Courvoisier McCauley scored a career-high 21 points, while Brandon Johnson added 12 points and eight rebounds, to lift visiting DePaul to a 69-65 upset of No. 21 Xavier on Saturday at Cincinnati.
DePaul (11-10, 2-9 Big East) stopped a four-game losing streak that began with a one-point home loss to the Musketeers (16-6, 6-5) on Jan. 19. The Blue Demons pulled off the victory behind 47.5 percent shooting compared to 44.4 percent for Xavier.
The Blue Demons surged to a 65-57 lead on Nick Ongenda’s three-point play with 3:09 to go thn hung on for the victory. DePaul went 8 of 9 from the free-throw line, while Xavier was 11 of 16.
Paul Scruggs scored 14 of his 21 points in the second half to pace Xavier, notching the Musketeers’ final 11 points. Jack Nunge (12 points), Colby Jones (11) and Zach Freemantle (10) followed in double figures. Nunge snagged a team-high seven rebounds.
DePaul prevailed in a game of runs. After a 17-2 spurt spanning halftime helped the Musketeers take their first advantage of the afternoon at 41-36, DePaul answered with a 15-3 run to take a 51-44 lead with 10:06 to play.
McCauley sparked the Blue Demons on 8-of-12 shooting. Pressed into more regular duty because of various injuries, McCauley played 28 minutes. He has logged at least minutes in four of his past five games.
McCauley drilled four three-pointers. The total included a second-chance make from distance with 8:39 to go in the first half to answer an emphatic Nunge dunk that brought the Musketeers to within 16-11.
Jalen Terry added 13 points for DePaul.
DePaul took a 34-27 lead into intermission after leading by 13 with 2:36 remaining in the first half. The Musketeers began to close the gap after overcoming early offensive struggles. Xavier started 5-for-20 from the floor but ended the half by making five of seven shots.
The Blue Demons remained without leading scorer Javon Freeman-Liberty and his averages of 21.1 points and 7.4 rebounds, as he missed his fifth successive game with a groin injury.
Dieonte Miles (knee soreness) was out for Xavier.
The Blue Demons improved to 2-5 against ranked foes this season.
–Field Level Media
