The 11th-ranked Xavier Musketeers nearly were shocked Thursday afternoon, but barely held on to beat a Missouri squad predicted to finish last in the SEC during the quarterfinals of the Tire Pros Invitational. And it took overtime to get there.
There were 15 ties before the Muskateers prevailed 83-82. Xavier was shorthanded, though, notably missing point guard Myles Davis, who is suspended indefinitely.
Xavier survived OT minus crucial big man RaShid Gaston, who fouled out ith 12.4 left in regulation. Missouri rallied, too. It trailed by five in OT yet came back to take an 80-78 lead. The Tigers could have won it, but Terrence Phillips' 3-point attempt with 4.2 seconds remaining was blocked by Malcolm Bernard. An immediate timeout was called amid live-ball action by Xavier's J.P. Macura.
With 1.7 seconds left on an out-of-bounds play from halfcourt, Xavier caught a huge break when Macura's quick pass to Edmond Sumner -- which would have made for a very tough, quick shot -- was bailed out by a foul on Phillips. The Mizzou vet was baited into going for the steal, but couldn't make the play.
Another angle:
Sumner missed the first free throw, upping the anxiety, but got the roll to make the second. It was Sumner's first made foul shot in six attempts.
Phillips had 21 points. Xavier, which has thrived on balance in the past two seasons, had five players score at least 12 points. Sumner and Macura each had 19.
Now the Musketeers get another challenge in less than 24 hours, when they'll play a good Clemson team in the semifinals.