Xavier vs. Ole Miss: Score and Twitter Reaction from March Madness 2015

In stark contrast to the madness that enveloped much of Thursday's NCAA tournament action, No. 6 Xavier was the epitome of controlled, methodical basketball in its 76-57 win over No. 11 Ole Miss.

The Musketeers combined deft frontcourt scoring with a barrage of three-pointers in this one, with many of them coming on kickout passes from the low post.

Ten Xavier players scored in this game, paced by center Matt Stainbrook who racked up 20 points, nine boards and five assists. Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal complimented Stainbrook's sometimes-overlooked game:  

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Senior guard Dee Davis came up big as well, knocking down three of seven shots from long range in the first half and finishing with 17 points. 

As a team, the Musketeers shot 43.5 percent from three-point range, far beyond Ole Miss' 22.2 percent (6-of-27) mark from downtown. 

Junior shooting guard Stefan Moody led the off-kilter Rebels with 14 points, but it took him 18 shots to get there. Senior forward M.J. Rhett, who missed the majority of the first half with foul trouble, chipped in 12 points for Ole Miss.

ESPN Stats & Info noted the Ole Miss offense was nothing like it was in the fantastic play-in-game win over BYU on Tuesday:

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

Xavier forward Trevon Bluiett, who finished with four points and four boards, was appropriately confident in his team's ability before the game.

"We think that if we're on top of our game, we can compete with anybody," he said, via The Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com). "It's definitely going to be a big win for us, hopefully, if we come out on top."

The Musketeers, last seen well off their game in a crushing loss to Villanova in the 2015 Big East tournament championship game, certainly got off to a fine start against Ole Miss.

Stainbrook was a force down low to start the game. He did well to draw in defenders and create open looks for the likes of Dee Davis outside, who drained two early three-pointers.

Shannon Russell of The Cincinnati Enquirer noted Stainbrook's early impact, while SB Nation's Matt Ufford pointed out he hardly passes the eyeball test:

Xavier wasn't shooting especially well as a team to start, but that was nothing compared to Ole Miss' struggles.

The Rebels started the game just 2-of-11 from the floor.

The Sporting News' Ryan Fagan felt Ole Miss may have been at a disadvantage:

Rhett, who scored 20 points against the Cougars on Tuesday, picked up two fouls in just over two minutes of play at the start of the game and would end up sitting for the majority of the first half.

Stefan Moody, LaDarius White and Martavious Newby would attempt to pick up the Rebels offense in Rhett's absence, but the trio combined to shoot just 30 percent from the floor (6-of-20) in the first half. 

Moody's poor performance was especially disappointing, as he had put up 26 points against BYU.

Xavier denied the Rebels clean looks from inside, while the likes of Stainbrook, Bluiett and James Farr controlled the paint and drew plenty of fouls. The Musketeers went into the locker room with a comfortable 36-24 lead.

Rivals.com's Neal McCready took stock of what Ole Miss was missing:

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White paced the Rebels with eight points in the first half.

As for Xavier, Davis would finish with 11 points after the first 20 minutes, including 3-of-7 shooting from downtown, while Stainbrook had 12 by the break.

The Musketeers got right back to work after halftime. NCAA March Madness provided a look at a big three from Davis early on in the second act:

Ole Miss would be glad to have Rhett back on the floor after the break, and the senior forward immediately made his presence known by scoring six of the Rebels' first eight points of the half.

Still, Xavier had a 45-32 lead by the TV timeout at the 15:31 mark.

As Xavier tightened its grip on the game, the lack of scoring from Jarvis Summers would become a major development of note for observers. WREG's Mike Ceide noted he was scoreless deep into the contest:

Summers was at least passing the ball well, affording Moody and Rhett time to operate on offense and try to keep their team in it.

Rhett's impact in the second half was ultimately futile, but it didn't stop the likes of this Ole Miss fan from wondering what might have been had he not gotten into foul trouble:

Even when the Rebels were down 15 with just over four minutes remaining in the game, that didn't stop Newby from attempting to set up Rhett for an ill-advised alley-oop. The bizarre play ended in a tepid layup rather than a dunk, which led to this reaction from Hugh Kellenberger of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger: 

Unlike their magical performance against BYU, there would be no riveting comeback from the Rebels here. Xavier controlled the game right up until the clock hit all zeroes, and the Musketeers walked away with a well-deserved 19-point victory.

The strong, controlled performance should boost coach Chris Mack's confidence in his squad heading into its round-of-32 matchup against No. 14 Georgia State, which defeated No. 3 Baylor 57-56 in dramatic fashion on Thursday.

The Musketeers will have their hands full limiting Panthers star R.J. Hunter, who scored 12 of his team's final 13 points against Baylor, including the game-winning three-pointer. However, Xavier has a distinct size advantage over the Panthers and will likely look to pound the ball inside to Stainbrook, Bluiett and Farr.

If backup forward Jalen Reynolds can improve upon his 2-of-12 shooting performance from Thursday, Xavier should have a fine chance of stopping the Panthers in their tracks.