The first two games haven't been easy for Richard Pitino at Xavier, but he's quickly learning a lot about his team.

That team gets a slightly bigger test when the Musketeers host Santa Clara Monday night in Cincinnati.

Malik Messina-Moore led a balanced scoring attack with 17 points as sharp-shooting Xavier (2-0) fended off an upset bid from visiting Le Moyne, 74-69, Thursday.

Santa Clara (2-0) beat McNeese State on Friday for its second straight home win to begin the season.

Roddie Anderson III scored 15, and Filip Borovicanin hauled in 12 rebounds for Xavier. Both players started in the season-opening win against Marist, but Pitino didn't like the energy to start that game, so he had both come off the bench against Le Moyne.

It was the second win for Jovan Milicevic and Borovicanin

See Full Page