The Bryant Bulldogs and the Xavier Musketeers meet in college basketball action from the Cintas Center on Friday afternoon. Bryant’s already stunned a Final Four team in FAU, can they pick up another big road win against Xavier? Let’s dive in and find out. Make sure to read our Bryant vs Xavier Prediction.

Bryant Wins Back-To-Back Games

The Bryant Bulldogs come into this game on the heels of back-to-back wins after a 67-61 win over Howard last time out. Sherif Gross-Bullock leads the Bulldogs in scoring with 17.8 PPG along with 6.7 RPG and 3.5 APG while Earl Timberlake has 12.2 PPG with team-highs of 9.7 RPG and 4.5 APG to lead the Bulldogs in assists up to this point in the year. Rafael Pinzon’s added 12 PPG while Daniel Rivera’s added 10 PPG with 7.5 RPG to cap off the scoring for Bryant so far this season. As a team, Bryant is averaging 77.2 PPG on 44.4% shooting from the field, 37.3% from three and 64.8% from the foul line this season.

Xavier Takes Out Saint Mary’s

The Xavier Musketeers come into this one looking to build on a solid 66-49 win over Saint Mary’s last time out. Desmond Claude leads the Musketeers in scoring with 16.4 PPG along with 3.6 RPG and 3.8 APG while Quincy Olivari has 12.2 PPG with 4.8 RPG and Gytis Nemeiksa has 10.2 PPG with a team-high 5.4 RPG to lead the Musketeers on the glass and to round out the trio of double-digit scorers for Xavier so far this season. Dayvion McKnight also has team-highs of 4.2 APG and 1.8 SPG as well for the Musketeers on the year. As a team, Xavier is averaging 72.8 PPG on 45.5% shooting from the field, 29.8% from three and 63.2% from the foul line this season.

Chris’ Pick

I’m going to take a shot on Bryant here. The Bulldogs have held their own in their step up road spots this season, beating a final four team in FAU and hanging around with a tough defensive team in Rutgers. Xavier has a nice win over Saint Mary’s on a neutral floor, but haven’t really been tested in their two home games this season and let Robert Morris sneak in the back door in their opener. Bryant has some nice scoring depth with four players scoring in double figures and I think even if Xavier wins this game comfortably, Bryant sneaks in and covers.