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  1. #21
    Freshman zanesxu's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Wheelhouse View Post
    "The preliminary verdict
    This is certainly not a game Arizona should take for granted, but Arizona matches up better against Xavier than they did against Saint Mary’s. Xavier lacks a dominant big man and won’t be able to control the pace in the same way the Gaels did. And, frankly, Xavier isn’t as good as Saint Mary’s."

    Are we really not as good as St. Mary's?
    If we play to our potential (FSU) then we are better... by most other measures, we are not. Going into this weekend's games, St. Mary's was actually 14th on KenPom, Zona was 20th... X was 40th (up to 30th post FSU...

    The silver lining for us is that Zona is the likely weakest of the 2 seeds...

  2. #22
    Junior
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    I think our zone would have given Kentucky a lot of fits, actually.

  3. #23
    Supporting Member AviatorX's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Wheelhouse View Post
    "The preliminary verdict
    This is certainly not a game Arizona should take for granted, but Arizona matches up better against Xavier than they did against Saint Mary’s. Xavier lacks a dominant big man and won’t be able to control the pace in the same way the Gaels did. And, frankly, Xavier isn’t as good as Saint Mary’s."

    Are we really not as good as St. Mary's?
    St. Mary's was pretty damn good this year. But if I had watched XU play last weekend I would be way more worried about playing them than a soft, finesse WCC team that never really beat anyone in the end (although I guess you could say they were co-A10 champs).

    I think both Arizona and XU (for obvious reasons) are built on a real culture of toughness. Beyond the cliches announcers love to bring up, and trust me I am not one to talk like that, when you watch these teams, you can tell that the opposition is often getting pushed around for a bit before adjusting. When Zona and X play, it's one of the rare times both sides don't have that advantage.

  4. #24
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    Quote Originally Posted by American X View Post
    This was written staring at a stat sheet and not watching Xavier's last two games. Not being 'dominant big men' did not seem to stop O'Mara and Jones from tearing up Maryland's and Florida State's front lines.
    Not to mention, even if this year's stats line up to our stats from 2 years ago, this is a completely different team with a MUCH higher ceiling. I think our team that lost to Zona in 2015 went as far as they could have gone in the Tournament, aided by Baylor getting upset by Georgia St. in the first round. Going into that Arizona game I remember thinking we had very little chance to win and I was pleasantly surprised by how well we played and hung in there. This year, we can absolutely beat Arizona.

  5. #25
    Good luck on Thursday Big East bros. I'll be rooting hard as hell for you guys, which is rare.
    "I am a penned-up, leashed dog right now, and I can't wait to get started for Butler University." - Barry Collier, August 1, 2006

  6. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by Milksteak View Post
    Good luck on Thursday Big East bros. I'll be rooting hard as hell for you guys, which is rare.
    Butler fan? If so, ditto on all of the above.

  7. #27
    Junior THRILLHOUSE's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Wheelhouse View Post
    Not to mention, even if this year's stats line up to our stats from 2 years ago, this is a completely different team with a MUCH higher ceiling. I think our team that lost to Zona in 2015 went as far as they could have gone in the Tournament, aided by Baylor getting upset by Georgia St. in the first round. Going into that Arizona game I remember thinking we had very little chance to win and I was pleasantly surprised by how well we played and hung in there. This year, we can absolutely beat Arizona.
    Agreed. The 2015 game went about how I expected. X hung in there for a good amount, but once Stainbrook ran out of gas it was over. But this year, with how X has played the last 2 weeks? Yeah, we have a chance.

  8. #28
    Junior BMoreX's Avatar
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    Not sure if it means much or is 100% accurate (but it helps my confidence so what the hell), but according to my friend, Xavier's record over the last few years when the team has 5+ days to prepare for a game (including season openers):

    2017: 6-0
    2016: 5-1 (at Villanova)
    2015: 6-2 (at Auburn, vs. Arizona in NCAAT)
    2014: 10-2 (at Providence, vs. Seton Hall)

  9. #29
    Sophomore X-ceptional's Avatar
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    FoxSports: Xavier is the underdog you shouldn’t count out in this NCAA tournament
    Link: http://www.foxsports.com/college-bas...weet-16-032117


    Pretty nice article about the team.

    Yet here the Musketeers are, at 23-13 and the lowest remaining seed in the field, four wins from a national title and looking ahead to a Thursday matchup with No. 2 seed Arizona.

    “I told them out in the real world life is going to hand you lemons, and you can pout about it or figure out how to make lemonade,” Mack said. “Our guys, despite all the adversity they’ve been hit with and the social media that tells them how bad they are and how poor they are, they stayed with it, and they believed in themselves and our coaching staff.”

    What remains to be seen is whether any amount of belief will be enough to carry Xavier to a historic and unlikely national championship.

    That’s not to say the Musketeers aren’t an excellent team. They can be, and when they play like they did against Florida State — knocking down 3s, playing stingy defense and taking care of the ball — they’re capable of beating anyone in the country. But only three No. 11 seeds in history have ever reached the Final Four and none have won. So why would Xavier be the first?

    Maybe the better question is why not?
    Why the hell not?

    Also, we all know about the "four minute wars" but I think it was covered nicely here too.

    “We try to compartmentalize everything we do,” Mack told FOX Sports in the locker room after Saturday’s win. “So for instance, in the game, we don’t talk about the 40-minute result. We worry about winning the four-minute wars (between media timeouts).

    “Same thing, when we came down here we told our guys it’s a four-team, two-game tournament, and we called it the Orlando Invitational,” he continued. “It’s Florida Gulf Coast, Florida State, Xavier and Maryland, and we’ve got to win two games. We don’t have to be better than the other 64 teams in the field; we have to be better than the two we play down here.”
    Breaking down large tasks into smaller, more immediate tasks has been documented as a very effective means of accomplishing your goals. I've always liked the focus on the four minute wars, and I really like the concept of the "Orlando Invitational." Mack is a good coach, and he has the guys playing at a high level right now.

    I CAN'T WAIT FOR THURSDAY.

  10. #30
    Supporting Member bobbiemcgee's Avatar
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    Article sez we're 100-1. I would put a tensky on that.
    2023 Sweet 16

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