'A great step.' What we learned as Xavier battles but falls on the road to No. 2 Purdue

With a roster that includes 10 new players, Sean Miller and the Xavier coaching staff will have to navigate a season full of firsts.

A week ago, against Robert Morris, several Musketeers had to handle the opening night jitters in their first game at Cintas Center, with some making their collegiate debut. On Friday, Xavier had to grasp its zone offense for the first time when Jacksonville went off its normal defensive script and attacked with a 1-2-2 look.

More: Xavier receives National Letter of Intent from four-star commit Jonathan Powell

More: Xavier basketball gets biggest test of young season against No. 3 Purdue, Zach Edey

On Monday, Xavier went on the road for the first time this season. To make the road even bumpier, it was against one of the nation’s top teams, led by one of college basketball’s best players, at a venue that has become one of the hardest for visitors to excel.

Xavier (2-1) fell in its road-opener against No. 2 Purdue, 83-71, Monday night at Mackey Arena.

With three games this week away from home, it’s an early season stretch where we’ll find out more about the young Musketeers. In its first test against one of the favorites to win the national championship, Xavier gave a great effort but couldn't sustain strong play over key stretches.

With all its offseason changes and roster turnover, Xavier went on the road and hung around and looked like they belonged against the No. 2 team in the country. That's something to build on.

"We played well enough in stretches to make it a game, to fight to the end, but to actually win it, we have to grow who we are in what we're doing," Xavier head coach Sean Miller said. "Instead of 20 minutes of good play, we gotta get it to 24 or 28 minutes.

"It would've taken a monumental effort on our part to leave here with a victory. I say all that in that I'll leave here with head held high, my team the same."

Takeaways from Xavier-Purdue

When it comes to Purdue, the scouting report starts with 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey, the reigning national player of the year. Xavier got a great start defensively against the dominate big man, forcing Edey to catch the ball outside the paint and settle for highly contested jump hooks. Edey started 0-for-4 from the field with North Texas transfer Abou Ousmane assigned to Purdue's top threat.

The turning point came early in the second half, when Ousmane picked up two fouls in the first two minutes. The second of which came on an Edey three-point play at the 17:56 mark to give the Boilermakers a 44-33 lead and sent Ousmane to the bench with four fouls. Edey finished with a game-high 28 points but was just 9-of-17 from the floor.

"We really tried to keep a body between him (Edey) and the basket to force him out. Try to limit his deep catches and offensive rebounds and get rid of any angle. Sounds good − we held him to 28 (points) and 11 (rebounds)," Miller laughed.

Xavier and Purdue battled to a 19-19 tie through the first 10-plus minutes of the game before the Boilermakers made the first run of the night with a 9-2 burst to lead 28-21. Trey Green helped the Musketeers stay within striking distance with a pair of 3-pointers, a good sign after his 1-for-11 start to the year from downtown.

A green dish to Kachi Nzeh trimmed the deficit to four, but Purdue took a 37-29 lead into the half after a Myles Colvin corner triple.

Green and fellow freshman Dailyn Swain each had 10 points.

Green was a bright spot off the bench on a night where starters Desmond Claude and Quincy Olivari struggled. Claude had four of Xavier's half-dozen first-half turnovers but looked like the Musketeers' best player in the second half, finishing with a team-high 15 points. Olivari made his first field goal with 11:54 left after a 0-for-5 start, ending with six points.

"I thought tonight was a great learning experience for him," Miller said of Claude recovering from a slow start. "My hope is that his play will even out."

One game after Miller said the team "needed more" from guard Dayvion McKnight, the WKU transfer had 8 points on 4-of-9 shooting to go with 5 assists and 3 steals.

"It's the best game Dayvion has played for us," Miller said. "Today, Dayvion was the point guard we want him to be."

Gytis Nemeiksa connected twice from beyond the arc and logged his second double-digit effort with 10 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. The senior's triple with 13:34 remaining cut Purdue's lead to 51-46, but the Boilermakers responded with key jumpers from guard Braden Smith (12 points).

Xavier is now shooting just 27.6% from 3-point range (18-of-65) this season after a 7-of-25 performance Monday night.

Purdue held a distinct advantage from the free-throw line. Olivari made Xavier's first free-throw attempts with 13:41 left in the first half. The Musketeers wouldn't get back to the line until there was 1:51 left in the game. Purdue went 18-of-21 (15-of-17 in the second half) from the charity stripe to pull away.

"I'll take this as a learning experience. Tonight was a great step," Miller said.

Up next

Xavier will jet across the country this week in preparation for the Continental Tire Main Event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The Musketeers will face the University of Washington Huskies on Friday, Nov. 17 before getting either San Diego State or Saint Mary's on Sunday.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Xavier vs. Purdue: Musketeers fall on the road to No. 2 ranked team