Xavier reaches the end of the road

The Xavier Musketeers ended their season in the field of eight with a 76-57 loss to UCLA.
Xavier pretty much ended their campaign late in the first half when UCLA stretched a small lead to one of double figures at the half.
Derrick Brown was the high scorer with 13 points.
A very nice season for Xavier and the Muskies bid a fond farewell to three senior stars in Drew Lavender,Josh Duncan and Stanley Burrell.
All three had excellent careers at XU and will be missed.
The cupboard is not bare though as the torch is passed to B.J.Raymond,C.J.Anderson and Derrick Brown for future glory.
The question is who will be the coach?
Will Sean Miller bolt for Indiana?
Or will he decide to continue to build Xavier as the "Gonzaga of the East"?
Time will tell.

Bullpen Notes

One reason that I love to root for Xavier so much is that their players stay for four seasons.
You rarely have to worry about losing an Xavier player early like you do about a quality player at Ohio State or Maryland.
You can learn their games,begin to read their emotions and get attached to the players like you could in the past and not watch the hired guns help for one year and run.

Battlin' Bob has now entered the blog universe.
Check his work out here.
Never fear though, fans of the Battler,his humor will still appear here and I may occasionally make a guest shot over there.


No word as of now on Pirate minor league rosters.
They should be released tomorrow,I would think.

The Pirates did make two moves at Indianapolis as they re-signed Matt Kata (wow) and former Indian Jason Davis to add a veteran to the AAA rotation.

The Post-Gazette ran an article on the minor league system and the Buc front office says things are not as bad at it seems.
With the exception of Indianapolis-yes,it is as bad as it seems.

Tomorrow will be a quick preview of the Bucs as they prepare for their opener tomorrow night in Atlanta.

Photo Credits
Xavier:Chris Carlson-AP Photo
Battlin Bob:Ryan Heimberger