Dec. 29, 2008

By Adam Kiefaber

CINCINNATI - In October, Xavier head coach Sean Miller acknowledged that the "magic question" surrounding his team this season was going to deal directly with the "stability" and "improvement" of the point guard position.

At that time it appeared that Terrell Holloway, even though he is just a freshman, would be the team's starting point guard. However, sophomore Danté Jackson has been the starter at that position.

Now after 11 non-conference games this season, Jackson has yet to miss a start at the point. He currently leads the team in assists and has shown an impressive ability to be a leader on the court even though he is just in his second season.

Despite Jackson's positive impact, Holloway made a strong case in November to supplant Jackson as the starting point guard.

In Xavier's championship run in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off tournament, Holloway played a major role in wins over Missouri and Memphis. In each contest, he was a perfect 10-for-10 from the free-throw line.

After emerging as a key player in Puerto Rico, it appeared Holloway's first start would be coming soon, but when the team arrived back home Holloway was diagnosed with a left foot stress fracture, causing him to miss two weeks of practice and two games.

"It's disappointing because he played so well in Puerto Rico, he had such a big role in our championship down there that those two weeks would have been really meaningful to him," Miller said.

The missed practice time set Holloway back, as he played a season-low 15 minutes and scored only two points in his first game back against Ohio University on Dec. 10.

"As we move down our schedule, especially when you get past Christmas and he is back for some period of time, to me one of our best lineups will be when he is in there," Miller said.

Since that game, Holloway has seen his playing time increase. But he still seems decently far away from making his first collegiate start.

As of right now, Holloway has been back with the team practicing for the past three weeks. In his latest performance against Butler, Holloway looked like the player he was in Puerto Rico, driving to the basket and drawing fouls. On three separate occasions, Holloway created his own shot off the dribble, scored inside the paint and was fouled.

It was that confident play that led Xavier in those early season résumé-building wins.

"Lack of confidence isn't Terrell's problem, his pedigree, where he is from, he is not worried about much," Miller said. "I have no doubt that during Terrell's career he will develop into an excellent point guard."

Currently Holloway is averaging 7.2 points per game, which is the fifth highest on the team. He also leads the team with an 87.8 free-throw percentage.

Holloway and the Musketeers will play their last game in 2008 when they take on the Robert Morris Colonials at the Cintas Center on New Year's Eve at 6 p.m.

Xavier Musketeers Men's Basketball

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