No. 21 Xavier braces for visit from No. 16 Baylor (Nov 28, 2017)

CINCINNATI -- There is no rest for the weary Xavier Musketeers, who had three days to recover from a loss to Arizona State before hosting No. 16 Baylor on Tuesday night at Cintas Center.

Three days wouldn't seem like ample time to fix the defensive issues that led to No. 21 Xavier's 102-86 loss to the Sun Devils at the Las Vegas Classic. But, it's all part of the development process for head coach Chris Mack, who has a long history of teams that are much better in February than they are in November.

"It exposes weaknesses, maybe where you're vulnerable at that stage of the year," Mack said of early losses. "It gives reality to the players. It would be foolish for me as a coach, and the players, to not respond accordingly."

Xavier (5-1) rarely shies away from challenging itself in the non-conference schedule, even though the Big East Conference slate is no cakewalk. The annual Crosstown Shootout with No. 11 Cincinnati is looming on Saturday, but Baylor (5-0) isn't likely to offer the Musketeers any sympathy on Tuesday night.

"We have to play the best teams that we can," Mack said. "If we play a bunch of cupcakes or Division IIs, by the time the Big East schedule comes along, there might not be time to correct some things."

The Bears have had a week off since beating Creighton 65-59 in Kansas City. Jo Lual-Aguil Jr. scored 15 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, King McClure had a team-leading 19 points and Terry Maston added 15 in that victory.

"Baylor presents a lot of different challenges than Arizona State," Mack said. "They'll walk the ball up, post you up, offensive rebound. They're not the high-flying team Arizona State is."

Xavier struggled with ASU's guard tandem of Tra Holden, who dropped 40 against them, and Shannon Evans II, who scored 22. The Musketeers will face similar challenges against McClure and Manu Lecomte, who averages 19 points for Baylor. The Bears also have some unique obstacles, namely the rangy Lual-Aguil.

"Do whatever you can against him, I guess," said Xavier forward Sean O'Mara of the 7-footer. "Just keep him away from the hoop. They're a great team. It's going to be a great game."

The Bears lead the series 3-0, including a 76-61 win on Dec. 3, 2016 in Waco, Texas. They also defeated Xavier 75-70 in the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Baylor and Xavier have one common opponent this season -- Wisconsin. The Bears beat the Badgers 70-65 in the semifinals of the Hall of Fame Classic last week. Xavier won at Wisconsin 80-70 on Nov. 16.

Trevon Bluiett, who averages 21.3 points, and J.P. Macura (13.8 per game) carry the load for the Musketeers. Forwards Tyrique Jones and Kaiser Gates also average in double figures and freshman Naji Marshall and Paul Scruggs are players who could be significant contributors by March. Some might argue Marshall that already is, averaging 7.8 points.

Xavier has won 33 straight non-conference home games, dating to the 2012-13 season.

"It's not like we don't know what we're supposed to do," O'Mara said of the team's defensive woes. "We just have to take greater pride in what we need to do."