The Xavier basketball program has quietly put together a quietly impressive string of success, having made the Sweet 16 in five of the past eight seasons. Chris Mack once again has a balanced attack that should help the Musketeers remain a factor not only in the Big East, but on the national level as well.
XAVIER MUSKETEERS
Last Season: 6th, 9-9 in Big East, 23-14 overall
Predicted Big East Finish: 5th
Projected Depth Chart
C: James Farr (Sr)/Sean O’Mara (So)
PF: Jalen Reynolds (Jr)/Makinde London (Fr)/Kaiser Gates (Fr)
SF: Trevon Bluiett (So)
SG: Remy Abell (Sr)/J.P. Macura (So)
PG: Myles Davis (Jr)/Edmond Sumner (Fr)/Larry Austin (So)
Gone: C-Matt Stainbrook, PG-Dee Davis, PG-Brandon Randolph (transfer-Utah Valley)
Strengths:
Even though Xavier loses Matt Stainbrook’s big body inside, Chris Mack returns a ton of size inside with four 6-10 players. Jalen Reynolds showed flashes at times and brings a ton of energy to the floor. I expect him to make a leap this season. James Farr is a relentless rebounder while sophomore Sean O’Mara should be much improved and see a larger role off the bench. Makinde London redshirted last season but adds a ton of versatility to the frontcourt since he can play on the perimeter or inside.
With that size inside, Xavier also possesses capable shooters on the perimeter who should space the floor to allow the bigs to do damage inside. Myles Davis is the team’s best three-point shooter although Remy Abell connected on 41% of his triple tries and J.P. Macura can also snipe from downtown.
Question Marks:
Dating back to Tu Holloway and Semaj Christon, Xavier has had steady point guard play in recent history. However, Dee Davis’ graduation leaves a huge hole at the position. Edmond Sumner missed most of last season with a knee injury and Larry Austin played sparingly as a freshman behind Davis. The 6-6 Sumner possesses more talent and versatility than Austin so he should get the first chance to run the Xavier offense. If neither Sumner nor Austin can get the job done, Mack may turn to senior Remy Abell or junior Myles Davis. Neither is anywhere near a true point guard but both may have to play both backcourt positions throughout the season.
Player to Watch:
The reigning Big East Freshman of the Year, Trevon Blueitt will be a vital piece to Xavier’s puzzle this season. His versatility on the offensive end is a major asset since he is another threat from the outside (even though his percent didn’t necessarily reflect that last season) and is also the best attacker on the Musketeer roster. Blueitt becomes X’s go-to scorer and I wouldn’t be surprised if he became a prime time player in the Big East.
X-Factor:
The amount of success Xavier has and how far they play into March really comes down to their point guard play. Sumner or Austin must emerge as the true floor general to allow Davis and Abell to spend more time playing their more natural position off the ball. If that position figures itself out, a sixth Sweet 16 trip in nine years is realistic.
Looking Ahead to 2016-17:
More size comes in next year with the addition of Norfolk State transfer, RaShid Gaston. At 6-9, 240 pounds, he is a force inside who averaged 15.5 points and 9.6 rebounds per game during his junior campaign. Mack has already secured three commitments for the 2016 class including a pair of top 100 prospects so expect Xavier to remain a upper-half Big East team for the near future.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/17 vs. Missouri
11/20 at Michigan
11/26 vs. Alabama (Advocare Invitational in Orlando)
11/27 vs. Wichita State/USC (Advocare Invitational in Orlando)
11/29 vs. Notre Dame/Monmouth/Dayton/Iowa (Advocare Invitational in Orlando)
12/12 vs. Cincinnati
12/19 vs. Auburn
12/22 at Wake Forest
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Milwaukee to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag), and finished with the second most accurate 2013 NBA Mock Draft (nearly a three-peat.) You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.