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Xavier buries Bulldogs early

Nov 26, 2011 - 4:16 AM Cincinnati, OH (Sports Network) - Kenny Frease and Tu Holloway each netted 12 points, and 12th-ranked Xavier scored the game's first 10 points, on the way to a 70-56 triumph over Georgia.

Mark Lyons and Travis Taylor each had 10 points for the Musketeers (4-0), who made this contest a blowout early in the second half. Taylor also had 12 rebounds.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 14 for the Bulldogs (4-2), who also received 10 points from Gerald Robinson. Georgia shot 32 percent from the field.

Andre Walker's layup started the game on the right side for the Musketeers, and Dee Davis' bucket from in close capped the early 10-0 burst.

"We got off to a very slow start," Georgia coach Mark Fox said. "We started very poorly and tried to hang in until halftime, but couldn't quite do it."

The Bulldogs missed their first 11 shots until Donte' Williams jammed for an eight-point margin with 12:37 left in the half. The visitors were within 14-11 after a three from Dustin Ware, but Xavier ran off the ensuing six points and carried a nine-point difference into the locker room.

The 28-19 cushion at the break grew in a huge way early in the second half thanks to more field futility from the Bulldogs. Georgia missed its first six attempts in the second stanza. By the time Nemanja Djurisic's layup broke the drought, the Musketeers were comfortably in front.

Holloway's jumper finished the burst for a 40-21 lead until Georgia recorded its first bucket of the second half.

It only got worse for the Bulldogs, as Lyons made a layup for a 63-27 difference with 9:24 left.

Xavier didn't have a field goal in the final 3:18.

"I thought the first 34 minutes or so we were as good as we've been all year," Xavier coach Chris Mack said. "We didn't necessarily score, but we didn't let it affect our defense. We played great for 33 minutes but we have to finish games a little bit better."

Game Notes

Xavier leads the series, 3-1, including a 65-57 win over the Bulldogs in Athens last season...The Musketeers have won 12 in a row at the Cintas Center and are 153-18 all-time in the building.