Jovan Milicevic scored a game-high 17 points on Friday night and Xavier closed its preseason with a 76-70 win over Kent State at Cintas Center in Cincinnati, giving the Musketeers a final tune-up victory before the regular season begins.
Milicevic, Xavier’s top returner and a team captain, led a balanced Musketeers effort in the preseason finale. Xavier used its depth throughout the night, testing rotations and combinations in the last exhibition before games start to count in the standings.
The win follows an earlier exhibition showcase in which Xavier’s new and returning faces combined to beat Dayton in the CareSource Invitational in Mason. In that game, center Mike Nwoko posted a 19-point, 11-rebound double-double and Milicevic added 13 points, an early sign of the inside-outside pairing the Musketeers hope to lean on this season.
Kent State, a Mid-American Conference program making the trip south to Cincinnati, kept Friday’s game close into the closing minutes. The Golden Flashes refused to let Xavier pull away, forcing the Musketeers to execute late to protect the six-point final margin.
For head coach Richard Pitino’s squad, the preseason has been about depth. Pitino said before the fall that this Xavier team might have the most depth he has coached, and the exhibitions gave 11 different Musketeers meaningful minutes as the staff sorted out its rotation.
Friday’s finale also gave Xavier a look at players returning from absence and new arrivals in a home setting at Cintas Center, where the Musketeers will open the regular season in front of their own crowd.
Xavier now turns from exhibitions to the real schedule, carrying a 76-70 win and a clearer picture of its lineup into opening night. Kent State returns to MAC preparations with a competitive showing against a Big East opponent on the road.
Photo: Schaafcw, CC BY-SA