Xavier Musketeers notebook: Sean Miller's need for speed, women's soccer wins Big East

Less than a week remains before the Xavier Musketeers men's basketball team opens the 2023-24 season against Robert Morris at Cintas Center.

Across the school's other sports, the Xavier women's basketball team visits Youngstown State University to open the year on Nov. 8.

Here's a look around Xavier athletics before basketball season tips off.

More: What we learned from Xavier Musketeers at Big East media day in New York

More: Xavier head coach Sean Miller receives 2-year contract extension through 2028-29 season

Rice transfer Quincy Olivari feels right at home with warm welcome

Xavier graduate student Quincy Olivari played high school basketball in Georgia, then spent four seasons in Texas as a standout guard for Rice University. Olivari, one of the many new faces to the Musketeers this season, is already impressed with Xavier before an official game. Olivari had the best walk-out entrance at Musketeer Tip-Off earlier this month and felt the Musketeer faithful were just as excited.

“Amazing environment. I kept telling myself, ‘This isn’t even like a real game,'" Olivari told The Enquirer during Big East Media Day at Madison Square Garden. "There were a lot of students there, so not as many season-ticket holders, but the atmosphere was electric and kind of got me excited.”

Xavier fans should be excited about Olivari, the all-time three-point leader at Rice who will be in Sean Miller's starting lineup on opening night.

Xavier's need for speed

Speaking of guards, a common theme for transfers like Olivari and Dayvion McKnight (Western Kentucky), along with freshman Trey Green, was that Miller's use of guards was one of the main reasons they came to Xavier.

Go to any Xavier practice and it's easy to see why. Miller has been preaching a fast-paced style of play, highlighted by guards controlling the tempo of the game while staying on the attack. McKnight, a 1,000-point scorer at Western Kentucky, will be a key beneficiary of this style of play with his ball-handling and ability to push the pace. Olivari benefits, too, being available for kickouts to the wing for transition triples.

Green, the most impressive freshman in the offseason, should be one of the first off the bench for Miller. Freshman combo guard Dailyn Swain is expanding his role because of his elite versatility and freshman Reid Ducharme and sophomore Kam Craft should compete for minutes.

More: Here's where Xavier Musketeers were picked to finish in Big East

Will Jerome Hunter, Zach Freemantle be back for Xavier?

Xavier was dealt a heavy blow in the offseason when two of its expected stars went down for the year. Jerome Hunter, a key cog to last season's Sweet 16 run, had an undisclosed medical condition while forward Zach Freemantle needed a second foot surgery. Both are expected to miss the entire season.

Could both be back for the 2024-25 campaign? It's possible through a medical redshirt. Both injuries are season-ending and occurred well before the mandated halfway point of the regular season required for a medical redshirt. To qualify, a player can't participate in more than 30% of a team's games. Hunter could potentially be back cleared to play sometime this winter, but it's unclear if he'd try to get back for a potential postseason push and how impactful he'd be having not practiced with the team since earlier this summer.

Both Freemantle and Hunter have been attending Xavier practices this month.

Xavier women's soccer back on top in Big East

No. 17 Xavier women's soccer will be the No. 1 seed in the Big East Tournament this week after claiming the league's regular-season title on Oct. 26 with a 3-0 win over Marquette. Xavier got goals from Samantha Wiehe, Kennedy Clark and Shelby Sallee while the defense notched its sixth consecutive shutout and 12th of the season. Xavier has not allowed a goal since a 1-1 tie against Seton Hall Oct. 1.

It's the third Big East regular-season championship for Xavier women's soccer, all in the last five seasons (2019, 2021). Nate Lie's group will aim for another Big East tournament championship and an NCAA Tournament bid, starting with No. 4 Providence on Thursday in the semifinals.

Secret scrimmages

The NCAA allows teams to schedule secret scrimmages in the offseason. Xavier has wrapped up two of its secret scrimmages and have just five permitted practices remaining until the season-opener. Per reports, Xavier lost to Notre Dame, 91-84, in a high-scoring affair at Cintas Center on Oct. 22. Xavier then beat Kent State in a secret scrimmage at home this past Saturday.

The next time Xavier lines up against a different uniform will be Monday against Robert Morris. The Colonials have been coached by Andrew Toole for the last 13 seasons and are coming off a 16-17 season last year. Xavier has not dropped its season-opener since a 97-90 loss to Southern Utah at Cincinnati Gardens on Dec. 2, 1989. Xavier went on to make the program's first-ever Sweet 16 later that season under Pete Gillen.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Xavier notebook: Guards thrive under Sean Miller, secret scrimmages