The Billikens’ luck didn’t change as they traveled to Xavier on Wednesday night to continue their Atlantic-10 Conference play.
The team already suffered losses against George Washington and Richmond the previous week.
Despite four players reaching double digits in scoring, the defense faltered and the Muskateers were able to pull off a 67-57 victory.
Desirae Ball and Courtney Webb both scored 11 points each and Janisha Gearlds contributed 10 points.
Mallory Eggert led the Billikens with 14 points, 11 of them coming in the second half. She also recorded 7 rebounds, driving to bring the Billikens back from an 18-point first half deficit.
Gearlds also passed the ball well, dishing out 4 assists and helping to keep the Bills in the game.
Nevertheless, Xavier’s offense proved too much thanks to a game-high 24 points by Tyeasha Moss and a solid 21-point performance by Jessica Pachko.
The Billikens were able to outrebound the Muskateers 35-34 thanks to the strong defensive performance by Lorreal Jones
The Billikens shot 29 percent from the field in the first half knocking down only 9 of 31 shots. SLU found themselves trailing at half by 18 points. Xavier shot a 56.7 percent from the field, hitting 17 of 30 attempts.
As the game progressed the Bills began to turn things around, shooting 51.5 percent from the field in the second half, hitting 17 of 33 attempts.
Even with two rallies that brought the Bills back to just a single-digit deficit, the Muskateers made 5 of 6 free throws down the final stretch to secure the victory.
This was Xavier’s first win in their last 12 games and just their fourth on the entire season. They were winless in the A-10 Conference, occupying last place for most of the season.
With their win on Wednesday, they now are tied with the Billikens in the conference standings and are a game above current last place team Rhode Island.
With their losses this past week, SLU falls to 7-15 overall with a 1-6 A-10 Conference record. St. Bonaventure leads with an 8-0 conference record.
SLU hopes to end their losing streak this upcoming week when they face both Duquesne and Temple at Chaifetz Arena.
Duquesne is currently 8th in the conference, but sport a impressive overall record of 15-7.
They have lost their last two games, including a tough defeat against St. Bonaventure.
They will be out to play well against the Billikens in order to remain relevant in the A-10.
Temple on the other hand has lost just once in the conference and have an overall record of 13-8, good enough for third place.
They have won their last five games, including a decisive victory over Xavier, 64-38.
With just seven games remaining in the regular season, the Billikens must string together a few quality wins in a row to break into the middle of the A-10 pack.
