by Chris Pfaff, Xavier Sportswriter

On Tuesday, December 3, Xavier Basketball defeated the visiting Notre Dame Saints 58-44.

Xavier held a 16-8 lead after the first quarter and expanded it to 33-19 by the end of the first half after Ellie Mclaughlin drained a three-pointer at the buzzer. By the end of the 3rd quarter, the 14-point lead ballooned to a 22-point advantage for the Gators and provided some playing time for the non-starters in the final period.

Top Performers

• The first half belonged to Cece Mlat, who scored twelve of her game-high fourteen points. The highlight video below features eight of those points.
• Sariah McNabb scored the second-most points for Xavier (13). Her game, though, is much more than scoring points. Her speed, quickness, jumping ability, and unrelenting aggressiveness make positive things happen for Xavier and frustration happen for the opposing team. I would love to do a video that follows Sariah throughout an extended period of time so people can see her impact on the game.
• Noelle Bofia was the only other Xavier player who scored in double figures (10). Her imposing presence in the paint results in rebounds and opposing players having to alter their shots.
• Lucy Sanford scored just three points, BUT she is featured in six of the fourteen highlights for her steals, assists, hustle, and focus in the highlight video below.

XAVIER HIGHLIGHT VIDEO

Below are descriptions for each of the fourteen highlights. Each highlight is numbered in the video.

• #1 – Cece Mlat scores off Lucy Sanford assist
• #2 – Cece scores off teammate’s missed shot
• #3 – Lucy shoots a three off Noelle Bofia assist
• #4 – Cece scores on bank shot off Noelle assist
• #5 – Lucy deflects Notre Dame pass into Noelle hands (slow motion)
• #6 – Lucy backdoor bounce pass to Sariah McNabb for the score (slow motion)
• #7 – Noelle feeds Sariah, who drives the lane and scores
• #8 – Avianna Showalter drives to the hoop around two defenders for the score
• #9 – Ellie McLaughlin, off a pass from Sariah, shoots a three at the buzzer to end the first half
• #10 – Lucy makes a Caitlin-Clark-like pass in transition from half court to Noelle for the score
• #11 – Noelle’s turn-around jumper in the paint off assist from Sariah
• #12 – Mariah James nice pass down low to Margaux Cenac, who executes an excellent bounce pass to Noelle for the score (slow motion)
• #13 – Lucy steals Notre Dame outlet pass and makes outstanding pass to Cece for the score (slow motion)
• #14 – Ellie shows some dribbling skills near half-court then drives to the hoop from downtown for an underhand lay-up and then almost steals the Notre Dame inbound pass