Men's Basketball Falls 66-65 at Villanova

Wednesday, January 3

Villanova, Pa.

8:30 p.m.

Xavier University

7-7,1-2Big East

Villanova

10-4,3-0Big East

Xavier

Villanova

01.03.24 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Photos Box Score Season Stats

Four Musketeers hit double figures, led by 14 from Quincy Olivari

By: Xavier Athletic Communications

VILLANOVA, Pa. - Xavier men's basketball came back from a 10-point second-half deficit to have a shot for the win at the buzzer, but fell 66-65 at Villanova on Wednesday evening at Finneran Pavilion.

The Musketeers moved to 7-7 (1-2 BIG EAST), while the Wildcats improved to 10-4 (3-0 BIG EAST).

Xavier took the early lead, holding the advantage for the first five minutes of the game, before an 8-0 run put the Wildcats in front with just over 13 minutes remaining in the first half. Xavier responded with a 9-3 run of its own to retake the lead but Villanova scored nine unanswered to go back in front. The Musketeers trailed by as many as eight before going into the break down five, 34-29. Quincy Olivari led the Musketeers with seven first half points.

The Wildcats extended the lead out to 10 in the first five minutes of the second half, but the Musketeers chipped away at the advantage to keep the lead in single digits for the remainder of the game. With Less than six minutes remaining, Xavier, trailing 62-54, went on a 7-0 run to pull within one with two minutes to play, the closest Xavier had been since the 10 minute mark in the first half.

The Wildcats connected on four free throws in the final minute to keep the advantage, leading 66-63 going into the final 10 seconds. Dayvion McKnight made it 66-65 with a layup, and a pair of missed VU free throws gave Xavier a shot for the win at the buzzer, but the look bounced off the front of the rim to set the final score at 66-65 in favor of Villanova.

NOTABLES

Quincy Olivari led Xavier and matched VU's Hakim Hart for game high with 14 points, going 7-of-7 from the free throw line. He also led Xavier with eight rebounds and three steals.
Dayvion McKnight finished with 12 points after scoring 10 in the second half, and went 2-of-2 from three. He led Xavier with three assists.
Abou Ousmane scored eight in the second half to finish with 11 points and grabbed six rebounds.
Desmond Claude also finished with 11 points.
The Musketeers went 10-of-10 from the free throw line.
Xavier had a 41-38 advantage on the boards, with a 15-11 advantage on the offensive glass, but Villanova was able to outscore Xavier 17-10 on second-chance points.
The Musketeers had nine steals and just eight turnovers, matching the season low set against St. Mary's and Cincinnati.