The men’s basketball team handily defeated Holy Cross College last Weds. January 28th at home in the Shannon Center.
Coming into the game the Cougars were 13 and 8 overall and 7 and 4 in the CCAC conference looking for another victory to add to their record and improve their chances at postseason play.
The Cougars set the tone right from the jump as they were determined to be the aggressor. They played excellent defense, getting in passing lanes, pressuring the ball and creating turnovers all without fouling as the Saints only went to the free throw line twice in the first half. The Cougars tight defense and ability to get stops is going to be key for them going forward.
On the offensive end freshman guard Larry Mortuzis got the cougars on the board the first with a three-pointer and continued to stay hot throughout the first half en route to 14 points, including a big time steal and coast to coast dunk that gave the fans and his teammates something to get excited about.
The aggressive defense the Cougars opened the game with allowed them to get easy baskets in transition which in turn opened things up for them at the 3 point line where they made 6 of 12 first half threes. And while the Saints cut the lead to midway through the first half as they were able to execute some of their half court sets, the Cougars guard play was able to push the lead to 15 at the half.
The second half started the same way as the first half ended, with the Cougars ability to make shots and get out in transition.
Defensively they were able to block off lanes to the paint, control the glass, and from there really execute as they shot a sizzling 65% from the field in the secondhalf.
Saint Xavier pushed the ball up the court really well with the help of Junior Stanley Moore.
Moore proved to be an excellent playmaker with an outstanding all-around game that included 13 points (6-8 from the floor), seven rebounds, and six assists. Jack Krieger (14 points) and Kyle Huppe (15 points) also chipped in with double figures.
Overall the Cougars seemed to be to much for Holy Cross.
The Cougars came out with a ton of energy and were able to sustain that action for 40 minutes.
They defended the paint, displayed great ball pressure and did so without fouling. The effort defensively fueled the offense as they were able to get run outs in transition and spot up at the three point line (11-22 50% from the three point land).
Holy Cross just could not keep up with Saint Xavier’s excellent defense and execution on offense.
The Cougars, however, fell to Cardinal Stritch University on Saturday.
Despite valiant efforts from Moore – who scored 16 points, Krieger – who scored 15 points, and Mortuzis – who came up with 10 rebounds, the Cougars never really managed to catch up to Cardinal Stritch who had control for most of the game.
The game resulted in a final score of 86-68.
Kelly Kramer
Sports Editor