Best Win In Xavier History...

**American X** · 03-24-2017, 03:44 PM

Originally Posted by birdman71

As I recall, it was Texas who beat us after the Georgetown win. so it was sweet revenge to beat the Longhorns a few years later to get to our first Elite 8.

A few years later? It was 14 years of torture not getting back to the second weekend. That is a big reason I cherish these return trips so much. It was not always this way, much heartbreak along the way.

**xudash** · 03-24-2017, 03:54 PM

Originally Posted by birdman71

Most important win:
I have to go with the Georgetown win putting us in the sweet 16. Our bigs outplayed their 2 future NBA stars. That's when we made our bones. That's when we became a relevant program.

Wildest Win:
Loyola Marymount at the Gardens. We beat them at their game. My neck still hurts. 112-110? 116-114?

Proudest Win:
Last night.

Coolest win:
Hopefully, Saturday when we crack our first final four

Spot on.

**xubrew** · 03-24-2017, 04:23 PM

It's kind of crazy to think that in 2004 prior to the start of the A10 Tournament no one was really even projecting Xavier into the field, and seeing where we ended up AFTER beating Butler on a neutral floor, we may not have made this field either if it weren't for that win.

I can't really rank the big wins. If anything I think I'd have to throw the Mississippi State game from 2004 in there because they entered the tournament with just three losses, were #5 overall on the seed list, and I think a lot of people at the time were thinking "Well, this was a great turnround!" and were ready to feel completely satisfied had we not won that game. I remember distinctly thinking that team was better than Texas, and after we won that it was to the point to where we were expecting to beat Texas.

Last night was the second time we've beaten a #2 seed, and again it was the the top overall #2 seed, and a team that we've since learned that some of the committee members wanted on the #1 line after they won they finished with the best record in the Pac Twelve after the tournament was over, won the tournament, and beat two top ten teams away from home in about a 24 hour span. This was also a team that didn't lose many (if any) games when they had all their players.

The thing about calling last night the biggest win ever is that I don't want to say that the other games weren't big wins, but the more I think about (even while typing this) the more I think it was. In 2004 we were in the midst of being red hot when the tournament started, and everyone felt we could beat highly ranked teams since we had just blown one out of the building the previous week. In 2017, no one was really complaining or feeling slighted with the #11 seed. I don't recall anyone saying they felt it should have been better. I think people liked the first game against Maryland and felt if we could win that one that it would be great considering how we had really hit the skids, but I think that's as far as anyone was really expecting to go. Had anyone said that Xavier would be in the Elite Eight eight days ago, everyone on this board (well, almost everyone) would have ridiculed that person as being a blowhard with blue tainted glasses. We beat no one but DePaul for the last five weeks of the season prior to narrowly beating Butler.

Biggest win ever?? Maybe. Biggest SURPRISE ever?? I think so. It's actually rather preposterous. Even the other #11 seeds who have made the Elite Eight were teams that were legitimately good, but seeded on the #11 line due to a lack of quality wins because they had so few opportunities to play quality teams (George Mason, VCU, etc). Not to say those weren't surprises, but I do think that this at least as surprising, if not moreso, than any of those.

And another thing... #11 seeds have actually faired rather well in the Elite Eight in recent years.