CINCINNATI, Ohio – The Jacksonville University men's basketball team (0-1) began the 2019-20 campaign with a tough test out the gates, a road trip to No. 19 Xavier, and showed itself to be a rejuvenated program against one of the best in the nation despite the final result, 76-57.

Xavier built its difference making lead toward the end of the first half and led by as many as 30 but while that may be the headline it wasn't the story of this game. Jacksonville was resilient throughout the contest, mixing in old and new faces and showing in flashes what this team can be when the lights are brightest.

"I think at the end of the day, this was half one and two of about sixty. We've got to learn and grow; we threw a lot of guys into the fire right out of the gate," head coach Tony Jasick said. "I thought we did a number of good things, but I thought there were a lot of areas that we need to improve upon. I thought defensively, at times we were really good."

This became most evident about midway through the second half after the Dolphins had taken a big counter punch from the Musketeers. Xavier knocked in a running lay-in at the 13:30 mark to move ahead by 30 and the score held there until Bryce Workman knocked in a jumper in the paint. Those were the first of seven-straight points for Workman who went on to score a career-best 15 points in the game. He also pulled down a career-high eight boards to pace the effort for Jacksonville.

"I've been bragging about Bryce Workman all summer," Jasick said of the sophomore's performance. "I thought he really impacted our team in a positive way when we needed it."

Mo Arnold canned his first triple in a JAX uniform on the next possession and David Bell later capped the 12-0 run with a layup inside to get this back to an 18-point game with 8:44 to go. Bell scored four points to go with seven boards before fouling out. Arnold dropped in seven points and three assists with a steal in his debut.

Later, with Xavier ahead by 24, Workman took over once again, scoring four points in-a-row before Aamahne Santos broke free and knocked down a triple to force the home side into a timeout. Santos had a massive breakout performance after an up and down junior campaign. The Senior scored 15 points and handed out five assists.

The lead shrunk to as small as 16 a couple times down the stretch but that was as close as the Dolphins would come in this one. Destin Barnes and Kevin Norman each added six points in their JAX debuts and freshman Trey Sides got the nod in the starting lineup. Barnes added a pair of steals to his ledger while Norman pulled down five rebounds.

"This could be a really good thing for us," Jasick concluded. "As long as we get better over the next 48 hours."

Jacksonville will open up Historic Swisher Gymnasium on Friday night opposite Johnson University at 7 p.m.
Hodges Mazda Player of the Game: Bryce Workman (15 PTS, 8 REB, 1 AST, 6-9 FG)