February 11, 2009 by Jeff Garrett | A10CollegeHoops

Cincinnati, OH -- The Xavier Musketeers are coming off a tough 72-68 loss last Saturday to the Duquesne Dukes; a game in which Xavier shot 43% from the field, and committed 14 turnovers. Reflecting on the loss at Tuesday’s press conference, head coach Sean Miller said, “There’s no shame in losing. Our goal at Xavier is not to go undefeated on the season, and our goal is not to go undefeated in conference play. We’re trying to be the best team that we can be.”

Xavier (20-3, 8-1) has fallen to 14 in the both the AP Top 25 and the ESPN/USA Today Poll following the Duquesne loss. Tonight they face conference foe the Dayton Flyers (21-3, 7-2) who are also coming off a road loss to the Charlotte 49er’s. The game marks a unique point in the history of the two schools as both come in having won 20 or more games in the season.

When assessing his team’s success in conference play so far, Sean Miller sums it up in two words: “Our defense.” However, he is cautious about the upcoming game saying, “We lost a game and we have another game on Wednesday, which we could lose. Dayton is a very, very good team. And if there’s a lesson to be learned at Duquesne, it’s just that there’s not a real big difference between us and a lot of teams, especially if we’re not an excellent defensive team.”

In addition to defense, another key for Xavier coming out with a win tonight is the play of freshmen point guard Terrell Holloway who matches up against Dayton’s junior guard London Warren. When Miller was asked what advice he’ll be giving Holloway he notes, “Terrell just has to be himself. Really what we’re asking Terrell to do is just really value and take care of the ball, get us into whatever we’re getting into, and defensively be on-assignment, be tough-minded, and just continue to play his style of play.”

Miller also looks for his team to improve their free-throw shooting which could become a key stat in a close game. Says Miller, “Making free throws is important for every team, in particular for our team. Why is it maybe more important? Because we get there so regularly. And when you get there regularly, you depend on the percentage that you shoot.”

Tipoff tonight at UD Arena is 7:00 pm ET, and the game will be aired on ESPN2.