'We gotta get a lot tougher.' Xavier Musketeers fall to Washington in Las Vegas, 74-71

LAS VEGAS, Nevada − There were plenty of takeaways to Xavier's 74-71 loss to Washington Friday night in the Continental Tire Main Event at T-Mobile Arena.

Xavier controlled the majority of the game, holding the lead for a 20-minute span. But the Musketeers missed 13 free throws, committed 18 turnovers and were charged with 15 second-half fouls to ultimately drop its second-straight game.

For Xavier head coach Sean Miller, though, the lack of effort on Friday was most concerning.

More: 5 observations from Xavier basketball after 2-1 start

"It's not that we lost, it's what happened in the game that causes me pause," Miller said. "When you see guys not fighting, not really reaching as deep down as they can to compete, that's a way bigger problem than missed free throws and missed shots."

'We gotta get tougher.'

Miller said he noticed four minutes into the second half that his team was in trouble trying to deal with Washington's physicality. Xavier drifted into severe foul trouble early, putting Washington in the bonus with 14:27 remaining.

Starting center Abou Ousmane, who sat the majority of the first half after two fouls in the first two minutes, fouled out with 10:38 left. Sophomore Desmond Claude, who had 19 points and seven rebounds, picked up his fourth with 13:07 left and had to sit.

Washington turned 15 Xavier fouls in the second half into a 14-of-22 performance at the foul line to climb back into the game.

"We gotta get a lot tougher," Miller said. "It's the hardest things to deal with. You can't just take it through your face, chest and say, 'that's OK.' "

It was a completely flipped script from the first 20 minutes, when Xavier held Washington to 10-of-36 shooting from the field to take a 37-30 lead into the locker room.

“It was a tale of two halves. In the second half, I called timeouts just to hold on. It was a hopeless feeling. We could not guard them without fouling," Miller said.

"This was a boxing match. The first 7-8 rounds probably favored us. Then rounds 8-15 was just like we tried to hang on for dear life and it doesn't work that way."

Xavier's offense stumbles down the stretch

Xavier shot just 39.3% from the field Friday and went 5-of-16 from the perimeter, but it was free-throw line woes that stood out, going 18-of-31.

Xavier also committed 10 of its 18 turnovers in the second half in key spots with abnormal lineups due to foul trouble and Washington took advantage.

"On offense, we're far from playing as a group, as a team," Miller said. "We tried to manufacture points with individual play and that's not gonna work."

Keion Brooks Jr. led Washington with 20 points and guard Sahvir Wheeler added 18. Washington 6-foot-11 center Franck Kepnang had 6 points and 7 boards in the second half.

XU's Quincy Olivari connected twice from deep and finished one rebound shy of a double-double (13 points, 9 rebounds). Gytis Nemeiksa led Xavier with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting as the Musketeers' go-to man on offense in the game's final minutes.

"I thought he (Nemeiksa) showed resolve and gave us quality time," Miller said.

Lazar Djokovic makes Xavier debut

Forward Lazar Djokovic missed the first four games of the year with a fracture in his right hand, but returned to make his Xavier debut Friday.

One of five freshmen to see the court, Djokovic had 7 points (3-of-5) and 4 rebounds in 17 minutes. After a shaky start, Djokovic had a key sequence late in regulation when he knocked down a 3-pointer, then took a charge with Xavier trailing by a bucket.

"It's good to get him (Djokovic) out there. I know our team, from a big picture perspective, is gonna be better with him in," said Miller, who added that Xavier will have to monitor how comfortable Djokovic is with the injury.

What's next?

Xavier looks to split its two MTE contests when it returns to T-Mobile Arena on Sunday to face Saint Mary's.

Saint Mary's lost its Las Vegas opener Friday to San Diego State, 79-54.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Xavier Musketeers stumble late in loss to Washington Huskies