DAVID JACOBS | MANAGING EDITOR | drjacobs@butler.edu
The men’s basketball team crawled out of the gates against rival Xavier — succumbing to as large as a 13-point first-half deficit — and never recovered en route to a 89-75 defeat.
Graduate forward Michael Ajayi was as steady as ever, pouring in 13 of his 22 points and seven of his 12 rebounds in the first half, often showing the most energy on the team at any given time.
Despite his efforts, continued turnover troubles — including five from Ajayi — and lackluster shooting from the rest of the roster proved to outweigh any positive contributions Ajayi was able to bring to the court.