CINCINNATI – Dee Davis was 6-of-7 from the field and scored 15 points Wednesday to lead Xavier to a 77-51 win over Miami (Ohio), its oldest rival.
Davis missed the first two games with a head injury but has returned to lead the Musketeers (4-0) to their fourth straight victory to start the season.
Semaj Christon scored 13 points for the Musketeers and James Farr turned in his first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Matt Stainbrook added 10 points.
Geovonie McKnight scored 10 points to lead Miami (0-3). Reggie Johnson was limited to five points despite entering the game as the Mid-American Conference's leading scorer with 23 points per game.
Xavier held a 36-24 halftime lead. It was the fewest points that the Musketeers have allowed in a half.
The game was tied at 15 with 12:34 left in the first half but Xavier went on a 21-9 run to take command of the game.
Ten Xavier players scored in the game. The Miami bench was depleted by a nine-game suspension for Willie Moore, a sophomore transfer from Oregon, and Bill Edwards, who is out with an injury.
The Musketeers started the second half with a 14-2 run and led by as many as 31 in the second half.
Johnson was held scoreless in the first half by Xavier's Semaj Christon, who was assigned to guard him.
Xavier held a 42-17 rebounding advantage and shot 50 percent from the floor while holding the RedHawks to 37 percent from the field.
There was a moment of silence for former Miami coach Charlie Coles, a 1965 Miami alumnus who coached the RedHawks for 16 seasons.
The two campuses are 43 miles apart. The teams have met 100 times since rivalry began in 1920 with a 50-16 Miami victory, in Xavier's second season.
Xavier leads the series 53-47. Wednesday's victory was Xavier's most lopsided win since 2001 by 29 points.
Xavier has won the last five meetings.
All four of Xavier's wins have been at home. Miami has yet to play a home game.
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