In a 5-11 upset victory, the Xavier Musketeers topped the Maryland Terrapins in one of the more anticipated upsets of the first round. As a reward, the No. 11 seed will get a chance to face the Florida State Seminoles. The Eagles from Florida Gulf Coast gave the Seminoles a run for their money, but the West Region’s No. 3 seed continues to dance with another favorable matchup on deck.
At TBD p.m. ET, tune into TBD for live television coverage of this NCAA Tournament basketball game on Saturday, March 18, 2017, at the Amway Center in Orlando, FL.
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Entering the game as pups, Xavier was able to make it through the first round against Maryland and in the process extended their winning streak ATS to five.
That’s a great sign for a rejuvenated Musketeers team, but the team was just 3-13 ATS to close out the regular season. That was coupled with a six game losing streak SU. As the team limped to the finish line, it looked like they were in for a short Big East Tournament and a trip to the NIT. Fortunately for Xavier they found a bit of magic, but when does that magic wear off?
The likely answer to that question in on Saturday. FSU entered the tournament 17-12-2 ATS.
Injury Report
The loss of Edmond Sumner was a huge blow for Xavier and caused the team to find itself on the bubble, likely on the outside looking in, headed into the Big East Tournament.
Perhaps those struggles served as a weak up call for a team that came into the season with aspirations of a deep tournament run.
A conference seven-seed, the Musketeers topped DePaul to get to the Quarterfinals and shocked Butler with a 62-57 win to advance to the Semifinals where they went down to the wire against Creighton before ultimately falling 75-72.
With Sumner sidelined since the end of January, the team needed someone to step up. That have been Trevon Bluiett lately. He scored 23 in the upset win over Butler and sunk five of 10 from beyond the arc against Maryland as part of a 21-point performance.
Player to Watch
The Seminoles have depth and size that the Musketeers just cannot match and that starts with freshman forward Jonathan Issac. He’s already one of the best players in the nation and provides significant matchup challenges for Xavier inside the paint.
In FSU’s 86-80 win over Florida Gulf Coast, Dwyane Bacon was the main story for his 25-points, 11-for-17 shooting and fun name, but Issac delivered as well, shooting 5-for-8 from the floor, scoring 15-points and leading the team in both rebounds, with nine, and assists with five. He also added a couple blocks, giving the Seminoles a good, well rounded effort.
All in all, Isaac has been a bit spotty offensively. His solid performance against FGCU was nice to see as it was just his second double-digit scoring game in five contests. That said, he had 27 rebounds and four blocks in the previous two games coming into the NCAA Tournament.
With Bacon, Xavier Rathan-Mayes and Terance Mann delivering from the guard position, FSU needs Isaac to do his thing inside. Michael Ojo and Christ Koumadje provide the height advantage for FSU standing 7’2” and 7’4” respectively, but while they dwarf Isaac in height, he’s the more talented play with a diverse skill set which should challenge Xavier both on the offensive and defensive fronts.
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Florida State took care of Florida Gulf Coast, but FGCU did a good job hanging around, beating the FSU defense and causing the Seminoles trouble defensively on the outside. That was okay against the Eagles, but won’t fly against the Musketeers given their recent play since the start of tournament season. They’ll need to shoot better from the outside and defend better all around.
Look for them to come through and for the Seminoles to ultimately get the win. Xavier has been playing pretty well lately, but they’re still short without Sumner and the team was still inconsistent, at best, with him sidelined prior to the start of tournament play.
In the end, FSU is just too deep. They have the upper hand inside with the big men possessing both size and skill. In addition, they can hang with the likes of Bluiett on the parameter thanks to Bacon, Mayes and Mann. That alone is enough to get the win. Look for FSU to knock off this double-digit seed.
College Basketball Odds: Florida State 81, Xavier 72
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