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Musketeers Stifle Badgers

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The Associated Press

The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 23, 2009

BOISE, Idaho - Xavier needed only a small window to crack Wisconsin's plodding defense and finally pull ahead.

Once the Musketeers broke through, they smothered any comeback, holding the Badgers to 25 percent shooting in the second half of a 60-49 win Sunday in the East Region.

"We didn't lose faith in what got us here," Xavier coach Sean Miller said. "We reminded our team that we have been against styles like that and it requires a lot of tough-mindedness and patience."

Wisconsin controlled the pace for the first 30 minutes before Xavier pulled away with a 13-4 run, then hung on with free throws and defense even tighter than Wisconsin's.

The 12th-seeded Badgers (20-13) were 16-for-56 from the floor and made three of 20 3-point attempts.

B.J. Raymond led Xavier with 15 points, scoring 12 in the second half, and Derrick Brown was the only other Musketeer to score in double figures with 10. C.J. Anderson pulled down eight rebounds for fourth-seeded Xavier, which advanced despite a poor shooting day. The Musketeers were 18-for-46 from the floor and only 18-for-26 from the foul line.

The Musketeers (27-7), an Elite Eight team a year ago, advances to play top-seeded Pittsburgh - Miller's alma mater - Thursday in the round of 16 in Boston.

Wisconsin, which came back from a 12-point halftime deficit to beat FSU in overtime on Friday, kept Xavier off balance, but the tight defense wasn't quite enough to overcome 29 percent shooting.

The Associated Press

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