SALT LAKE CITY — It may have been one play that first brought national attention to Xavier's Jordan Crawford, but it has been the sophomore's stellar play that has kept him there.
Crawford was thrust in the spotlight last summer when during a pick-up game, he dunked a ball over who many consider the best basketball player on the planet, the Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James. The play was caught on video and eventually found its way to YouTube — the story grew in stature even more when it was first reported that some of "King James" people at the Nike Camp where the game took place originally confiscated the video, then reconsidered after public outcry, and allowed the dunk to be posted. Since that time, Crawford has been proving to America that he is more than just a one-play wonder.
The kid can play.
Crawford was named a third-team All-American and the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year by The Sporting News. He is averaging 20.2 points per game after scoring 28 points in the Musketeers first-round win over Minnesota and 27 points over Pittsburgh in the second round. He grabs 4.8 rebounds a contest and averages nearly three assists per game.
"Certainly he draws a lot of attention. He is a terrific player," said coach Chris Mack.
While "the dunk" was a hot topic of discussion before the year began, the 6-foot-4 sophomore from Detroit obviously has grown tired of talking about the play. When asked about it during the team's press conference Wednesday before Xavier's Sweet 16 matchup with Kansas State, twice he simply talked about how it is the play of his team that deserves recognition.
"We try to go hard in practice everyday as a team," he said when asked if anyone tries harder to dunk on him in practice because of the dunk. "Hopefully practicing hard will help us win some games. I think we did a good job practicing coming in here, working, and that's what led us to the Sweet 16."
THE NEW AND NOT SO NEW: Coach Mack is not new to Xavier's program or the NCAA Tournament. While it is true he is the only first-year head coach that made the field of 65, he has Big Dance experience as both a player — he was a team captain for the Musketeers in 1993 when the team made the second round, and he played for Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's former school in Evansville in 1989 in the Tournament — and as an assistant at both Xavier and Wake Forest.
ELITE COMPANY: There are two teams left in the NCAA Tournament that have made the Sweet 16 in each of the last three seasons: Michigan State, and yep, you guessed it, Xavier.
FAMILIAR FOES: The matchup with Kansas State is not new for the Musketeers. The two teams played in Manhattan, Kan. earlier this season with the Wildcats posting a 71-56 win. The two teams also played during the 2006-2007 season and '07-'08 seasons with Xavier winning both.
e-mail: mblack@desnews.com