y for an 86-53 victory on Monday night.The Musketeers (2-0) quickly opened a double-digit lead and got the balance back in their offense after relying on career highs for points by Trevon B

CINCINNATI -- After a sloppy opening win, No. 11 Xavier spent its time working on defense. It was much improved the second time around.J.P. Macura scored 18 points and the Musketeers took advantage of 38 personal fouls by Buffalo, pulling away for an 86-53 victory on Monday night.The Musketeers (2-0) quickly opened a double-digit lead and got the balance back in their offense after relying on career highs for points by Trevon Bluiett and Edmond Sumner in their opening 84-81 win over Lehigh. Bluiett and Sumner had 13 points apiece on Monday.We took a step forward today, said Rashid Gaston , who had nine points and seven rebounds.The defense was much better, too, allowing few uncontested shots.Practice these last past couple days have really geared toward defense, Gaston said. We had to play more team defense.Buffalo (1-1) couldnt keep up with Xaviers quickness and quickly got into foul trouble. The Bulls trailed 42-22 late in the first half and had more fouls (23) than points.Two Bulls fouled out with 8 minutes left in the game, and Xavier went 28 of 38 at the line. Macura made all of his 10 free throws.Our team used Buffalos aggressiveness to our advantage, coach Chris Mack said.Nick Perkins led the Bulls with 15 points, and they shot only 31 percent from the field. Some of the Bulls complained about the many fouls called, but coach Nick Oats didnt see it that way.We need to learn to play defense without fouling, Oats said. Our guys said they got (bad calls), but those officials worked the tournament. They didnt cost us 30 fouls.With the big lead, Mack was able to use some of the freshmen who struggled in the opening win. Guard Quentin Goodin was tentative in the opener, but had 11 points and four assists after the coaching staff urged him to relax.I wasnt really scared, just hesitant, Goodin said. Tonight I played loose, started having fun, and it worked out. I just played the way I did when they recruited me.A LOT OF WHISTLESThe officiating crew of John Gaffney, Brent Hampton and Alfred Smith also called 21 fouls on Xavier for 59 total. The Bulls went 13 of 21 on free throws.TOUGH AT HOMEThe Musketeers improved to 218-31 at the Cintas Center.POLL IMPLICATIONSXavier slipped from No. 7 -- the highest preseason ranking in its history -- to No. 11 in Mondays poll, based upon the Musketeers sloppy win over Lehigh. They looked much better in this one.BIG PICTUREBuffalo: Blake Hamilton, the Bulls top returning scorer and rebounder, missed most of the preseason workouts with a broken non-shooting hand. He had 11 points and eight rebounds in a 76-66 win over Niagara on Friday. Hamilton fouled out against Xavier with eight points and three rebounds.Xavier: The Musketeers had three turnovers and defensive lapses in the final 61 seconds of their win over Lehigh, so holding onto the ball was a point of emphasis. They turned it over only nine times.The biggest part with the turnovers is we just had to settle down, Gaston said.UP NEXTBuffalo: Hosts Nazareth on Thursday, the Bulls only home game out of their first nine. Their next home game is Dec. 10 against Coppin State.Xavier: Plays Missouri on Thursday in the opening round of the Tire Pros Invitational in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.---More AP college basketball: http://collegebasketball.ap.org Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys . -- If this was Aaron Gordons final home game at Arizona, and it almost certainly was, then he went out in style. Discount Nike Football Jerseys . That gave fans outside Joe Louis Arena another chance to ask for autographs from the 19-year-old whose stardom in the NHL has arrived earlier than most expected. http://www.wholesalenikenfljerseys.com/ .com) - The Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks both take aim at their first wins of the season on Saturday, as the Canucks open their home slate at Rogers Arena. Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping . The quest begins with what is supposed to be an easy one, although Germany has traditionally been a stubborn opponent to Canadian teams at international tournaments. Wholesale NFL Jerseys .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. LOS ANGELES -- Blake Griffin is apologizing to Los Angeles Clippers fans for punching the teams assistant equipment manager last season, an incident he says was 100 percent my fault.He was suspended four games and docked nearly $860,000 in pay for the altercation in January at a Toronto restaurant. Griffin broke his right hand and Matias Testis face was severely swollen. Testi no longer works for team, having left in late July with no reason given by the Clippers, who open training camp Tuesday in Irvine.Griffin says not a day goes by that he doesnt think about the incident and says he feels like he let down longtime Clippers fans. The 27-year-old forward expressed his thoughts in a letter posted Friday on The Players Tribune website, where he is listed as a senior editor.I dont want to dwell on it, but I think I owe it to Clippers fans to say it once again before the season begins: Im sorry, he wrote.Griffin was limited to 35 games last season because of a left quadriceps injury. He averaged 21.4 points and 8.4 rebounds. The Clippers lost to Portland in six games in the first round of the playoffs.We all know the narrative going into this season, he wrote. Everyones like, `Oh, they lose in the playoffs every year. Same old CClippers.ddddddddddddAll I have to say to that is this: Were the same core group that beat the defending-champion Spurs in seven games just 17 months ago. I know 17 months seems like forever, especially in NBA time, but we know how small the margins are between winning and losing, and how quickly the narratives around teams can change.Griffin said missing most of last season was a wake-up call for me.When I was hurt and basically sitting around going stir-crazy, it made me realize that basketball was like therapy for me, he wrote. No matter what was going on in the real world, if I could just get to the gym, everything else disappeared.Griffin said a few days after the altercation he received a call from his older brother Taylor, who said, Man, what are you doing? This is not you. What are you doing this for?I was crushed, Griffin said. To hear that from him, somebody Ive looked up to my whole life, who always tells me what I need to hear, thats when I had a pretty big realization about who I am, and who I want to be. I dont want to say what that realization was. I just want to go out and show you. 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