NEW YORK — Many bracketologists are describing Xavier with the phrases “last four in” or “first four out.”
A well-timed seven-game winning streak gives Xavier a chance at being the fifth team from the Big East to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
The fifth-seeded Musketeers’ next chance to enhance their resume occurs Thursday afternoon in a Big East tournament quarterfinal matchup against No. 25 Marquette.
Xavier (21-10) enters the tournament with the conference’s longest active winning streak and a NET ranking of 44. Despite a top 50 ranking, the Musketeers are 1-8 in Quad 1 games and are among four teams in the top 50 in the NET rankings with one win or fewer in Quad 1 games.
“I think we’re playing our best basketball of the season right now,” Xavier coach Sean Miller said. “I feel like we’re an NCAA Tournament team.”
Xavier is unbeaten since a 12-point loss at Villanova on Feb. 9, though six of its wins are against the combination of DePaul, Butler, Seton Hall and Providence — the bottom four in the Big East standings.
However, the Musketeers also earned a two-point win over Marquette on Jan. 18 when the Golden Eagles were ranked No. 7 in the AP Top 25. Xavier also owns a four-point victory over UConn when the two-time defending national champions were ranked No. 19 in the poll on Jan. 25.
“I’ll also tell you, there’s some smart people on the committee. I know there’s a lot of worthy teams,” Miller said. “We have to be at our best in New York City. That’s when you want to play your best.”
Among those playing their best down the stretch is Zach Freemantle, who ended the regular season with 25 points in Saturday’s 76-68 win over Providence. Freemantle is averaging 24.0 points in his past three games.
Xavier is averaging 82.1 points during its winning streak, and contributions from Ryan Conwell are helping. Conwell scored 21 on Saturday and averaging 21.0 points in his past four outings.
These schools meet in the conference tournament for the first time since Marquette defeated Xavier to win the 2023 Big East title game.
Marquette (22-9) has reached the past three Big East title games, but enters Thursday after splitting its final 14 regular-season games. The Golden Eagles took five of those losses to the top three Big East seeds and ended the regular season with an 86-84 overtime loss to St. John’s on Saturday, three days after a 72-66 loss at UConn.
“Don’t have a choice,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said after his team tied a season worst by missing 10 free throws. “Response is a huge key in our program, the ability to focus on the next most important thing.”
Kam Jones scored 32 against St. John’s to follow up a 21-point showing at UConn. Jones finished third in the league in scoring at 15.3 points, and the senior guard was a unanimous pick for the All-Big East first team.
“Now’s the most important time, the postseason of your senior year,” Jones said.
–Larry Fleisher, Field Level Media
