After several months of work relatively out of the public eye, a reloaded Xavier men’s basketball roster will take center stage in a unique setting when the Musketeers face the Dayton Flyers in an outdoor exhibition on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Xavier will play Dayton and Cincinnati will face Ohio State in the CareSource Invitational at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason. The event will raise awareness and funds for mental health and suicide prevention.
Home of the Cincinnati Open, the Lindner Family Tennis Center began $260 million renovations shortly after the 2024 tournament with plans to transform the venue into a year-round facility.
There are new indoor tennis courts, six pickleball courts and two padel courts. And now, a basketball takes over Center Court for two games in one night between four of Ohio’s high-major college programs.
More: Here’s how the basketball court at Lindner Family Tennis Center looks
More: Xavier basketball has deeper roster and a key question to answer
For Xavier, it’s the first of three preseason exhibition contests. The Musketeers will get a true road game feel next week when they travel to Knoxville to face a Tennessee Volunteers squad coming off an Elite Eight appearance. Xavier will also host Kent State at Cintas Center on Friday, Oct. 23 before the season-opener against Mount St. Mary’s on Monday, Nov. 2.
“I wanted to test them early,” second-year head coach Richard Pitino said. “We’ll learn a lot and we need to.”
What they’re saying about Xavier, Dayton
Dayton is coming off its eighth consecutive winning season, but the Flyers have missed the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years. Dayton went 25-12 last season and lost in the NIT quarterfinals to Illinois State.
Head coach Anthony Grant is entering his 10th season and is three wins away from 200 for his tenure with the Flyers and 10 victories away from 400 for his career (2006-2009 at VCU; 2009-2015 at Alabama).
Dayton is led by a few key returners, including 7-foot-1 big man Amael L’Etang, who averaged 11.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game last season and can step back and hit from the perimeter, too (36.1%).
Dayton has a six-player transfer portal class that is ranked No. 79 by 247Sports. The Flyers have three high-major additions, including former UC forward Jalen Haynes, who never suited up for the Bearcats last year. Travis Perry averaged 4.1 points for Ole Miss last year and guard Zaide Lowery played in 73 games for Marquette over the last three seasons. Lowery played in four games against Xavier in 2024-2025 but left the Marquette program last December.
Xavier was recently picked to finish sixth in the Big East and had two players (Jovan Milicevic and Mike Nwoko) named to the all-league preseason third team. The Musketeers’ transfer portal class includes seven newcomers and is ranked No. 21 by 247Sports.
Richard Pitino said this year’s team might have “the most depth” he’s had as a head coach. Wednesday will be the first opportunity to explore that depth and see if Xavier’s added size will slow down an offense that lived on spacing, speed and three-point shooting one year ago while helping a defense that gave up over 80 points per game for the first time since 1980.
Xavier vs. Dayton basketball history
The Dayton-Xavier rivalry began over 100 years ago, when the Flyers beat the Musketeers, 24-18, in 1920. Overall, Dayton holds an 85-76 advantage in the rivalry against Xavier, but the two schools haven’t played in the regular season since the 2015 AdvoCare Invitational in Orlando.
Xavier won that matchup, 90-61, and is 43-17 against Dayton since the 1987-88 season. Xavier beat Dayton, 98-74, in the CareSource Charity Classic at UD Arena in 2024.
Xavier Musketeers vs. Dayton Flyers time, radio info
Tip: 5:30 p.m.
Radio: Varsity Network/Xavier Musketeers app
Venue: Lindner Family Tennis Center (Mason, Ohio)
Dayton Flyers scouting report
Record: 25-12 last season (lost NIT quarterfinals)
Head coach: Anthony Grant (197-95 at Dayton, 10th season)
Offense: 74.1 PPG last season
Defense: 69.3 PPG last season
Projected starting lineup
(Position, Height, Stats)
Travis Perry (G, 6’3″, 4.1 PPG last season at Ole Miss)
Landen Joseph (G, 6’2″, 7.9 PPG last season at Marshall)
Jalen Haynes (F, 6’8″, DNP last season at UC)
Jaiun Simon (F, 6’6″, 5.6 PPG last season at Dayton)
Amael L’Etang (C, 7’1″, 11.9 PPG last season at Dayton)
Xavier Musketeers scouting report
Record: 15-18 last season
Head coach: Richard Pitino (15-18 at Xavier, second season)
Offense: 78.4 PPG last season
Defense: 80.6 PPG last season
Projected starting lineup
(Position, Height, Stats)
Chance Westry (G, 6’3″, 15.5 PPG last season at UAB)
Tru Washington (G, 6’4″, 11.9 PPG last season at Miami)
Ruben Dominguez (G, 6’6″, 10.2 PPG last season at Texas A&M)
Jovan Milicevic (F, 6’10”, 12.4 PPG last season at Xavier)
Mike Nwoko (C, 6’10”, 13.4 PPG last season at LSU)
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Xavier basketball prepares for outdoor exhibition against UD Flyers