X-Men cruise to 83-69 win over Axemen

X-Men cruise to 83-69 win over Axemen

Courtesy Monty Mosher, The Chronicle Herald 

The last unbeaten team in the AUS stayed that way Sunday in Wolfville.

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Steve Konchalski’s St. Francis Xavier X-Men, ranked second in the CIS, rolled to 15-0 in the AUS men’s basketball standings with an 83-69 win over the Acadia Axemen. The Axemen lost their 10th in a row to fall to 4-10.

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The Axemen challenged the X-Men, the top three-point shooting team in the CIS, with a zone defence. It worked for a while, but sharpshooting guard Charlie Spurr got hot late from the long distance to help seal the outcome.

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The X-Men went to 8-0 on the road as Konchalski collected his CIS all-time best 751st career win. St. F.X. led by three at the half and only five at the end of 30 minutes.

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"They stuck with us in the first half," said Konchalski. "We opened it up in the fourth quarter. Charlie Spurr got hot and he was a big factor."

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Spurr, with two big three-pointers as part of a 10-2 run early in the fourth quarter to provide some breathing room, finished six-for-nine from three-point range for 20 points. Alberto Rodriguez provided the inside punch with 22 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.

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Christian Upshaw added 13 points, seven assists and four steals and Will Silver 12 points, seven assists and six steals.

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Rookie Anthony Sears had 25 points for the Axemen. Alex Traikov had 17 points and 12 boards and Owen Klassen 13 points and 12 rebounds.

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The X-Men will have no easy ride to their second unbeaten regular season in nine years. St. F.X. faces CIS No. 4 Cape Breton twice down the stretch, starting Wednesday in Sydney.