Xavier v. Charlotte: Box Score Breakdown

What happened: Xavier 68 - Charlotte 48

Dante lit 'em up tonight.

There are really only two keys to beating a zone defense: hitting the long jump shots it leaves you, and rotating the ball quickly to open up gaps. The first of those responsibilities was fulfilled by Dante Jackson tonight. His role in Xavier's only conference loss consistent of missing all four of the three-pointers he attempted. Today he atoned with a massive 18-7-1 line with 4 steals on 6-10/4-7/2-3 shooting. His three first-half threes were measured at 27, 27, and 28 feet by CBS. On a night when Xavier needed him, Jackson was nothing less than Dantastic.

Xavier's seniors made a fitting exit.

Jamel McLean and Kenny Frease - both avid readers, I'm sure - answered the bell tonight as well. Jamel went for 11-13-0 on 5-9/0-1/1-3 shooting, and Big Kenny posted 14-7-0 on 7-12/0-0/0-0. They also combined for 8 of the Muskies' 17 offensive boards. I have no idea why McLean shot a three, but I'm guessing it had something to do with the fact that there were six minutes left in the last home game of his career.

I haven't forgotten about the ball movement portion of tonight's program. Tu Holloway again posted a dismal shooting line - 1-6/0-5/2-3 - but this time had the luxury of being able to stop at six shots because of a comfortable lead rather than having to try to carry the team back into a game. He ended the night with 4-2-8. Cheek's 10-2-7 came on 3-10/1-5/3-4 shooting, but seeing the guards combine for 15 assists on a night when their shots weren't falling is certainly a good thing.

Odds and ends:
-Jeff Robinson pulled ahead of Dante for the team lead in fouls tonight. His total on the season stands at 78 to Jackson's 77.

-Xavier had 11 assists at the half tonight, compared to the 6 they had all game at Charlotte. Both Cheek and Tu had more assists tonight that the whole team did at Charlotte.

-Jamel McLean's 5 TO were the most he's had since he posted that same amount against the Bonnies last March 6th.

-Andrew Taylor somehow picked up 4 fouls in 13 minutes tonight.

-As always, stay tuned for the Twitter Recap and Brad's full recap, coming soon.