Xavier landed in the middle of a bracket loaded with the biggest names in basketball.
Welcome to our coverage of the 2025 NCAA Tournament! The best event in sports is here and we will be as well, providing step-by-step previews of each region and breaking down what to watch for and who to keep an eye on during the basketball feast that is the NCAA Tournament.
It’s going to be hard not to put Xavier in about four of these categories, so understand this is written with the idea of getting you more familiar with the region.
Overseeded: #4 Purdue
They don’t exactly have a bad resume, but the five seed in this very region (Clemson) has a better one. Purdue somehow got a Q1 win for beating Iowa. I had to look multiple times to make sure that wasn’t a typo. In 2025 they have beaten three tournament teams. That’s the same amount as one of the 11 seeds in this region.
Underseeded: #9 Georgia
Wins over St. John’s, Kentucky, and Oklahoma, earlier in the year and then wins over three tournament teams, including Florida, in their last four games. That somehow lands them a seed line lower than their opponent, Gonzaga, who last played a tough opponent back when you still had your Christmas tree up. Does that mean Gonzaga is overseeded, Georgia is under, or that the committee is just guessing? Maybe it’s all three.
Easy to like: #11 Xavier
This is a little bit of homerism, a little bit of think Xavier is genuinely likable. Jerome Hunter is back from a heart attack and torn achilles. Zach Freemantle is finally getting his first shot at the tournament. Ryan Conwell missed heartbreakingly last year and gets his shot not. Dante Maddox is chaos theory personified on the court, and genuinely kind and thoughtful off it. You’ve got a Sean Miller redemption arc, a team that is reasonably hot, and a fun style of play.
Plus, they’re our favorite team. You should like them.
Fun to watch: #10 Utah State
Have you ever played for a two hour open run at your local gym? By the last game the pace has slowed and everyone is just jacking threes while one try hard crashes the glass like an animal. That’s Utah State. Karson Templin is the try hard, the team in general are the guys chucking it once they get a clean look. On defense they go even more slowly while hoping the other team isn’t super excited about scoring.
Easy to hate: Spoiled for choice
There’s Gonzaga, whose coach drives drunk, plays in a cake conference, and games the system to get their analytics numbers up. Are they good? Who knows. There’s also Kentucky, with the most obnoxious and entitled fanbase in the sport. Still hate Mick Cronin (and how could you not)? UCLA is here as well. Mick hates his team and has said that on multiple occasions, so why shouldn’t you? And finally there are Purdue, with their reputation as big game bottlers and the incredibly boring style that Matt Painter plays. Like I said, spoiled for choice.
Danger team: #5 Clemson
In the same stretch that Xavier has made their season saving run, Clemson has lost just twice, and one of those by three to Louisville in the conference tournament. (The other one was inexplicably to Georgia Tech). Only three times have they lost in regulation. They’ve beaten Duke, Kentucky, North Carolina, and SMU twice. They play slowly, don’t make mistakes, and make you beat them by being excellent. They’re a tough out.
Best matchup: #6 Illinois v. #11
You can beat Xavier by turning them over. If you want to beat Texas, you better turn them over. Illinois doesn’t force turnovers. Xavier can shoot the three and the Fighting Illini get gashed behind the arc when they allow teams to get them off. Xavier is comfortable running so the Illinois pace won’t bother them. Texas would try to drag this game down to a much slower pace and force Illinois to play them there. This will be a good game no matter who the 11 seed in it is.
Player to watch: DJ Richards, McNeese
This may or may not be your DJ, but the dude gets buckets. He’s not a volume scorer, but if he touches the ball, he’s going to score. That, I grant, sounds like an exaggeration. In 33 games this year, he’s had an offensive rating under 100 just seven times. He’s had one over 200 twice. His offensive efficiency in conference play was 149.5. He can score. He’s also a complete hothead who probably should have been ejected from the Southland Conference final before he ended up in a screaming match with his own coach. So yes, keep an eye on DJ Richards.