CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — For all the technical, highbrow methods of dissecting basketball, it really is a pleasantly simple game.
Take Xavier's visit to the University of Northern Iowa Friday for instance.
Xavier was nearly run out of UNI's McLeod Center because it turned the ball over 13 times in the first half.
Then, Xavier beat the unranked Panthers, 77-67, in large part because it committed just two turnovers over the final 20 minutes.
Simple, right?
"Northern Iowa's probably the first team that we've played all year that really clogs the lane, forces you to shoot contested jump shots and we didn't have the offensive patience that we needed, and we had it in the second half," Xavier head coach Chris Mack said afterward. "I think we adjusted really well and we needed to. Otherwise, we wouldn't have won."
The No. 9-ranked Musketeers (12-1) trailed the Panthers (8-5) by as many as 10 points midway through the first half. Xavier kicked and fumbled the ball all over the court, resulting in 15 points off turnovers in the opening period.
The teams went to break tied at 29 despite a 17-4 run to close the half by Xavier.
Over the final 20 minutes, the Musketeers were patient, methodical and had their inside-out game running efficiently. They scored 24 points in the paint and 36 from 3-point range (12 of 23 shooting from deep).
Senior guard J.P. Macura (team-high 15 points), junior forward Kaiser Gates (11 points, nine rebounds) and senior guard Trevon Bluiett each hit three triples while Kerem Kanter (10 points, seven rebounds) went 2 of 2 from deep off the bench.
UNI big man Bennett Koch wouldn't let the hosts quit. He was 8 of 12 from the field and 10 of 12 from the foul line for a game-high 26 points.
Through Bennett, UNI kept a slim foothold in the game and kept Xavier from blowing the contest open.
Bluiett, who finished the game with 12 points, fouled out with 2:25 to play and UNI creeping back in at 60-56.
Bennett fouled out shortly after that, though, which seemed to level the playing field a bit.
In one final, emphatic showing of basketball's simplicity, the Musketeers hit their free-throws to clinch the win.
Xavier went 10 of 10 from the foul line over the final 1:47. That included six consecutive makes by sophomore Quentin Goodin (eight points in the game).
"It's how you end close games," Mack said. "You miss a few of those, with the way Northern Iowa shoots it, you could find yourself in an overtime game real quick... Really happy that Quentin could go to the line, guys like Kaiser – even Tyrique (Jones) – and really, essentially, end the game."
ANALYSIS: Yeah, Xavier's ready for the Big East
Xavier wanted another road test to close out its nearly-flawless non-conference season. What a test they got. While battling nagging injuries and missing Bluiett, their cold-blooded killer, for the crucial final stretch of the game due to fouling out, Xavier managed to grit out a road win against a solid UNI side.
That's the icing on the cake for the Musketeers' "non-con" resume. From the roadie at Wisconsin to home games against Baylor, Cincinnati and Colorado – heck, even the loss to Arizona State, now the No. 3 team in America – Xavier challenged itself greatly in the non-conference season. They were richly rewarded for having done so.
"Going 12-1 in the non-conference is a big confidence booster," Goodin told The Enquirer in the bowels of the McLeod Center Friday night. "Especially going into the Big East, which is not easy at all. If we take what we learned from the non-conference and apply it to the Big East, we're gonna be alright."
More: Non-con notebook: Results indicate Xavier ready for Big East play
I was once told that Xavier was wont to lay an egg prior to the Christmas break, and that its a quiet concern of those around the program during the holidays. In recent years, egg laying occurred in 2014-15 and perhaps most notably in 2012-13.
2017-18? Not a single egg to be found. Friday booked a six-day stretch that featured three games won by a combined 16 points and questionable play in each contest. But all the sloppy play can very reasonably be explained away, and that doesn't mean Xavier's getting a pass from me or anyone else.
Mack said he didn't handle finals week practices the way he should have prior to the East Tennessee State win that required the biggest comeback in the history of Cintas Center.
Tuesday win over Marshall wasn't as close as the final four-point margin and was as close as it was because of rampant injuries.
And Friday was a road game in a loud bandbox of a game in freezing cold Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
In the end, all wins. And by the way, the win in the Hawkeye State should garner mention come Selection Committee time when all is said and done.
Xavier left nothing on the table in the opening 13 games. It was an excellent appetizer for the Big East, the main course – arguably the Jeff Ruby's of college basketball league play.
The Muskies kick off league play Wednesday at Marquette. Dig in, Xavier fans.