The Xavier men’s basketball team’s 2025-2026 campaign came to a thrilling, though ultimately disappointing, end Friday night with an 88-87 loss to No. 17 William Carey in the first round of the NAIA National Tournament.
XULA (20-11), playing as the 12-seed, gave the fifth-seeded Crusaders (28-4) all they could handle.
The Gold Rush trailed 47-40 at the half, but rallied to take a late, 87-75 lead. However, William Carey hit a 3-pointer with 13 seconds to play, which proved the deciding moment in the game.
Despite the loss, there were numerous superlatives for Xavier.
Five XULA players scored in double figures on the night, and the Gold Rush shot 58.6% from the field.
Forward Wayne Randall-Bashay and point guard Bentravin Phillips shared the team lead in scoring. Phillips, who played all but 6 minutes of the contest, scored 16 points and dished out 7 assists.
Randall-Bashay, who played in reserve, scored 16 points and grabbed 3 rebounds.
Leon Williams, who like Phillips played 34 minutes, had a strong showing with 14 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a block.
Seviuhn Turner and Kerel Dean, both of whom played in reserve, were good for 14 and 10 points, respectively, and each grabbed 4 rebounds. Starting guard Nasir DeGruy put up 9 points.
This was the third time in the last four seasons that Xavier earned a berth in the NAIA National Tournament.
READ MORE:Xavier men’s basketball falls by 1 in NAIA first round
