Despite the fact that Saint Louis has already locked up a berth in the NCAA Tournament, the Billikens arrived in Atlantic City with the intention to win the Atlantic 10 Tournament and improve their seeding. However, the Billikens have seen how good Xavier can be when it is clicking, as Saint Louis trails 29-23 at the half of this semifinal matchup.
Although he struggled with his shot, hitting just 2/8 from the field, Kwamain Mitchell made a big impact in the opening 20 minutes. Mitchell netted a team-high eight points and also dished out two assists and grabbed two rebounds. Saint Louis shot only 7/24 from the field in the opening half and was out-rebounded by seven.
The trio of Tu Holloway, Kenny Frease and Mark Lyons led the Musketeers. The three combined to score 18 of Xavier's 29 points, despite shooting a combined 6/16 from the field. Xavier did an excellent job of working into an offensive rhythm, as it assisted on seven of the 11 made field goals in the opening half.
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