Desmond Claude scored 25 points as Xavier won its 34th straight season opener with a 77-63 victory over visiting Robert Morris Monday night in Cincinnati.
It was a winning start for a new-look Xavier roster that has undergone massive change from last season, when they finished 27-10 and reached the Sweet 16. The Musketeers (1-0) have 10 new players on their roster, and several made significant contributions Monday.
Quincy Olivari, a graduate transfer from Rice, had 13 points. Lithuanian transfer big man Gytis Nemeiksa chipped in with 10 points and 12 rebounds while Abou Ousmane added 11 points and Dayvion McKnight had 10 for Xavier.
Nemeiksa, a 6-foot-8 forward, started his first game of American college basketball by knocking down all three of his first-half field goal attempts from under the basket while hauling down nine rebounds. The senior was part of a sharpshooting first half for Xavier, which made 16 of 26 shots from the floor to get out to a 39-33 lead.
The Colonials (0-1) managed to stay within single digits of the Musketeers for most of the game but could never draw closer than six in the second half.
Leading 57-50 with 13:12 left in the second half, Xavier scored the next eight points to take command for good. The Musketeers dominated the paint, outscoring RMU 50-28.
Robert Morris, which has lost all five meetings with Xavier in school history, was led by Justice Williams with 21 points. Markeese Hastings contributed with a double-double, scoring 14 and hauling in 11 rebounds. Stephaun Walker added 11 points and eight boards.
Xavier held Robert Morris to 33.9 percent shooting from the field while the Musketeers shot 57.1 percent thanks to their work under the basket.
Xavier used an 11-0 run as part of a 17-3 spurt to take control of the game in the first half.
Robert Morris went through three scoring droughts of more than three minutes.
–Field Level Media