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| XU men's basketball vs. Faulkner photos by Yamlak Tsega |
NEW ORLEANS -- Guards Anthony Goode and Morris Wright snapped out of shooting slumps Monday and combined for 35 points, leading NAIA No. 22 Xavier University of Louisiana to a 72-63 men's basketball victory against Faulkner.
The Gold Rush (10-4) defeated the Eagles (8-5) for the first time in 25 years. Faulkner, which leads the series 5-3, had won five straight and had beaten Xavier each of the past two seasons.
Goode scored 20 points and Wright 15. They combined to make 9-of-14 from the floor, 7-of-11 3-pointers and 10-of-11 free throws. Goode made a season-high four 3-pointers in five attempts.
Cortez Riley scored 16 points, Di'mar Hill 13 and Nick Drake 10 for Faulkner.
Xavier trailed 14-8 through eight minutes before rallying to take a 29-28 halftime lead. Faulkner took a 37-34 lead in the first three minutes of the second half before Gary Smith's basket at 16:06 put the Gold Rush ahead to stay, 39-37.
Goode made back-to-back 3's to give Xavier a 58-50 lead with 4:55 remaining. Wright's two free throws at 3:29 gave Xavier its largest lead, 60-50.
Goode and Wright, Xavier's top two scorers for the season, had combined to average 16.9 points and shoot 26.3 percent from the floor in the previous five games, three of which were XU defeats. Goode reached 20 points for the first time since Oct. 31, and Wright scored in double figures for the first time in four games.
Xavier outshot the Eagles 50 to 43.4 percent from the floor and outrebounded them 37-16. The rebound margin is Xavier's best this season. Wesley Pluviose-Philip of the Rush grabbed a game-high seven rebounds, and Jarvis Thibodeaux and Sydney Coleman had six apiece.
Xavier shot 85.7 percent from the line -- 24-of-28 -- after making 55.6 percent the previous three games. Wright made 6-of-6 free throws, and Smith and Coleman both were 4-of-4.
The Gold Rush had not beaten Faulkner since a two-game sweep in the 1989-90 season.
Xavier will visit NAIA No. 5 William Carey at 7 p.m. Thursday in the first of three consecutive Gold Rush games against top-10 opponents. The next home game will start at 7 p.m. Dec. 30 against Concordia (Calif.), which is ranked ninth.
Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
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