Overview
- Santa Clara never trailed on the road and led 39-20 at halftime, improving to 3-0 while Xavier fell to 2-1.
- The Broncos outscored Xavier 52-22 in the paint and won the boards 42-33, generating 16 second-chance points.
- Xavier shot 33.9% from the field and 5-for-18 from three, and leading scorer Malik Messina-Moore did not attempt a shot in 21 minutes.
- Turnovers proved costly as Xavier committed 13, with Santa Clara converting nine first-half giveaways into 12 points.
- Roddie Anderson scored 29 (25 after halftime) and Tre Carroll 21 for Xavier, while Elijah Mahi had 18, Christian Hammond 15, and reserve Allen Graves posted a 10-point, 11-rebound double-double for Santa Clara.