NCAA Basketball: Kansas State, Providence on the rise on latest top 25 power ranking
By Joey Loose
11. Xavier (13-3)
Absent from the NCAA Tournament since 2018, the Musketeers are certainly pleased with the strides under Sean Miller, back for his second tour of duty leading this Xavier program. They lost a few tight battles back in November but have been on quite the winning streak in recent weeks, especially now during Big East play.
Coming off last weekend’s impressive win against Connecticut, Xavier did not get complacent nor drop the ball, picking up another solid win this weekend. They traveled to Villanova and left with an 88-80 win over the Wildcats, albeit a Villanova squad really struggling this season. Zach Freemantle had 29 points and 11 rebounds while Souley Boum had 22 points and 10 rebounds, leading a roster that’s been fantastic in the first half of the season.
Xavier now sits an impressive 5-0 in conference play, with three road wins pairing nicely with that big home win against the Huskies. There is a lot of talent on this roster and we didn’t even mention Colby Jones or Jack Nunge or any of the others. Can they keep up this momentum against their Big East rivals? Next week keeps them at home, but it’ll be intriguing matchups with Creighton and Marquette.