Xavier is out to make waves

Musketeers believe their depth will keep them afloat

B.J. Raymond, testing conditions at TD Banknorth Garden, leads Xavier in scoring, but he has plenty of talent behind him. (Jim Davis/Globe Staff)

In a region top-heavy with favorites, Cinderella's shoes would appear to be an uncomfortable fit.

No. 1 Pittsburgh is projected by many to be in the winner's circle. No. 2 seed Duke has long passed the time when it goes into a postseason as the underdog. No. 3 seed Villanova is the "sleeper," talented - the Wildcats beat Pittsburgh during the regular season - and hungry.

So that leaves Xavier, the Atlantic 10 regular-season champion, ready to wear whatever shoes fit.

A year ago, the Musketeers made it to the Elite Eight before UCLA rolled over them. Tonight in an NCAA East Regional semifinal game at TD Banknorth Garden, coach Sean Miller's team will take on Pittsburgh. Talent-wise, the edge goes to the Panthers.

Depth-wise?

Let the Musketeers tell their story.

"That's part of our success this year," said junior forward Derrick Brown. "It's not just sticking with five or six players. We're a very deep team. That's why on any given night different players step up. It's not always one player averaging 25 points or anything like that because this is a team. We've got young players and different players in different roles and I think that's why our program continues to be successful, because the experienced people get used in all different situations."

Xavier comes into the game with a 27-7 record and solid wins over Portland State and Wisconsin in first- and second-round games last weekend in Boise, Idaho.

Brown has been a key factor, averaging 13.7 points and 6.0 rebounds a game. The core group includes senior forward C.J. Anderson (10.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg), junior center Jason Love (6.9 ppg), and guard B.J. Raymond, who leads the team with a 14.1-point average.

Miller, who is coaching against his alma mater, says the overall depth wears people down. "It is a big factor for us," he said. "We have nine players. We try to have different players step up on different nights. We really are a team in every sense of the word and have a lot of different players who can beat you."

In facing Pitt, Xavier will need all of its depth and most of its skill. "It's definitely going to be a challenge," Brown said during yesterday's interview session. "They're the best offensive rebounding team in the country, actually. And defensive rebounding, we do well, really well. So it's going to be a battle of who can do that better. But it's never going to be easy in this game and at this magnitude.

"But we're up for the challenge."

Xavier has been up for the challenge the last few seasons. The Musketeers made the Elite Eight in 2004 and last season, one of nine schools that have earned multiple Elite Eight spots in the past five seasons. Only North Carolina, UCLA, Kansas, and Memphis (three each) have done better.

Xavier may not be one of the elite teams or one of the favorites in a tournament now loaded with 1, 2, and 3 seeds. But the Musketeers have embraced the team concept as well as anyone.

"The thing that we do at Xavier, it's tradition," said Raymond. "We help each other get better. So the younger guys push the older guys to get better and the older guys help the younger guys get better.

"We don't count on just one or two guys to get the job done. We count on a number of guys. We beat you with numbers. And that's one thing, we never lowered our goals. We never lowered the bar. The bar was to get back to where we were last year. We just want to play our best. We worked for that, for this moment. And this is good to see that the hard work is paying off."