Field Level Media
Nov 26, 2020
Freshman point guard Dwon Odom converted a runner in the lane with 4.8 seconds left Thursday, lifting Xavier to a 51-50 win over Bradley on the second day of the Xavier Invitational in Cincinnati.
Odom made up for an error after he rushed a shot on the Musketeers' previous possession when they had a one-point lead with 30 seconds remaining. He drove from the right wing and arched a shot off the glass that stayed on the rim before dropping through.
The Braves (1-1) had a chance to win the game with 0.4 seconds left, but Terry Nolan front-rimmed the front end of a one-and-one after being fouled on a drive to the basket. Nolan canned a scoop shot with under a second left Wednesday in Bradley's 61-59 win over Toledo.
Nolan gave the Braves a 50-49 edge with 12.5 seconds remaining after draining a corner 3-pointer over Paul Scruggs, but Odom's redemption enabled Xavier to improve to 2-0.
Zach Freemantle scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds for the Musketeers, while Scruggs added 17 points.
Elijah Childs led Bradley with 17 points and Ville Tahvanainen came off the bench to score 11.
Xavier got off to a fast start, all because of Freemantle. He scored nine points during a 10-2 run in the game's opening 2:50, capping it with a jumper that forced Bradley coach Brian Wardle to call a timeout.
From that point, the Braves imposed a slow tempo and got good mileage out of a 2-3 zone that kept the Musketeers from running. They also made good use of their top player, Childs, who hit consecutive baskets that helped Bradley settle into the game.
Xavier managed only two points in a span of 10:21 before Freemantle stuck a 3-pointer to put it back on top 15-14. The teams exchanged the lead for the last 6 1/2 minutes of the half before Scruggs' bucket and free throw 27 seconds apart gave the Musketeers a 22-20 edge at intermission.
--Field Level Media