By Dustin Dow
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Lionel Chalmers said Duquesne could have played with any team in the nation Wednesday night after No. 13 Xavier escaped A.J. Palumbo Center with an 80-78 overtime victory.

He may or may not be right, but for much of that game, Xavier played like it could have been beaten by any team. Not until eight minutes remained in the game did Xavier play with the defensive effort that has become the norm during its 12-game winning streak.

And even then, it was almost too late, because the Dukes weren't about to hand over the game. Only a well-timed tip-in by Anthony Myles with .7 seconds left in regulation allowed Xavier to force overtime and eventually prevail.

"I was just trying to find a good position and tip it up," Myles said. "Then I was just under the basket watching it roll in."

Thus is the sometimes-lucky nature of an extended winning streak that includes seven road wins. Xavier (21-4, 12-1) certainly could not have expected to blow out every conference team except Dayton this season. Players knew a close one would come sooner or later - the type of game that tests a team's character.

Coach Thad Matta said he expected a tough game from the Dukes, especially since Xavier had just moved into first place in the A-10 after beating Dayton Saturday.

"I knew it would be tough," Matta said. "Because it was a huge game for (Duquesne's) program."

While Duquesne (9-18, 3-11) coach Danny Nee was rightfully proud of his team's effort, Xavier players may benefit from the game the most. They kept their win streak, conference position and probably their national ranking all intact while getting a nice wakeup call two weeks before the postseason.

The conference-opening loss to Richmond aside, Xavier had not been challenged like this by any A-10 team other than Dayton.

"Duquesne beat us mentally," David West said. "We weren't playing the way we were capable of playing."

But still, Xavier found a way to win, just like it will have to do come mid-March if the Musketeers are to make an NCAA Tournament run, survive and advance.

"A game like this definitely helps us for later," West said. "We showed that down the stretch, we were able to get stops (against Duquesne)."

Said Matta: "From my viewpoint it was an odd game."

CLOSING IN ON 2,000: West scored 19 points against Duquesne, increasing his career point total to 1,994. When he reaches 2,000, he will join Tyrone Hill, who is the only Xavier player to score 2,000 points and grab 1,000 rebounds.

STAR HONORED: Bill Kirvin, who played at Xavier from 1959-62 and scored 1,088 points, was inducted into the Schenectady, N.Y., City School District Athletic Hall of Fame. Kirvin, a 1989 Xavier Hall of Fame inductee, coached Bishop Gibbons High School in Schenectady in 1963.

RETURN HOME: George Washington, which visits XU Saturday, is coming off a 94-89 loss to St. Bonaventure Wednesday. GW is 10-15 (4-10 A-10).

E-mail ddow@enquirer.com

Up next for XU

George Washington at Xavier

When: 2 p.m. Saturday.

Where: Cintas Center (10,250).

TV: Fox Sports Net.

Radio: WKRC-AM (550).