Xavier Wins Fourth Straight in 21-Point Victory Over Ohio

Wednesday, December 5

Cincinnati, Ohio

6:30 p.m.

Xavier University

6-3

Ohio

5-3

Ohio

Xavier

Xavier Wins Fourth Straight in 21-Point Victory Over Ohio

12.05.18 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)Season Stats (PDF)Game Notes (PDF)Photos

Paul Scruggs leads Musketeers with 21 points in 10th straight win over Mid-American Conference opponent.

By: Brandon Eckman, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier men's basketball defeated Ohio, 82-61, on Wednesday evening in the final game of a three-game home stand at Cintas Center. Four Musketeers scored in double figures, led by sophomore Paul Scruggs with 21 points. Sophomore Naji Marshall added 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Kyle Castlin and Tyrique Jones also scored in double figures.

FIRST HALF

The game opened with Musketeer scores on the first six possessions, including two three-point field goals by Ryan Welage, giving Xavier an early 15-3 lead.
Xavier opened the game shooting 7-of-9, 78 percent from the floor, in the first five minutes of play.
Paul Scruggs led the way in the half with a team-high 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the floor and 2-for-3 from beyond the arc. He also grabbed four rebounds.
Welage scored nine points on 3-of-4 shooting in the half in 11 minutes of play.
Kyle Castlin added six points for the Musketeers on 3-of-6 shooting from the field. Castlin also had two rebounds and two of Xavier's five steals in the half.
Xavier shot 15-for-32, 47 percent, from the floor and scored nine points off Ohio turnovers.
Xavier grabbed eight offensive rebounds in the half and scored 10 second-chance points.
Xavier ended the half with a floater down low from Marshall to give Xavier a one-point lead.
The Musketeers headed into the locker room with a 35-34 lead over the Bobcats and led by as many as 13 points in the first half.

SECOND HALF

The Musketeers opened the second half with three-point field goals from Scruggs and Naji Marshall and took a four-point lead three minutes into the half.
Marshall scored a team high 13 points in the half and shot 100 percent from the field in the half. He also connected on 4-of-6 free throw attempts and pulled down four rebounds in the half.
Paul Scruggs also connected on 100 percent of his second half field goal attempts, adding 11 points and seven assists for the Musketeers.
Tyrique Jones scored 11 points in the half on 4-of-6 shooting and grabbed four rebounds for the Musketeers.
The Musketeers scored 16 points off of nine Bobcat turnovers.
Xavier shot 16-for-22 from the floor, 73 percent, and connected on 3-of-5 three-point field goal attempts.
Xavier finished the game with an 82-61 victory, its largest lead of the contest. The Musketeers finished the half with 24 points scored in the paint.

NOTABLES

Scruggs led the way for Xavier in scoring with 21 points, just three shy of his career high. Scruggs shot 6-of-10 from the floor, grabbed five rebounds, dished out eight assists and had four steals in the win.
Castlin tied his Xavier career-high in scoring with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
Marshall added 17 points for the Musketeers, shooting 50 percent from the field in the contest. Marshall also had seven rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal in just 14 minutes of play.
Xavier shot 31-for-54, 57 percent, from the floor and connected on eight three-pointers in the contest.
The Musketeers scored 11 second-chance points off nine offensive rebounds.
Xavier has now won 10 straight and 18 of its last 19 games against teams from the Mid-American Conference.

UP NEXT

Xavier returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 8 at 2:00 p.m. when the Musketeers take on Cincinnati in the 86th annual Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout at Fifth Third Arena. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

HIGHLIGHTS