By Dustin Dow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Mississippi State's Michael Ignerski blocks a shot by David West during the first half. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

NEW YORK - Mississippi State decided to have a coming-out party to celebrate Mario Austin's first game of the season. David West and Xavier just forgot to show up.

Austin scored 28 points Saturday and led 24th-ranked MSU's rout of the No.13 Musketeers, who looked unsure on offense and didn't have an answer for the Bulldogs' athleticism on defense. The final score at Madison Square Garden was 71-61, a margin hardly indicative of how much MSU outplayed Xavier.

"They just kicked our butts," said West, who scored a team-high 13 points but had just five with eight minutes left in the game. He fouled out with 38 seconds to play.

West did come up with 17 rebounds, and passed the 1,000-rebound mark for his career.

Mississippi State's defense had Xavier so rattled that West made only one field goal as a result of offensive execution, a 3-pointer from the top of the key. Other than that, he had three baskets off offensive rebounds and sank four free throws.

"They scouted us well," West said. "They took away our shots. They took away cuts. They knew our offense as well as we knew our offense."

In contrast, the Musketeers (5-2) were always a step behind the Bulldogs' offense. Because Austin, whose eligibility was confirmed by the NCAA on Tuesday, was playing in his first game, Xavier coaches didn't see any game tape from this season that included Austin.

They know what he can do now. When Xavier scored the first eight points of the second half to cut MSU's lead to 33-23, Austin scored nine straight points to push the gap to 42-26.

Mississippi State's Mario Austin takes it to the rim. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

"I think Mario established himself today against an All-American candidate (West)," said Bulldogs guard Timmy Bowers, who made 8-of-11 shots from the field for 18 points.

Austin said he wasn't looking for a one-on-one game with West, and the two rarely guarded each other. But Austin, a junior who thought about turning pro after his sophomore season, looked like the more active player to the NBA scouts in attendance.

"They played at an entirely different level than we played at," West said. "We didn't play hard at all. We weren't running anything."

There was no excuse to not be ready for this one, West said. It was another game, like the one against Stanford in November, against a successful major-conference team. A victory could have given Xavier's high preseason expectations more legitimacy.

But the Musketeers are 0-2 in those games with another one, against No.2 Alabama, on Jan.4.

"The team we have and the things we're looking to accomplish, we blew it," West said.

Mississippi State's players were billed as being athletic, and indeed they were. Bulldogs point guard Derrick Zimmerman blocked a pair of shots, one by Xavier starting center Anthony Myles and the other by backup Will Caudle. Zimmerman is 6-foot-3, while Myles and Caudle are each 6-9.

"I'm not your average point guard," Zimmerman said. "I can do a lot of things that other point guards can't do."

Xavier players ran a stagnant, unmoving offense in the first half, which factored into the Musketeers' 23.3 shooting percentage in the opening 20 minutes.

At one point, they went 6:34 without a basket, and they scored just three points in the final five minutes of the half. Senior reserve Dave Young provided the only offensive spark when he scored five straight points, but he had little help as West and All-American candidate Romain Sato each made just one field goal in the first half. Sato finished with a season-low six points.

"When you're struggling to score and they're shooting open shots at the other end, you kind of get that feeling like, damn we could be in for a long day here," said Xavier coach Thad Matta.

Offensively, the Musketeers played better in the second half, as Finn made four 3s, but their 33-15 halftime deficit was too much to overcome. Finn finished with 12 points, while Anthony Myles scored 11. For the game, Xavier shot 35 percent and committed 14 turnovers, 10 in the first half.

The Musketeers have final exams coming up this week and will take a couple days off before preparing to play Ball State at home on Friday.