Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
CINCINNATI (AP) — Tyrique Jones had his fourth double-double of the season, Paul Scruggs scored 15 points, and No. 25 Xavier recovered from its first loss by beating Lipscomb 87-62 Saturday.
The Musketeers (7-1) were coming off 70-65 loss to Florida in the championship game of the Charleston Classic. Jones averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds during the tournament and kept up his dominance back at home.
Jones finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds, leading a surge late in the first half that put Xavier in control. Naji Marshall scored nine consecutive points for Xavier in the second half and finished with 13 as the Musketeers piled up a season high in points.
Lipscomb (2-5) was led by freshman point guard KJ Johnson, who had a season-high 25 points. Ahsan Asadullah added 18 points and nine rebounds.
The Musketeers took a while to settle in against Lipscomb’s zone defenses. They repeatedly missed layups and shot air balls on 3-point attempts in the opening minutes, allowing the Bisons to stay close. Xavier led by no more than five points until Jones asserted himself and the Musketeers began dominating inside.
The senior forward had a put-back, a tip-in and a steal and dunk as Xavier made eight of its last 10 shots in the half to open a 40-26 lead. Scruggs added six points during the spurt.
Jones scored Xavier’s first two baskets of the second half, helping the Musketeers push the lead to 21 points. Xavier was in control the rest of the way, using its reserves liberally.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
Xavier’s first loss of the season dropped the Musketeers from No. 18 to No. 25, leaving no margin for error to stay ranked. They got the win despite an out-of-sync first half that include nine turnovers.
BIG PICTURE
Lipscomb: The Bisons played their first ranked team this season.
Xavier: The Musketeers’ outside shooting — their biggest weakness — was in the spotlight against Lipscomb’s zone defense. The Musketeers came in making 27.7% of their 3-point attempts and went 8 of 24 from beyond the arc.
UP NEXT
Lipscomb completes a four-game road swing at Belmont on Tuesday.
Xavier hosts Green Bay on Wednesday.
___
More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP\_Top 25
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
