DePaul University
Xavier
DePaul Falls at Home to Xavier Saturday Afternoon
1/30/2016 12:00:00 AM | MEN'S BASKETBALL
Box Score: Xavier 86, DePaul 65
ROSEMONT, Ill. - If only DePaul could have sustained a terrific start to Saturday's BIG EAST showdown against No. 7/8 Xavier.
After leading by nine and another time by eight in the first half and staying in front for more than 17 minutes, a rough stretch resulted in an 86-65 loss at Allstate Arena.
DePaul (7-14, 1-8 in the BIG EAST) was leading 32-27 when Xavier (19-2, 7-2) went on a game-defining 25-3 run late in the first half extending into the second half.
That included a 13-0 surge in the final three minutes of the first half with eight consecutive free throws and a 1-3-1 zone defense that slowed the Blue Demon attack.
Billy Garrett Jr. led DePaul with 18 points while Tommy Hamilton IV finished with 15 points. Eli Cain and Myke Henry each contributed 10 points. Trevon Bluiett paced Xavier with 15 points.
"We talked about bringing the game to Xavier right from the start," said DePaul coach Dave Leitao. "Usually, it's turnovers and a lack of execution that hurt us. Today, fouls got us in trouble, they made free throws and we gave up nine offensive rebounds in the first half.
"When you have the opportunity to play against a really good team---and Xavier is one of the best in the country---you can't make a lot of mistakes. Once they came back and took the lead, they had the confidence to make more shots."
After closing out the first half on a 15-1 run, Xavier opened the second half with a 10-2 burst in building a 52-35 lead. The two teams traded baskets into the first media timeout.
The Musketeers led 65-42 in the middle of the second half as Bluiett scored 11 quick points. Xavier's bench wound up outscoring DePaul's reserves 42-12.
"We didn't handle it," Leitao said about Xavier's big run. "We were playing aggressively and had already fallen behind when they went to their zone. We're used to a zone, but we have a tendency to let it affect us psychologically.
"They go nine or 10 deep and all those players make positive contributions. When we got in foul trouble early, we had to play mix-and-match because we are not as deep as they are. The rotations we were playing cost us."
The Blue Demons came out on fire, seizing a 9-0 lead after the opening tip on two Henry baskets, one by Garrett and a Hamilton three. They hit four of their first five shots while Xavier missed its first six and didn't score for more than four minutes.
It was 11-2 when the Musketeers scored eight straight in come within one. Hamilton and Garrett answered with back-to-back scores.
After Cain put the home team ahead 21-13, Xavier came back to draw within 22-19. That's when Garrett hit a jumper and Hamilton drained a pair from long distance for a 30-23 advantage with 5:34 left in the first half. Hamilton, who leads the team in three-point shooting percentage, made three of his first five.
Even though Leitao went deeper into his bench with Henry, Erten Gazi and Peter Ryckbosch in early foul trouble, the Blue Demons held a lead into the final three minutes of the first half.
That's when Xavier scored 13 points in a row for a 40-32 lead. Despite holding the lead for more than 17 minutes, DePaul went into the halftime locker room trailing 42-33.
"It's our inconsistency, and we've been doing that all year," Garrett said. "It's a matter of us fixing those problems and trying to get better.
"The sooner we can fix those problems, the better we'll be."
Xavier was compensating for subpar shooting in the first half (39.4 percent from the floor) with the nine offensive rebounds that led to 11 second-chance points. The Musketeers were 13-of-14 from the line in the first 20 minutes.
DePaul faces another top 10 team at 8 p.m. Tuesday when Providence comes to Allstate Arena for a BIG EAST matchup that will be televised on FS1.
Postgame Notes: Billy Garrett Jr. (299 assists) passed Drake Diener (2001-05) for 17th on DePaul's all-time assist chart... Tommy Hamilton IV reached double figures for the 35th time in his collegiate career... Hamilton's three three-pointers matched his career high (fifth time)... he knocked down three three's for the second straight game... DePaul holds a 9-8 advantage in the all-time series... Xavier sweeps the season series and has won three straight overall.
