‘A lot to learn.’ Takeaways from Xavier Musketeers exhibition loss vs. Murray State

Any college basketball team with no returning minutes and 11 new players will not be at top form in mid-October.

That was evident on Oct. 18 when Xavier, led by first-year head coach Richard Pitino, lost to Murray State in an exhibition contest at Cintas Center, 75-70.

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Xavier faced a seven-point halftime deficit and trailed by as many as 13 in the second half before fighting back to tie it late. Murray State made nine free throws in the final 1:16 to seal it.

“The game doesn’t count. I had to remind the guys. The season starts Nov. 3. There’s a lot to learn from it and what we need to work on,” Pitino said. “I just told the guys in the locker room, besides this new world of being clowned on the internet when you lose, the game doesn’t count.”

Here’s what we learned in Xavier’s tune-up for the regular-season opener.

Xavier’s comeback comes up short against Murray State

Led by guards Tre Carroll and Malik Messina-Moore, Xavier’s offense found a rhythm in the second half while in comeback mode. Xavier trimmed the double-digit deficit behind Carroll, a Florida Atlantic transfer who led the Musketeers with 21 points. Messina-Moore, a Montana transfer, hit Xavier’s first 3-pointer with 18:08 remaining.

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Carroll scored 15 points in the second half and tied it 64-64 with 1:14 remaining. Both teams traded foul shots over the final minute but Xavier never got to attempt a game-tying field goal after back-to-back turnovers with less than five seconds remaining.

“Both teams were in the bonus by the 7-minute mark in the first half. So, obviously the fouls were being called,” Carroll said. “Coach’s emphasis was just to get downhill more so that’s what we did as a group.”

Four of Xavier’s starters finished in double figures as Roddie Anderson III, Messina-Moore and Filip Borovicanin each tallied 12 points but were a combined 11-of-37 from the field.

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Xavier’s offense struggles early against Murray State

Xavier didn’t appear to have a go-to scorer at its disposal over a stagnant first half.

The Musketeers shot just 9-of-32 from the field (28.1%) in the first half and did not register a point outside of the paint (16) or at the free-throw line (8-of-12) in the opening 20 minutes.

Xavier was 0-for-6 from 3-point range and committed seven turnovers as Murray State entered the locker room with a 33-26 lead.

Xavier ended just 2-of-15 from 3-point range but helping the rally was Murray State’s foul trouble as the Musketeers went 24-of-31 at the stripe.

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“It’s a new group and this was an exhibition game. So we’re still getting to know each other,” Messina-Moore said. “As time goes, we’re gonna get more comradery and be a lot better.”

Richard Pitino’s rotation revealed in exhibition contest against Murray State

Pitino had eight different Musketeers log at least eight minutes in the first half for a few different reasons.

Sure, the Musketeers needed some type of spark to get out of an offensive funk but also didn’t help their own cause due to foul trouble. Murray State was in the bonus in less than eight minutes to start the game.

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Overall, Pitino had an eight-man rotation with three players getting double-digit minutes off the bench. Guard All Wright, center Pape N’Diaye and Jovan Milicevic combined for eight points on 3-of-11 shooting.

Xavier’s defense stumbles after strong start

Both teams started cold offensively, but Murray State was the first to heat up.

In an early slog, Xavier had its largest lead at 19-12. Over the final 8:36 in the first half, Murray State ended the half on a 21-7 run to turn a seven-point deficit into a seven-point advantage at the intermission.

Murray State was just 7-of-30 from deep during the game, but its top shooter, Brayden Shorter, made the Musketeers pay by knocking down five triples.

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Xavier’s defense turned 13 Murray State turnovers into 17 points.

“We gotta get more deflections, we’ve gotta get more steals,” Pitino said. “We only had two blocked shots. We gotta be better there.”

First-year head coach Ryan Miller, a former top assistant at Creighton, brought Greg McDermott’s “Let it Fly” motto with him to Murray State. The Racers weren’t shy from beyond the arc, but it was former Bluejays big man Fred King who had the biggest impact near the rim.

King came off the bench and turned in a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Guard KJ Tenner was vital for the Racers down the stretch, going 8-for-8 at the free-throw line, with six in the final minute.

Xavier’s Anthony Robinson makes presence felt before early exit

Xavier grabbed momentum early in the first half behind center Anthony Robinson. The 6-foot-10 Virginia transfer got the start at center and was active on both ends of the floor, especially on the glass, helping Xavier rack up nine second-chance points.

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Robinson lived above the rim with a few thunderous dunks, but couldn’t maintain his strong start due to foul trouble. Robinson played just seven scoreless second-half minutes before fouling out with 3:11 left.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What we learned from Xavier’s exhibition loss vs. Murray State