It was a total team effort Friday night for Xavier, as 11 players scored in an 88-67 home win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Cincinnati.
Jovan Milicevic, despite picking up four fouls in a limited 17 minutes of action, led the Musketeers (5-3) in scoring with 14 points. He also led the Musketeers with four 3-pointers.
Milicevic was one of four double-digit scorers for Xavier, joined by Filip Borovicanin (10 points), Tre Carroll (11 points) and Anthony Robinson (12 points).
Borovicanin was a beast on the glass, muscling his way to 15 rebounds to lead the Musketeers. Robinson added four offensive rebounds, and the Musketeers finished with eight second-chance points.
The Musketeers were hot from beyond the arc again Friday night, making 12 of 28 3-point attempts.
Xavier also moved the ball around and took advantage of 10 Texas A&M-Corpus Christi turnovers, dishing out 26 assists to just five turnovers and scoring 28 fastbreak points.
The Islanders (2-5) stayed in the game through the first half and into the second with a methodical approach and high-percentage shots.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi trailed 43-33 at halftime, but remained in the game, having dished out nine assists with 14 made field goals and only attempting six 3-pointers. They made just 4 of 15 from deep on the night.
D’Avian Houston led the Islanders with 13 points, while tying with Kam Parker and Cenker Ervan for the team lead with three assists. The Islanders notched 19 assists overall.
Xavier’s offense got into a rhythm midway through the first half, taking the lead for good, 11-10, at the 12:55 mark with a transition 3-pointer by Isaiah Walker.
The Musketeers carried their offensive momentum from the Charleston Classic into Friday night’s game, dishing out 12 assists and knocking down eight 3-pointers in the half. Malik Messina-Moore had five of the Musketeers’ assists, while seven different players knocked down a 3-pointer.
Messina-Moore and Borovicanin each had five assists for Xavier overall, while eight different players knocked down a 3-pointer for the Musketeers.
–Field Level Media
