By Ryan Ottiger, Newswire Intern

The brand new Xavier men’s basketball squad’s Big East play has officially kicked off — with the Musketeers starting 3-4 and ranking sixth overall in the conference. As of Jan. 15. The University of Connecticut Huskies lead the pack with an undefeated 8-0 start in Big East conference play, closely followed by other elite teams like the Villanova University Wildcats and the St. John’s University Red Storm. 

Despite this season ultimately being somewhat of a lackluster year, the Musketeers have still floated around the top 75 mark in all of college basketball, with highlight wins over the University of Cincinnati, West Virginia University, Butler University and Providence College. 

In terms of individual play, grad student Tre Carroll has impressed by standing second in the Big East in points per game, just behind Providence’s senior Jason Edwards. The dynamic forward also helped give Xavier the highlight of the season by scoring 30 points in a win against rival UC at Cintas. 

Even though it would take a huge late-season surge for the team to potentially earn a bid in March Madness, Coach Pitino and the recruiting room seem to be making moves to help weather the storm of a slow year or two for future benefit. The Musketeers not only landed 4-star recruit Kalek House, alongside another highly touted recruit in Asher Elson from Overtime Elite. Elson is a 6-foot-11 forward with great skill and mobility for his size and looks like a raw prospect that could end up having pro potential and a significant positive impact for Xavier. 

The Musketeers sit at 11-7 overall but face a difficult Big East schedule the rest of the way. They will play UConn again and face Villanova, Seton Hall and St. John’s twice more throughout the season. The Musketeers will travel to Nebraska to take on the Creighton University Blue Jays on Jan. 21 after losing to them with a program-worst 41 points earlier in the season. 

Following the Creighton game, Xavier will host one of college basketball’s recent powerhouses, St. John’s, in a father-son head coaching battle between the Pitinos. 

“For Xavier to have a chance, they have to find a way to limit Zuby Ejiofor’s touches and production. He is the only high-major player in college basketball to lead a team in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals,” popular Big East commentator John Fanta said.

“I think this can be a ballgame if Xavier avoids giveaways and holds St. John’s to one-and-done,” Fanta added.

Ultimately, this would be a big upset if the Musketeers can get the win. This would also stand in the way of Rick Pitino’s potential 900th career win, by losing to his son, which “would add to the theater of the family reunion at the Cintas Center,” Fanta concluded. 

It is more than likely that the Xavier Musketeers will finish the season hovering around the .500 mark. All things considered, some Xavier fans may look at this season as some form of a disappointment. It is important to remember that there will be talented young prospects brought into a historically great basketball program. Xavier will not be going away with the current staff, new players and strong culture surrounding the system.