The Xavier Musketeers were at a crossroads. Coming off of a hellish loss against the Villanova Wildcats in which starting point guard Edmond Sumner suffered a jarring head injury, many thought this was the start of the end of Xavier's dream season. With no Sumner in this game against a strong Butler Bulldog team, Chris Mack's squad knew they would need a team effort and the 6th man, their rabid fanbase, to combine forces.
That they did. Not only did Xavier play quality basketball, but they completely annihilated the Butler Bulldogs. Behind a career day for Remy Abell and marvelous defense by James Farr, the Musketeers won 88-69 in the Cintas Center. This was Xavier's largest win over a top 10 opponent since 2004 when they obliterated St. Joseph's.
Butler kept things relatively close in the first half, but the energy Xavier had out of the gate truly set the tone. Butler's defense was on its toes with a clean balance of cuts into the lane and three-pointers from the Musketeers. Xavier's three-headed monster of a backcourt, including Trevon Bluiett, Myles Davis, and Remy Abell, combined for 45 points. However, nobody can be compared to Abell, who had the best day of his Xavier career with 21 points. The senior's 7-8 shooting and 3 three-pointers annoyed Butler all day, sending the Cintas Center into an uproar.
A big story of the game was the inability of Butler to get around James Farr. Farr, who had 10 rebounds and 4 blocks, was a monster down low today. Coupled with a fine scoring performance by Jalen Reynolds, Xavier had its way in the paint.
It was a rough shooting day for the Bulldogs from the field, having a 38.7% field goal percentage, compared to a 56.4% clip for Xavier. It was a new offensive setup for Butler after their close loss to Providence this past Thursday, but it fell flat on its face. Roosevelt Jones, Butler's beast that can drive into the paint with authority, was held in check today with 14 points. Poor shot selection plagued Butler and their star Kellen Dunham, although he did hit 3 three-pointers.
However, even with Butler's offensive mishaps, it's clear that their true problems come on the defensive end. This was the most points Butler has allowed since the 2013-14 season against Doug McDermott's Creighton Bluejays, in which they lost on the road 88-60. This was Xavier's 7th game this season in which they scored at least 85 points.
Xavier will now take their show on the road against a struggling St. John's team, while Butler will try to rebound Tuesday against a below .500 DePaul team.