Glenn Papazian (left) of Philly College Sports and Aaron Bracy of Big5Hoops present the Jack Scheuer VGH Award to Saint Joseph's Xzayvier Brown on December 7, 2024. (Photo: Chad Cooper)
By AARON BRACY
March 15, 2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. – After a thrilling, 73-68 quarterfinal victory in overtime over Dayton that probably left Hawks fans with fewer fingernails than when Thursday evening started, Erik Reynolds II, Justice Ajogbor, and coach Billy Lange walked up to a high podium in a back room where postgame interviews happen here at Capital One Arena.
It is customary for a couple of players to come out with the coach to share thoughts on the win, usually those who had meaningful impacts on the outcome.
No doubt, Ajogbor and Reynolds did, with the former swatting seven Dayton shots and the latter scoring 21 important points. Noticeably absent though was the man of the hour, the player who gets my game ball, Hawks point guard Xzayvier Brown.
When everyone’s hearts probably were beating a little faster and sweat on foreheads probably flowing a little more, Brown seemed to stay right at a 98.6-degree body temperature. Or less, if that’s even possible.
Cool and calm just when needed, Brown drained all four free throws in the final 14 seconds of regulation, helping to force overtime. Then, with the tension mounting in overtime in a game that epitomized why this month is dubbed “Madness,” Brown coldly fired home the biggest shot of St. Joe’s season to this point, a 3-pointer with 47.2 seconds left in the extra session with a hand right in his face.
That jumper gave the Hawks some much-needed breathing room while probably allowing many Hawks supporters the chance to breathe for the first time in a while, pushing St. Joe’s lead to 68-63. Still, this one wasn’t over yet, and St. Joe’s was up just two points with 18.3 seconds left when Brown went back to the free-throw line. He followed his routine and made them both.
What can Brown do for you? Deliver in the clutch.
“He was amazing in the overtime,” Lange said. “Straight-up amazing.”
It was the second straight day in which Brown drew a coach’s praise from the podium. On Thursday night, in the course of his touching, final postgame press conference, retiring La Salle coach Fran Dunphy was mentioning the hope that he has for the future based on interactions with various players and brought up Brown. Dunphy shared a story of how Brown idled up to the Big 5’s all-time winningest coach a few years ago while Brown was a senior at Roman Catholic, both in a gym somewhere watching a game.
Dunphy was struck by Brown’s maturity, appreciating how the young man handled himself in the moment. Really, what high school senior goes up to a veteran coach and just starts chatting for 15 minutes?
It was that story that was ringing in my head as Brown played the final stretch as if he were shooting around in Roman’s upstairs gym or at the Hawks’ renovated practice facility, just having some fun balling with some buddies. But all that was on the line here was the Hawks’ season, their chance to keep alive their NCAA tournament hopes. Yet, Brown was completely unfazed, completely locked into the moment that clearly was not too big for him.
It takes a special kind of person, for me an “old soul” like Brown, to be so cool when everything around is so frantic. And he played so well down the stretch after struggling for much of the game, missing shots he normally makes, making his end-of-game performance that much more impressive.
In the end, it mattered little that the box score says he tried 17 field goals and made just five.
Though it would have been fitting to hear his reaction, it didn’t even matter that Brown wasn’t included in the postgame press conference.
All that mattered is this: When the Hawks needed him, Brown delivered in the clutch.
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Aaron Bracy has been covering Philadelphia sports since 1996. Follow Bracy on X: @Aaron_Bracy and like his Facebook and Instagram pages. His book on the 2003-04 Saint Joseph’s men’s basketball team is expected to be published on March 1, 2025. Read a summary and preorder it by clicking HERE. Contact him at aaron@big5hoops.com.