the difference, holding the Dukes' point guard, TJ McConnell to 4 points, and not letting him make a three. For someone that leads the conference in 3 point percentage, stopping him was a huge victory for XU.
"[Defense] was what we've been preaching and what we've been talking about," Coach Chris Mack said. "We need to sustain it. We need to build off what we were able to do at Fordham, and what we did tonight. If we can do that and be a team that battles on the defensive end every possession, I love our chances."
Xavier plays St. Bonaventure (9-6, 2-1), who beat Dayton Wednesday night, Saturday at noon at the Cintas Center.
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