SXU guard Sando Hill shooting the basketball SXU Athletics
SXU vs. Indiana University South Bend: 39-60 (L)
The Saint Xavier men’s basketball team went up against Indiana University South Bend on Wed. Feb. 14 on Bob Hallberg Court. The team came up short and suffered a 60-39 defeat in a CCAC matchup.
Both teams started the game out well, trading shots on both ends. SXU was up 15-11 by freshman guard Jordan Streeter making a layup with 10:56 left in the first half.
IUSB ended the game strongly, going on an 11-0 run to end the first half to put them up 31-18. SXU went scoreless in the final five minutes.
IUSB simply outplayed SXU in the second half and won the game by 21 points as the Cougars struggled to shoot the ball.
Their shooting percentage wasn’t the best as they shot just 15-54 from the field (27.8%), and 5-27 (18.5%) from the three-point line. In the first half, they only converted 1-14 from behind the arc. SXU had good looks from the three but could not get them to go.
The poor shooting from SXU is what decided the game as IUSB completely out-shot them to collect the win.
IUSB outscores SXU when it comes to bench scoring. IUSB had 25 points as Saint Xavier only had 5. It would be a game to forget for SXU in all aspects of the game.
Senior guard Cedric Johnson finished the night with 11 points which was the most on the team, along with five rebounds and two assists. Johnson shot 4-17 from the floor and 1-7 from three, he knocked down 2 of his free throws.
Junior guard Sando Hill concluded with 10 points, four rebounds, three steals, and one assist.
Freshman forward James Stevenson had six points, three rebounds, one steal, and one assist.
Streeter has five points, three rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Junior forward Andre Brandon also ended with five points.
As the season is ending and the postseason is approaching SXU has to shoot the ball better to allow them to win games.
SXU vs. Holy Cross College: 65-59 (W)
To continue on the week’s events SXU ended their four-game losing streak and secured a win versus Holy Cross College in Notre Dame, Indiana on Sat. Feb 17.
SXU’s improved shooting led them to a 65-59 win to get them a key win. Compared to their last game, SXU shot 23-52 (44.2%), 8-20 (40.0%), and 11-16 (68.8%). They did a better job of knocking down more shots from the paint and three.
Saint Xavier started on a 17-9 run with 11:41 minutes remaining in the half. Streeter gave them a 31-20 lead which was the biggest lead in the first half with a jumper with 3:42 on the clock. The Cougars entered the half with a 35-29 lead.
Holy Cross fought back to cut the lead to 3 early in the second half, but SXU quickly responded with an 8-0 run to restore a 42-32 advantage. They had a game high 15 point edge (65-50) to the end the game but held on with Holy Cross going on a 9-0 run but there wasn’t enough time to comeback.
Johnson recorded 24 points, seven rebounds, three assists and one steal. He played 35 minutes and shot 9-20 (45%) from the field.
Brandon played 28 minutes on the night and finished with 14 points, three boards and a steal. His shooting was 5-14 (35.7%), and 4-11(36.3%) from downtown. Streeter finalized the night with eight points, four rebounds, and one block in 28 minutes.
Hill put up seven points, including five rebounds, two assists, and two steals with 29 minutes of action. Stevenson closes the game out with six points, six rebounds, and one steal playing 27 minutes.
15-11 is what SXU’s record is looking like with 10-8 in conference. Their position is fifth and will remain in that position as they enter postseason basketball.
The Cougar’s next encounter will take place at the Bob Hallberg Court at the Shannon Center on Senior Night, Wed. Feb. 21. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 pm. This will be SXU’s second to last game of the regular season and they look to add another win to the win column.