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02-05-2009, 11:05 PM
http://i270.photobucket.com/albums/jj89/xhoops/0a72c63f-ade0-4533-b506-10ab2d90d45.jpgRaymond’s range dooms Temple, 83-74
By Mike Damone
For the #9 Musketeers to thwart the upset and a second-consecutive loss to the Temple Owls, the key was to stop Temple star Dionte Christmas – a seemingly arduous task considering his conference leading 20.4 points per game. Few mentioned, however, the daunting assignment of stopping BJ Raymond.
The senior guard for the Musketeers (20-2, 8-0) continued his offensive tear through the Atlantic 10 Thursday night against Temple (12-9, 4-3), scoring a game-high 24 points and leading the Musketeers to an 83-74 victory at the Cintas Center. It was the Musketeers’ 11th-straight victory, their longest such streak since last season.
Raymond (24 pts, 3 reb) began the conference slate respectably, averaging 12 points over Xavier’s first four games. But it’s now become tough to argue that anyone is playing better offensively in the Atlantic 10 than Raymond, who’s now averaging 22.5 points over Xavier’s last four games. His precision was the story Thursday night, going 7-for-11 from the field, including 5-for-7 from three.
But as typical with every Xavier team, Raymond wasn’t alone. Juniors Jason Love and Derrick Brown scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds apiece, and freshman Brad Redford (12 points) knocked down four triples. Senior CJ Anderson just missed double-figures, scoring nine.
The Musketeers led Temple by just three, 42-39, with a little over 16 minutes to go, but the Xavier offense let loose, going on a 10-0 run that helped build a lead the Owls never seriously challenged.
Sophomore Jamel McLean (5 pts, 6 reb) played just 10 minutes, but made the most of his opportunity, ripping down an offensive rebound and putting it back to put Xavier up by five, 44-39. Throughout Temple’s drought, McLean made his presence felt on both the defensive and offensive glass, challenging for position inside and keeping offensive possessions alive. He added a free throw to put Xavier up six, followed by a three from sophomore Dante Jackson (5 pts, 3 reb) to extend Xavier’s lead to nine, 48-39, with just under 15 minutes to go.
Raymond gave Xavier their first double-digit lead, 51-39, swishing a three from the top of the key with 14 minutes left. Brown jammed home an Anderson miss, and Redford nailed a three to put Xavier up 16, 59-43, with under 11 minutes remaining. Another Redford three would give Xavier their largest lead, 62-45, shortly thereafter.
Frustrated through most of the game, Christmas (12 pts, 8 ast) did work to bring the Owls back, helping cut into Xavier’s lead. Ryan Brooks (11 pts, 3 reb) stroked a three to trim Temple’s deficit to 10, 66-56, with 6:26 to go. McLean answered with a jam off an Anderson miss, but a Juan Fernandez (8 points) three brought the Owls to within nine with 5:35 left. Raymond answered with a fall-away jumper, followed by two inside buckets from Anderson and Love to snub any Temple momentum and give Xavier a 74-59 advantage.
The Temple offense didn’t give up down the stretch, keeping Xavier from running away with the game, but the Musketeers made 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to seal the deal and provide the final margin.
Temple led by as many as five early on, 14-9, but Redford and Raymond jump-started an initially sluggish Xavier offense with back-to-back threes to give Xavier the lead, 15-14, with 10:43 left in the first half. An 11-4 run – capped by another Redford three – gave Xavier a 26-20 lead with 7:30 to go in the first half. Xavier never trailed by more than six, and a Brown three-pointer gave the Musketeers a four-point lead, 38-34, heading into intermission.
The offensive outburst by Raymond gave him 90 points over the last four games, and his fourth-consecutive 20-point effort. What may be more impressive, however, was the defensive effort put forth by Raymond and Jackson, holding Christmas to eight points below his season average. Sergio Olmos (18 points) gave Xavier problems early on, and Lavoy Allen added a double-double for the Owls with 14 points and 14 boards. Brooks rounded out the Owl offense with 11.
Xavier will have little time to celebrate just their second win over Temple in five years, as they hit the road to take on the Duquesne Dukes in Pittsburgh on Saturday at 7 p.m. Anderson, Brown and Raymond will look to reprise their offensive dominance in last season’s 75-48 dismantling of the Dukes in Cincinnati, as the three led Xavier with 13 points apiece. The Dukes (14-7, 5-3) are coming off a 78-74 overtime loss on the road to the Saint Louis Billikens.
By Mike Damone
For the #9 Musketeers to thwart the upset and a second-consecutive loss to the Temple Owls, the key was to stop Temple star Dionte Christmas – a seemingly arduous task considering his conference leading 20.4 points per game. Few mentioned, however, the daunting assignment of stopping BJ Raymond.
The senior guard for the Musketeers (20-2, 8-0) continued his offensive tear through the Atlantic 10 Thursday night against Temple (12-9, 4-3), scoring a game-high 24 points and leading the Musketeers to an 83-74 victory at the Cintas Center. It was the Musketeers’ 11th-straight victory, their longest such streak since last season.
Raymond (24 pts, 3 reb) began the conference slate respectably, averaging 12 points over Xavier’s first four games. But it’s now become tough to argue that anyone is playing better offensively in the Atlantic 10 than Raymond, who’s now averaging 22.5 points over Xavier’s last four games. His precision was the story Thursday night, going 7-for-11 from the field, including 5-for-7 from three.
But as typical with every Xavier team, Raymond wasn’t alone. Juniors Jason Love and Derrick Brown scored 13 points and pulled down seven rebounds apiece, and freshman Brad Redford (12 points) knocked down four triples. Senior CJ Anderson just missed double-figures, scoring nine.
The Musketeers led Temple by just three, 42-39, with a little over 16 minutes to go, but the Xavier offense let loose, going on a 10-0 run that helped build a lead the Owls never seriously challenged.
Sophomore Jamel McLean (5 pts, 6 reb) played just 10 minutes, but made the most of his opportunity, ripping down an offensive rebound and putting it back to put Xavier up by five, 44-39. Throughout Temple’s drought, McLean made his presence felt on both the defensive and offensive glass, challenging for position inside and keeping offensive possessions alive. He added a free throw to put Xavier up six, followed by a three from sophomore Dante Jackson (5 pts, 3 reb) to extend Xavier’s lead to nine, 48-39, with just under 15 minutes to go.
Raymond gave Xavier their first double-digit lead, 51-39, swishing a three from the top of the key with 14 minutes left. Brown jammed home an Anderson miss, and Redford nailed a three to put Xavier up 16, 59-43, with under 11 minutes remaining. Another Redford three would give Xavier their largest lead, 62-45, shortly thereafter.
Frustrated through most of the game, Christmas (12 pts, 8 ast) did work to bring the Owls back, helping cut into Xavier’s lead. Ryan Brooks (11 pts, 3 reb) stroked a three to trim Temple’s deficit to 10, 66-56, with 6:26 to go. McLean answered with a jam off an Anderson miss, but a Juan Fernandez (8 points) three brought the Owls to within nine with 5:35 left. Raymond answered with a fall-away jumper, followed by two inside buckets from Anderson and Love to snub any Temple momentum and give Xavier a 74-59 advantage.
The Temple offense didn’t give up down the stretch, keeping Xavier from running away with the game, but the Musketeers made 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to seal the deal and provide the final margin.
Temple led by as many as five early on, 14-9, but Redford and Raymond jump-started an initially sluggish Xavier offense with back-to-back threes to give Xavier the lead, 15-14, with 10:43 left in the first half. An 11-4 run – capped by another Redford three – gave Xavier a 26-20 lead with 7:30 to go in the first half. Xavier never trailed by more than six, and a Brown three-pointer gave the Musketeers a four-point lead, 38-34, heading into intermission.
The offensive outburst by Raymond gave him 90 points over the last four games, and his fourth-consecutive 20-point effort. What may be more impressive, however, was the defensive effort put forth by Raymond and Jackson, holding Christmas to eight points below his season average. Sergio Olmos (18 points) gave Xavier problems early on, and Lavoy Allen added a double-double for the Owls with 14 points and 14 boards. Brooks rounded out the Owl offense with 11.
Xavier will have little time to celebrate just their second win over Temple in five years, as they hit the road to take on the Duquesne Dukes in Pittsburgh on Saturday at 7 p.m. Anderson, Brown and Raymond will look to reprise their offensive dominance in last season’s 75-48 dismantling of the Dukes in Cincinnati, as the three led Xavier with 13 points apiece. The Dukes (14-7, 5-3) are coming off a 78-74 overtime loss on the road to the Saint Louis Billikens.