After an Offseason Left Holes In Their Roster, Xavier Had Best Showing in 23 Years

Nov 9, 2012; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Xavier Musketeers forward Erik Stenger (35) dunks against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights during the first half at the Cintas Center. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-US PRESSWIRE

By now, if you follow college basketball, you know of Xavier’s offseason troubles. There were expulsions, transfers, ineligible recruits, and injuries. The most recent roster casualty coming hours before tipoff when Semaj Christon was ruled out of Friday’s regular season opener due to an infection.

The lack of players didn’t seem to affect the Musketeers, though. They opened their regular season play with a big win against Fairleigh Dickinson, 117-75 in front of a home crowd. The Musketeers’ 117 points was their best since 1989 when they beat Loyola Marymount 118-113.

Xavier took the lead the early, going up 21-2 to start the game. In the first half, Xavier put together their second best opening half in school history with 68 points. The game was a blowout from the start and left the also depleted Fairleigh Dickinson Knights scratching their heads for a way to stop the Musketeers.

Dee Davis had a phenomenal game, putting up a career best 22 points and 15 assists. He earned 12 of those assists in the first half alone. That was the first double-double of Davis’ career at point guard. Not only was it a career game for the sophomore, but his 15 assists also tied him for second most assists in school history.

Brad Redford let his presence be known too. He came off of the bench with a career high 19 points. He showed his accuracy as he went 6 of 7 for three point shots. Redford missed the 2010-11 season due to knee surgery, but finally showed he was back to form on Friday night.

Five more Musketeers joined the double digit club as the Knights struggled to keep up. Forward Travis Taylor came in with the second most points behind Davis at 20. He also had three assists and led the team with 12 rebounds. Jeff Robinson got in on the fun with 16 points and 7 rebounds. Off of the bench, James Farr came out with 16 points and 4 rebounds. He was two for three from beyond the arc, as well. Erik Stenger put up 12 points, 1 assist, and 4 rebounds, while Justin Martin rounded out the double digit scorers with 11 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds.

Overall, it was a team effort for the Musketeers and they got the job done in a decisive fashion. The team shot 70.6 from the field in the first half, including 9 of 16 for three points. This was a great start to a three game home stand in the Cintas Center. The Xavier men are set to square off at home against Butler on Tuesday at 4:00 pm.