This wasn’t entirely unforeseeable, but it still wasn’t fun to watch.
The last gift this undermanned, battered iteration of the Musketeers gave to the fan base was hope. They came out of the gate like demons, pressuring UConn all over the floor, making shots, and sustaining an incomprehensible level of energy. Des got a bucket and an assist. Quincy hit a three, then another. Three minutes into the game, Xavier led 10-0.
UConn punched back, because of course they did. They’re the best team in the nation. Having taken Xavier’s best shot directly to the mouth, they responded immediately. Just 3:42 after Xavier led 10-0, they were down 13-10.
There are a lot of things in this team – like walk-ons and freshmen getting minutes that were supposed to go to guys who are now in the starting lineup – but quit isn’t one of them. Offered the opportunity to quit, they hit back again. Des ripped off 5 straight on two layups and a free throw. Trey hit a three off an assist from Quincy, then Quincy hit a jumper of his own. That was 20 points in 10 minutes for Xavier, coupled with an insane defensive effort, and it led to a 20-14 lead.
UConn scored 5 in their next two trips, but the Muskies clung to their lead. Xavier held UConn to just a single bucket for the next 4:43, but they could only muster one of their own in response. The cracks were showing. The level of intensity necessary to keep things tight on the defensive end was sapping Xavier’s legs on offense. UConn cobbled together 11 points after the final media timeout after scoring just 23 in the first 16+ minutes of the game. Only a gritty six points from Dayvion McKnight in Xavier’s final three possessions kept the deficit to just one at the half.
In a game that ended less than 18 hours before, McKnight, Claude, and Olivari fought their guts out against Butler. They played 39, 39, and 37 minutes, respectively, in that contest. Now they had played 19, 17, and 20 in the first half against the most relentless team in the country. It was a brutal, taxing effort. The Muskies had combined to hold UConn to 13-32/4-14/4-10 shooting. They would have to do that and more and improve their output on offense to keep the dream alive.
It wasn’t to be. UConn got 22 bench minutes and 10 bench points in the first half. Xavier got 12 and 6. As Xavier’s legs got heavier in the second half, shots they desperately needed came in too flat or too short. After shooting 12-29/3-9/6-7 in the first half, they could only muster 9-32/2-12/7-8 in the second. The spirit was willing. The flesh, beaten down over the course of a season with an ever-dwindling number of scholarship athletes available, had nothing left to offer. UConn walked away with the game.
I’d be remiss to leave that as the epitaph. Bradley Colbert got some much deserved Big East Tournament run, and he made the most of it. He came off a pin-down and racked a three off of a dime from Ian Sabourin. He forced a turnover and got a layup on the run out. Maybe feeling selfish for hogging all the buckets, he fed Lazar Djokovic for a bucket on the post. None of these moments changed the win probability at all, but they were things that happened, and I hope they turn into cherished memories that linger long after the pain of the season coming to a close subsides.
Spare a thought for Quincy Olivari. Alone among this team’s rotation, he has completed his eligibility. He joined Xavier anticipating making a run in the NCAA Tournament. By the time the season had even started, that dream was on life support. The productivity he offered on the floor was only matched by the joy with which he played the game; he deservedly takes his place in a crowded pantheon of Xavier transfers who made a mark on the program.
There’s the faintest chance that this wasn’t the end. The NIT selection rules have changed to offer bids to the top two teams in the NET who didn’t make the tournament from each major conference. Xavier will end the season somewhere in the mid-60s, closely grouped with Providence, Butler, and Seton Hall. The results from today will go a long way towards determining what comes next for this group.
For now, just remember that they fought valiantly against the odds all season, and for just a moment it seemed like the impossible was in play.