Today was the kind of game that could be a banana peel for a Xavier team still figuring out its rotation and overall identity. A Noon tip, the day after Thanksgiving, with no students on campus, against an opponent who had beaten a top 10 team on the road 6 days ago, there were elements that could have lended themselves to a lethargic performance and a tight affair. Instead, Xavier shot the lights out on their way to a 24 point halftime lead and cruised to a winning start to their 6 game homestand.
A Step Forward for Olivari
Xavier was led today by 22 from the Rice transfer, who has endured a slow shooting start to his Xavier career but cashed out 4 threes in the first half and set the tone for Xavier’s best shooting performance of the young season with his 9-16/4-8/0-0 marks.