By Dustin Dow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Cincinnati tried several tactics, but nothing, it seemed, was going to rattle Xavier senior David West.

It started earlier in the week with UC's Jason Maxiell saying he was tougher than West and ended Saturday with Bearcats fans telling West to "go home." But West weathered it all and led No.16 Xavier to a 50-44 Crosstown Shootout win.

"You can't lose your head," said West, who scored 23 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. "When you lose your composure and your cool, you have to come off the floor."

Musketeers coach Thad Matta took West out when he fouled Maxiell while trying to rip the ball away 5:34 into the second half. Xavier led 33-24 at the time.

Three minutes later, it was 33-31, and Matta put West back in. West responded by hitting a jumper, pushing the margin back to four.

"(West) did a very good job of having great poise and staying under control," Matta said. "That was the game plan."

Maxiell had suggested West lacked toughness. West responded by saying: "Be careful what you wish for."

Asked if he thought Maxiell received the message, West said: "I hope so."

Maxiell said if he had defended West the entire game, XU's forward might not have scored as much.

"I don't want to say he wouldn't score," Maxiell said, "but he wouldn't do it on me."

After the game, West ran off the court making an "X" symbol to UC fans.

"In this city, we're just not looked at as equal to these guys," West said. "Even though we won today, later in the year, they'll still be talking about how UC's the better team. There's a lot of gratification in (winning) here on their floor and with their fans being as aggressive as they are."

Bearcats fans didn't seem to bother Xavier freshman Dedrick Finn, either. Playing in his first Shootout, Finn scored four of the Musketeers' final eight points.

One of XU's most critical shots came when Finn picked up a loose ball and tossed in a floating layup with two minutes left. It made it 44-39 and returned momentum to the Musketeers, who hadn't scored in more than four minutes.

"He knows what he needs to do for the team," XU guard Lionel Chalmers said of Finn.

Matta got his first Shootout victory after last season's 75-55 loss.

"Is this relief or pleasure?" Matta asked himself. "In college, because wins are so hard to get, pleasure."