No. 22 Xavier Pulls Away From Georgetown in Second Half

Sunday, January 22

Cincinnati, Ohio

2 p.m.

Xavier University

14-5, 4-3BE

Georgetown

10-10, 1-6BE

Georgetown

Xavier

No. 22 Xavier Pulls Away From Georgetown in Second Half

01.22.17 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Season Stats (PDF)Box Score (PDF)Postgame Notes

Four Musketeers hit double figures as Musketeers move to 4-3 in BIG EAST play

By: Laura Topp, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - A second half surge helped No. 22/19 Xavier Musketeers defeat the Georgetown Hoyas, 86-75, on Sunday at Cintas Center. The Musketeers improve their record to 14-5 overall and 4-3 in conference play.

Xavier had four players score in double figures, including two Musketeers scoring 20-plus points, led by Trevon Bluiett's 24 points, 5 rebounds and one steal.

NOTABLE

Trevon Bluiett posted an 18-point second half to lead the Musketeers with 24 points.

J.P. Macura finished with 20 points, five rebounds and three steals. Ten of Macura's points came from going 10-14 from the line.

The last time Xavier had two Musketeers scoring 20 plus games was at Georgetown on December 31, 2016.

Edmond Sumner finished with 12 points as well as team high seven boards and seven assists.

Malcolm Bernard had a career high as a Musketeer of 12 points while he added three rebounds and two assists.

The Musketeers shot 73.5 percent going 36-49 from the line and 40 percent from downtown.

The Musketeers had no player shoot below 50 percent from line, including two Musketeers who shot 100 percent from the free throw line.

Xavier out-rebounded Georgetown 11-1 on the offensive boards and 24-20 on the defensive end leading to a 7-0 advantage on second chances for the Musketeers.

The Musketeers and Hoyas tied for points in the paint at 24. The Hoyas' bench outscored Xavier 30-12.

BACK AND FORTH BATTLE IN FIRST

The Musketeers trailed by no more than five points in the first half, 6-11 with 13:38 remaining in the first 20 minutes. The last time the Hoyas led the Musketeers was with 42 second remaining in the first half.

After 18 lead changes and six ties in the first half alone, the Musketeers went ahead lead and held on to lead 34-33 at the break.

Xavier led by no more than a single possession in the first half.

The Musketeer dominated the glass in the first 20 minutes, owning a 22-9 advantage on the rebounds, including a 9-0 lead on the offensive glass.

J.P. Macura led with nine points and five rebounds in the first half

MUSKETEERS PULL AWAY LATE

The Musketeers opened the final 20 minutes going on a 12-5 run, fueled by Macura and Bluiett's teamwork.
Bluiett found Macura down court for the and one dunk in transition.

Xavier extended the lead to as many as 12 in the first five minutes of the second half before the Hoyas came back to tie the game at 58-58 with just under 10 minutes to play.

The Musketeers, led by a 18-point second half for Bluiett, steadily rebuilt the lead, taking a 13-point lead into the final minute of the game, it's largest lead of the game.

Sumner and Macura each added 11 points in the second half. as the Musketeers shot 50 percent from the floor including 4-of-6 from outside.

UP NEXT

The Musketeers head across town for the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout against No. 20 Cincinnati on Saturday, January 26 at 7:00 p.m. on ESPN2. Xavier then heads to New York to face conference rivals St. John's on Jan 29.

The Musketeers return to Cintas Center on February 1, facing Seton Hall.