Raining Threes
by Jonah Keri
Sat, 22 Mar 2008 at 8:10 PM
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 Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
A Xavier forward, Josh Duncan, drives past a Purdue forward, JaJuan Johnson, in Xavier's 85-78 victory today. |
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Three seeds, that is. In dispatching Purdue and Kansas State, Xavier and Wisconsin punched their tickets to the regionals in impressive fashion.
Purdue jumped on the Musketeers early, leading by eight more than eight minutes into the first half. Xavier's star senior point guard, Drew Lavender, was being outplayed and Purdue was hitting jumpers from all angles. But the Musketeers came roaring back on a 13-2 run, grabbing the lead at halftime. The Boilermakers showed their mettle, reeling off an 11-0 run midway through the second half to go from 10 down to up one. In the process, the Big-10 defensive player of the year, Chris Kramer, drew a fourth foul on Xavier's leading score,r Josh Duncan, putting the Musketeers in a bind.
What Xavier did from there spoke volumes about the team's chances heading into next week. Swingman B.J. Raymond, normally a threat from outside, got in the lane and scored, plus a foul, to put Xavier back up three. Lavender, by now playing well after his slow start, scored on a running lay-up that typified the problems opposing guards have in containing him. After a Purdue miss, Lavender backed the play out, dribbled the shotclock down, spun, and dished to C.J. Anderson, who canned a 10-foot push shot right as the shotclock expired. Xavier led by six, and would never again give up their advantage, earning an 80-74 win.
Five Xavier players averaged double-figure points this season, four of them juniors or seniors. A sixth, senior Stanley Burrell, averaged 9.8 points a game and established himself as one of the toughest and most versatile defenders in the country, able to clamp down on every position from point guards to power forwards. At 6-foot-9, 240 pounds, Duncan can dunk on people in traffic or step out and hit threes. Lavender joins Memphis's Derrick Rose as the toughest point guards to guard left in the brackets. This team has depth, experience and skill at every position. Don't let their Atlantic-10 roots fool you. Xavier can play with anyone, and just might present the toughest challenge that UCLA will see in the entire tournament.
Meanwhile, Wisconsin got 25 from Trevon Hughes in a 72-55 rout over Kansas State. The significance of the sophomore guard's breakout performance extends far beyond sending Michael Beasley home to wait for the NBA lottery. In combining long-distance prowess (4 of 9 threes) with the ability to take defenders off the dribble, Hughes gave Wisconsin an athletic, all-around threat against the Wildcats that the team appeared to be lacking with Alando Tucker lost to graduation. It's all well and good to admire Bo Ryan's crisp, motion offense and Wisconsin's legion of corn-fed big men. But to even have a shot against the likes of Georgetown, they need someone who can go one-on-one when a play breaks down or late in a game. In matching his career high while on the big stage, Hughes gave a hint that he might be that guy.
On the other hand, if Stephen Curry goes off for 40 again and Davidson takes down the Hoyas, all bets are off.
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