No. 24 Xavier showed something impressive on Sunday evening, managing to hold on for an 82-77 win at St. John’s despite dealing with some major adversity.
Trevon Bluiett led the way with 21 points and 10 boards as the Musketeers went up by as many as 15 points and held a 12-point lead with six minutes left, but that 12-point lead came after Edmond Sumner, Xavier’s star point guard, went down with what appeared to be a pretty nasty knee injury.
(Don’t watch this video if you’re squeamish):
.@XavierMBB PG Edmond Sumner goes down w/ left knee injury, landed awkwardly after a tough finish in the 2nd half & heads to locker room: pic.twitter.com/0YlJvQbEW2
— DraftExpressContent (@DXContent) January 30, 2017
“I have no information about Sumner,” head coach Chris Mack told reporters after the game. “It didn’t look good, but hopefully he gets back sooner than later.”
Sumner will have an MRI to determine the severity of the injury.
If they lose him for a significant amount of time, this is just another blow in what has been a difficult season for the Musketeers. They’re currently playing without Myles Davis, who was suspended for the first 15 games of the season and left the team after playing three games.
Xavier is 15-6 on the season after the win, but they still haven’t beaten anyone oh note. They have a win over Clemson, who is 2-6 in the ACC, and wins over Wake Forest and Utah, who both look destined to be on the wrong side of the bubble come Selection Sunday. Winning at St. John’s was big, and avoiding a collapse in a game like that is a nice mental and confidence boost, but without Sumner, it may all be for naught.