# 2022–23 Xavier Musketeers men's basketball team

The 2022–23 Xavier Musketeers men's basketball team represented Xavier University during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as a member of the Big East Conference. Led by Sean Miller in the first season of his second stint after coaching the Musketeers from 2004 to 2009, they played their home games at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Musketeers finished the season 23–8, 15–5 in Big East play to finish in second place. In the Big East tournament, they defeated DePaul and Creighton to reach the championship game, where they were defeated by Marquette. The team received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, where they defeated Kennesaw State and Pittsburgh to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2017. There they were defeated by Texas, bringing their season to a close with a final record of 27–10.

## Previous season

The Musketeers finished the 2021–22 season 23–13, 8–11 in Big East play to finish in a tie for seventh place. They lost in the first round of the Big East tournament to Butler. The team received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Cleveland State, Florida, Vanderbilt, and St. Bonaventure to advance to the championship game. There they defeated Texas A&M to win the NIT championship.
Head coach Travis Steele was fired on March 16, 2022, the day after the first win in the NIT. Assistant coach Jonas Hayes was named the interim head coach and coached the team for the four remaining games in the NIT.
On March 19, the school named former Xavier and Arizona head coach Sean Miller the team's new head coach. Miller previously coached the Musketeers from 2004 to 2009.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Paul Scruggs | 1 | G | 6'5" | 198 | GS Senior | Indianapolis, IN | Graduated |
| Nate Johnson | 10 | G | 6'4" | 192 | GS Senior | Miami, FL | Graduated |
| Dwon Odom | 11 | G | 6'2" | 182 | Sophomore | Alpharetta, GA | Transferred to Georgia State |
| Zak Swetye | 12 | G | 6'1" | 187 | Senior | Darien, CT | Walk-on; graduated |
| Ben Stanley | 14 | F | 6'6" | 225 | RS Senior | Baltimore, MD | Graduate transferred to Old Dominion |
| Ramon Singh | 20 | G | 6'4" | 187 | Senior | Sydney, Australia | Walk-on; graduated |
| Spencer Cody | 25 | G | 5'11" | 185 | Senior | Chicago, IL | Walk-on; graduated |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Num | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Souley Boum | 0 | G | 6'3" | 165 | GS Senior | Oakland, CA | UTEP |
| Brad Colbert | 45 | G | 6'2" | 185 | Sophomore | Loveland, OH | Walk-on; Louisville |

### Recruiting classes
#### 2022 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Kam Craft #10 SG | Buffalo Grove, IL | The Skill Factory Prep School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Jul 12, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 84 ||||||
| Desmond Claude #18 SG | Putnam, CT | Putnam Science Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Jan 20, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 82 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Xavier 2022 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 15, 2021. "2022 Xavier Musketeers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 15, 2021. "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 15, 2021. "Xavier 2022 Basketball Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 15, 2021. ||||||

#### 2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2023) :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Trey Green #31 PG | Charlotte, N.C. | Link Academy | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Aug 6, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 86 |||||||
| Dailyn Swain #23 SF | Columbus, OH | Columbus Africentric High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Sep 2, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 82 |||||||
| Reid Ducharme #29 SF | Milton, MA | Brewster Academy | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Aug 25, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 82 |||||||
| Kachi Nzeh #56 C | Newtown, PA | George School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Sep 8, 2022 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN grade: 76 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Xavier 2023 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 15, 2022. "2023 Xavier Musketeers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 15, 2022. "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 15, 2022. "Xavier 2023 Basketball Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 15, 2022. |||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 2, 2022* 7:00 p.m. | | Kentucky Wesleyan | W 80–62 | | 32 – Freemantle | 13 – Freemantle | 6 – Jones | Cintas Center (9,850) Cincinnati, OH |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 7, 2022* 7:30 p.m., FS1 | | Morgan State | W 96–73 | 1–0 | 23 – Boum | 9 – Hunter | 9 – Jones | Cintas Center (10,224) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 11, 2022* 8:00 p.m., FS2 | | Montana | W 86–64 | 2–0 | 18 – Freemantle | 4 – Tied | 5 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,311) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 15, 2022* 9:00 p.m., FS2 | | Fairfield | W 78–65 | 3–0 | 23 – Nunge | 13 – Freemantle | 10 – Freemantle | Cintas Center (9,624) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 18, 2022* 6:00 p.m., FS1 | | No. 12 Indiana Gavitt Tipoff Games | L 79–81 | 3–1 | 15 – Tied | 8 – Nunge | 6 – Jones | Cintas Center (10,586) Cincinnati, OH |
| November 24, 2022* 5:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Florida Phil Knight Legacy quarterfinals | W 90–83 | 4–1 | 22 – Tied | 11 – Freemantle | 6 – Boum | Veterans Memorial Coliseum (4,465) Portland, OR |
| November 25, 2022* 3:30 p.m., ESPN | | vs. No. 8 Duke Phil Knight Legacy semifinals | L 64–71 | 4–2 | 23 – Boum | 7 – Jones | 4 – Jones | Moda Center Portland, OR |
| November 26, 2022* 7:30 p.m., ESPN | | vs. No. 6 Gonzaga Phil Knight Legacy third place game | L 84–88 | 4–3 | 25 – Nunge | 7 – Tied | 7 – Jones | Veterans Memorial Coliseum Portland, OR |
| November 30, 2022* 8:30 p.m., FS1 | | Southeastern Louisiana | W 95–63 | 5–3 | 16 – Jones | 12 – Freemantle | 7 – Jones | Cintas Center (9,811) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 3, 2022* 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | West Virginia Big East–Big 12 Battle | W 84–74 | 6–3 | 23 – Boum | 14 – Nunge | 7 – Boum | Cintas Center (10,460) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 10, 2022* 3:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Cincinnati Crosstown Shootout | W 80–77 | 7–3 | 21 – Boum | 12 – Freemantle | 4 – Jones | Fifth Third Arena (12,012) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 13, 2022* 7:00 p.m., FS1 | | Southern | W 79–59 | 8–3 | 17 – Boum | 8 – Freemantle | 7 – Boum | Cintas Center (10,029) Cincinnati, OH |
| Big East regular season |||||||||
| December 16, 2022 6:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Georgetown | W 102–89 | 9–3 (1–0) | 28 – Boum | 12 – Nunge | 8 – Jones | Capital One Arena (5,785) Washington, D.C. |
| December 20, 2022 8:30 p.m., FS1 | | Seton Hall | W 73–70 | 10–3 (2–0) | 23 – Freemantle | 9 – Freemantle | 7 – Boum | Cintas Center (10,224) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 28, 2022 9:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 22 | at St. John's | W 84–79 | 11–3 (3–0) | 23 – Nunge | 12 – Nunge | 6 – Boum | Carnesecca Arena (4,368) Queens, NY |
| December 31, 2022 12:00 p.m., FOX | No. 22 | No. 2 UConn | W 83–73 | 12–3 (4–0) | 16 – Tied | 11 – Freemantle | 5 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,565) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 7, 2023 4:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 18 | at Villanova | W 88–80 | 13–3 (5–0) | 29 – Freemantle | 11 – Freemantle | 6 – Tied | Finneran Pavilion (6,501) Villanova, PA |
| January 11, 2023 7:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 12 | Creighton | W 90–87 | 14–3 (6–0) | 26 – Boum | 12 – Nunge | 8 – Boum | Cintas Center (10,224) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 15, 2023 12:00 p.m., FOX | No. 12 | No. 25 Marquette | W 80–76 | 15–3 (7–0) | 16 – Tied | 13 – Nunge | 5 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,508) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 18, 2023 8:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 8 | at DePaul | L 72–73 | 15–4 (7–1) | 18 – Freemantle | 13 – Nunge | 6 – Boum | Wintrust Arena (4,252) Chicago, IL |
| January 21, 2023 12:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 8 | Georgetown | W 95–82 | 16–4 (8–1) | 30 – Freemantle | 11 – Freemantle | 7 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,383) Cincinnati, OH |
| January 25, 2023 6:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 13 | at No. 19 UConn | W 82–79 | 17–4 (9–1) | 21 – Boum | 7 – Nunge | 4 – Tied | Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,167) Storrs, CT |
| January 28, 2023 12:15 p.m., CBS | No. 13 | at Creighton | L 67–84 | 17–5 (9–2) | 18 – Freemantle | 7 – Kunkel | 4 – Tied | CHI Health Center Omaha (18,277) Omaha, NE |
| February 1, 2023 6:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 16 | No. 17 Providence | W 85–83 $^{OT}$ | 18–5 (10–2) | 23 – Nunge | 14 – Nunge | 9 – Boum | Cintas Center (10,334) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 4, 2023 5:00 p.m., FOX | No. 16 | St. John's | W 96–71 | 19–5 (11–2) | 21 – Nunge | 8 – Jones | 6 – Nunge | Cintas Center (10,436) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 10, 2023 7:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 13 | at Butler | L 67–69 | 19–6 (11–3) | 17 – Jones | 8 – Tied | 3 – Tied | Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,352) Indianapolis, IN |
| February 15, 2023 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | No. 16 | at No. 11 Marquette | L 68–69 | 19–7 (11–4) | 24 – Boum | 8 – Jones | 5 – Jones | Fiserv Forum (16,041) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 18, 2023 4:00 p.m., CBSSN | No. 16 | DePaul | W 82–68 | 20–7 (12–4) | 18 – Nunge | 10 – Nunge | 8 – Kinkel | Cintas Center (10,403) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 21, 2023 6:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 16 | Villanova | L 63–64 | 20–8 (12–5) | 17 – Boum | 10 – Nunge | 7 – Jones | Cintas Center (10,349) Cincinnati, OH |
| February 24, 2023 7:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 16 | at Seton Hall | W 82–60 | 21–8 (13–5) | 23 – Boum | 9 – Hunter | 5 – Nunge | Prudential Center (10,481) Newark, NJ |
| March 1, 2023 6:30 p.m., FS1 | No. 19 | at No. 20 Providence | W 94–89 | 22–8 (14–5) | 33 – Boum | 9 – Jones | 4 – Tied | Amica Mutual Pavilion (12,400) Providence, RI |
| March 4, 2023 7:00 p.m., FS1 | No. 19 | Butler | W 78–66 | 23–8 (15–5) | 20 – Jones | 8 – Jones | 4 – Tied | Cintas Center (10,398) Cincinnati, OH |
| Big East tournament |||||||||
| March 9, 2023 7:00 p.m., FS1 | (2) No. 15 | vs. (10) DePaul Quarterfinals | W 89–84 | 24–8 | 23 – Nunge | 10 – Nunge | 4 – Nunge | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| March 10, 2023 9:00 p.m., FS1 | (2) No. 15 | vs. (3) No. 24 Creighton Semifinals | W 82–60 | 25–8 | 23 – Boum | 10 – Jones | 6 – Boum | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| March 11, 2023 6:30 p.m., FOX | (2) No. 15 | vs. (1) No. 6 Marquette Championship | L 51–65 | 25–9 | 14 – Kunkel | 8 – Hunter | 3 – Claude | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 17, 2023* 12:40 pm, TruTV | (3 MW) No. 13 | vs. (14 MW) Kennesaw State First Round | W 72–67 | 26–9 | 24 – Hunter | 11 – Nunge | 6 – Kunkle | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| March 19, 2023* 12:10 pm, CBS | (3 MW) No. 13 | vs. (11 MW) Pittsburgh Second Round | W 84–73 | 27–9 | 18 – Nunge | 14 – Jones | 7 – Jones | Greensboro Coliseum Greensboro, NC |
| March 24, 2023* 9:45 p.m., CBS | (3 MW) No. 13 | vs. (2 MW) No. 5 Texas Sweet Sixteen | L 71–83 | 27–10 | 21 – Kunkel | 11 – Nunge | 6 – Jones | T-Mobile Center (17,429) Kansas City, MO |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | RV | — | RV | RV | RV | 22т | 18 | 12 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 19 | 15 | 13 | Not released |
| Coaches | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 18 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 17 | 15 | 14 | 15 |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings.