Cincinnati, OH (My Sportsbook) - The 15th-ranked Xavier Musketeers put their perfect Atlantic 10 Conference mark on the line, as they welcome the La Salle Explorers to the Cintas Center in Cincinnati this afternoon.
La Salle is 9-6 on the year, and the team has split its first two league bouts, losing to local rival Temple last weekend before bouncing back on Wednesday against Charlotte. The 68-61 victory over the 49ers took place on the road where the Explorers are 2-1 this season. After a 1-3 start, the La Salle has responded by winning eight of its next 11 games, including four of the last five.
As for Xavier, it is clearly the class of the A-10 this year and has a stellar 14-2 record to this point. The Musketeers are 3-0 in conference and have logged a 7-1 mark at home. The team struggled a bit its last time out, but won at Rhode Island nevertheless in a 67-65 final. XU is riding a five-game win streak, which comes on the heels of its only two losses, both of which came against teams that have been ranked for much of the season (Duke and Butler).
Xavier owns a commanding 28-6 lead in the all-time series with La Salle, and has won the last two meetings, and 27 of the 31 encounters since 1983.
La Salle's resurgence can be linked to the fact that the team is shooting 46.1 percent from the field, owns a +7.5 rebounding advantage and has four players currently averaging double figures in the scoring column. Rodney Green highlights the group with his 15.4 ppg, and he is hitting 40.7 percent of his three-point tries while also serving as the team's primary playmaker with 55 assists. Kimmani Barrett is netting 12.9 ppg on the strength of a 41.7 percent showing from beyond the arc, while Ruben Guillandeaux is also doing the job out on the perimeter (.411) in netting 10.3 ppg. Yves Mekongo Mbala rounds out the quartet with 10.1 ppg and he is tied for the rebounding lead with 6.1 rpg. Guillandeaux led five Explorers in double figures in the recent win at Charlotte, scoring 14 points behind a 2-of-4 effort from three-point range. Terrell Williams came off the bench to log a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds, while Mekongo Mbala finished with 11 points and nine boards. La Salle pounded the glass to the tune of a 50-25 rebounding advantage and won the game despite turning the ball over 18 times and shooting just 40 percent from the field.
Xavier has performed exceptionally well at both ends of the floor through the first half of the season, averaging 72.6 ppg on 45.6 percent field goal efficiency while allowing just 62.5 ppg on 36.7 percent shooting. The Musketeers are led by a trio of double-digit scorers, with Derrick Brown and his 14 ppg sitting at the top. A 52.4 percent shooter who also grabs 5.3 rpg and has nailed 20-of-44 three-point attempts thus far, Brown has elevated his game against A-10 foes by netting 15.3 ppg. B.J. Raymond is next with his 12.0 ppg on the strength of a club-best 30 three-pointers, and C.J. Anderson rounds out the group with 10.8 points and 5.7 boards per outing. Brown scored 12 points and grabbed eight rebounds in leading Xavier past Rhode Island on Thursday, as the team shot just 38.9 percent from the floor and missed 12 of its 17 three-point attempts on the night. A 20-5 edge in points from the foul line certainly played a major role in the outcome, as did a 48-36 rebounding advantage and a 37.1 percent shooting performance by the Rams.
