Xavier

Marcus Denmon (G, Missouri - 18, 5, 3)

Tu Holloway (G, Xavier - 16, 3, 6)

Darius Johnson-Odom (G, Marquette, 18, 3, 3)

Kevin Jones (F, WVU - 21, 12, 1)

Mike Scott (F, Virginia - 17, 9, 2)

Jordan Taylor (G, Wisconsin - 14, 4, 4)

Tyshawn Taylor (G, Kansas - 17, 2, 5)

Other (Clark, Gibbs, Green, Hummel, Joseph, Machado, McKines, Pope, Shurna)

Consistency has been an issue for the Oklahoma State Cowboys this season, and it's been an issue for highly-touted freshman Le'Bryan Nash as well. After scoring 21 points in the Cowboys' 71-68 loss to Iowa State (which ended at the buzzer on a Scott Christopherson three) Nash scored just four points in a 66-58 home loss to Kansas State. But the Dallas native brought his "A-game" to Gallagher-Iba Arena on Wednesday night, making 12 of 18 shots from the field to score 27 points while also grabbing four rebounds in Oklahoma State's 79-72 win over #2 Missouri.

Neither team is currently in first place in the Atlantic 10 but if anything that magnifies the importance of Saint Louis (15-4, 3-2) heading east to take on Xavier (13-6, 4-2) at the Cintas Center. Both teams are a game out of first place in the loss column, and a closer look at the Billikens' computer numbers shows that they could use a win like this to bolster the resume.

On the heels of their first loss of the season, #3 Baylor (17-1, 4-1) returns home to take on #5 Missouri (17-1, 4-1) in a game that features a major contrast when it comes to team strengths. Scott Drew's Bears are one of the biggest teams in college basketball while Frank Haith's Tigers are neither as big or as deep in the frontcourt. That simply means that in addition to forwards Ricardo Ratliffe (13.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg) and Steve Moore (4.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg) all hands must be on deck of Missouri is to have any shot of leaving Waco with a victory.

XAVIER (13-5, 4-1 A-10) AT DAYTON (13-5, 3-1 A-10)

 

Time/TV: 1 p.m./ESPN2

 

Following Shabazz Napier's game-tying three-pointer most coaches would choose to call a timeout to draw up a play, risking the chance of the defense aligning and taking away the primary scoring option. But with the man he wanted to take the final shot already in possession of the basketball, Cincinnati head coach Mick Cronin decided against calling a timeout and as a result his Bearcats are now 5-1 in the Big East.

It looks as if the schedule-makers in the Mountain West wanted to spark some serious national conversation about the conference from the beginning of league play because the first full week of play will feature all three expected contenders facing each other. Wednesday's slate features #16 San Diego State (15-2, 1-0), fresh off of their two-point win over UNLV, visiting The Pit to take on a New Mexico (15-2, 1-0) squad that's quietly won thirteen in a row.

There weren't many opportunities to watch ranked teams play each other (there was just one, which is discussed below), but Saturday's slate provided many teams the chance to improve their resumes. Florida State and Northwestern took full advantage of their opportunities as they both knocked off Top 10 opponents at home, albeit in different ways.

It was thought that Pittsburgh's loss at DePaul last week was the epitome of "rock bottom" for Jamie Dixon's program, which is still without injured point guard Tray Woodall. But in hindsight that high-scoring defeat at the hands of the Blue Demons was nothing compared to what happened at the Petersen Events Center on Wednesday night. Pitt scored the fewest points in their history as a Big East member, falling 62-39 at Rutgers in front of a stunned crowd.

While there aren't any matchups of ranked teams on Wednesday's schedule there are some important contests to keep an eye on, one of which being Northwestern (11-4, 1-2) visiting Ann Arbor to take on a #13 Michigan (13-3, 3-1) squad that's got the look of a Big Ten contender. If you like the three-point shot this is the game for you, as the Wildcats and Wolverines are the top two teams in the Big Ten when it comes to the percentage of points scored via the bonus shot (Northwestern 38.1%, Michigan 36.1%).