Win Streak Ends on Road vs Charlotte

Charlotte, N.C. -

The Xavier Musketeers suffered their first conference loss in the Atlantic 10 this season, falling at Charlotte by a score of 63-57, to end a four game league winning streak.

The result pushes both Charlotte and Xavier to 4-1 in the Atlantic 10, resting behind VCU, the only undefeated team. On the season, the Musketeers fall to 11-7 overall.

Both freshman point guard Semaj Christon and senior power forward Travis Taylor scored 18 points for Xavier, but the rest of the team was ice cold from the field, shooting just 37% on the night. Taylor added 11 rebounds for Xavier, and Christon recorded five steals, but both players fouled out down the stretch, ending any chance for Xavier to score enough points to mount a late comeback on the road. The double-double performance of Taylor was his sixth on the season, which leads the Musketeers.

In addition to the double-figure scoring of Christon and Taylor, the Musketeers got seven points and six rebounds from Justin Martin, as the sophomore forward finished third in scoring and second on the glass. After a four game streak of averaging over 16 points per game, senior shooting guard Brad Redford was held to just five points on the night, as the pure shooter was bothered by Charlotte's face-guard defense which didn't allow him to get quality shots off.

Despite out-rebounding Charlotte by 16, Xavier couldn't move the ball efficiently enough to get a winning margin, finishing with 17 turnovers and only five assists. Equally damaging to the Musketeers was the foul count, which resulted in four Xavier players being disqualified late. In comparison, Xavier only attempted nine free throws in the entire contest.

The Charlotte 49'ers enjoyed a balanced scoring attack led by four-players in double-figures, including forward Willie Clayton who paced his team with 14 points. DeMario Mayfield was next for Charlotte with 13 points, while Chris Braswell and Denzel Ingram each chipped in 12 for the Niners, who shot 50% from the field in the win.

The Musketeers will continue their road trip in Philadelphia on Saturday when they take on St. Joe's at 6 PM ET.