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CINCINNATI -- The Xavier men's basketball team finished the first half on a 26-8 run, and never looked back in a 79-56 victory over Morehead State before a crowd of 9,528 on Friday evening at the Cintas Center.
The Musketeers improve to 3-0 on the campaign, while the Eagles slip to 2-1 overall. XU also improves to 6-3 in the all-time series against MSU, which was rekindled for the first time since the 2003-04 season.
"Give Xavier a lot of credit," Head Coach Sean Woods said. "They are a really good basketball club, especially on their home floor. They played like a Big East Conference opponent tonight and certainly earned this win."
Sophomore Semaj Christon paced Xavier with a game-high 20 points on 10-of-13 from the field, while junior Matt Stainbrook pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds and junior Dee Davis handed out a game-best nine assists.
Freshman Jalen Reynolds added 11 points for the Musketeers, while senior Isaiah Philmore chipped in with 10. XU knocked down 53 percent (28-of-53) from the field, including 60 percent (15-of-25) after intermission.
Senior Chad Posthumus posted with 12 points and 12 rebounds, which marked his third double-double at Morehead State. Junior Luka Pajkovic, who tallied 11 second-half points, was the only other Eagle in double figures.
Xavier registered advantages of 50-16 in paint points, 22-2 on the fast break and 22-10 off turnovers. The Musketeers limited MSU to 29 percent (14-of-48) from the floor, including just 19 percent (5-of-27) prior to halftime.
"The bottom line is we didn't score enough points to win in a tough road environment," Woods said. "Our offense really struggled in the first half and we never got in a rhythm, but Xavier's defense had a lot to do with that."
The teams were whistled for a combined 56 fouls, with 28 coming in each half. Xavier connected on 70 percent (21-of-30) from the charity stripe, while Morehead State made 63 percent (24-of-38) of its free-throw attempts.
Morehead State held a 15-12 advantage less than 10 minutes into the contest, but Xavier responded with a 21-6 run to grab the momentum. The Musketeers led by as many as 15 in the first stanza and 25 in the final half.
MSU closes out a three-game week on Sunday when it hosts Conference USA opponent Marshall at 2 p.m. ET. The Eagles return to the Cincinnati area on Tuesday for a tilt at Atlantic Sun Conference foe Northern Kentucky.
"We will go back to the drawing board and continue to get better," Woods added. "We have to put this game behind us because we have another big test in a very good Marshall team on Sunday afternoon. There's no question we have a very challenging pre-conference schedule, and I'm certain playing opponents like Xavier will help us in the long run."
