Three changes resulting from attrition

With Brad Redford being injured on Saturday, Oct. 23, and Justin Martin being ruled ineligible on Oct. 25, the Xavier men’s basketball team takes on a whole new complexion.
With only 10 scholarship players available, here is what the Musketeers roster breaks down to at the moment:
PG: Tu Holloway
SG: Mark Lyons
SF: Dante Jackson, Jay Canty
PF: Jamel McLean, Andrew Taylor, Griffin McKenzie
C: Kenny Frease, Jordan Latham
The lack of depth will influence the Musketeers in a number of ways. Here are three major changes:
1. The Musketeers were already contenders to lead the country in free throw attempts per game, but the possibility gets even greater now. With XU’s main scoring punch coming from slashing guards Holloway and Lyons, the Musketeers will still want to run when possible. But getting to the free throw line will give Holloway, Lyons and Jackson a breather from the 30-plus minutes each will be expected to log. Also, with fewer perimeter players, the shot distribution will be skewed more toward Frease, McLean and Latham on the interior, likely adding to the foul total of opponents.
2. With Xavier likely getting to the free throw line more than 20 times per game—and opponents therefore picking up approximately 20 fouls per game—the Musketeers may struggle on the road. As the Musketeers attack the interior offensively to pick up fouls, they will have to avoid them on the other end because of the lack of depth. But foul inequality has been proven to trend in the favor of the home team, if anything, in college basketball, making road games potential traps for XU.
3. Xavier has traditionally been a three-point heavy team, but will likely rely on the deep ball for less than 25 percent of its offense this season. Still, Jackson will likely put up more than 200 three point attempts this season, with Lyons and Holloway both getting more than 100 attempts. With Frease, McLean, Latham and Taylor limited to points inside the paint, the approximately 400 attempts the starting backcourt combines for will likely account for the vast majority of XU’s deep threat.