Holloway made right decision fourth season at Xavier

Rich Hidy

Cincy Sports Spot

It's hard to believe former Xavier point guard Tu Holloway, one of Xavier's greatest scorers in school history, has been a graduate of the university for over a year now. Holloway was very close to leaving the school before he picked up his diploma. Following his junior season, Holloway was widely regarded as a top five point guard in college basketball. Let's rewind to a couple seasons ago and revisit Tu Holloway's draft stock.

Holloway and Mark Lyons paired as quite possibly the best backcourt combo at the NCAA level in 2010-11. Holloway was not only a tremendous facilitator for Chris Mack's offense, but he also became a dominant scorer, especially following a 2010 NCAA Tournament performance that put him on the map as Xavier's next superstar in the line of many. Holloway teamed with Jordan Crawford carrying the load, scoring 26 points and passing for six assists. 

Holloway averaged 19.7 points per game his junior season, earning rave reviews from national pundits and looking like he was on a mission to take his team deep in the NCAA Tournament. Not only did Holloway almost reach the 20 points per game mark, but he also averaged five rebounds and 5.4 assists per game in 2010-11. He was efficient from the field by shooting 42.4%, and shot a career mark of 87% from the free throw line.

Holloway led the Musketeers to the six seed in the NCAA Tournament, and Xavier looked like a dark horse team to make a run to at least the Sweet 16 in March Madness. However, Xavier ran into a hot shooting team from the outside in Marquette. The Golden Eagles used future NBA players like Jae Crowder, Jimmy Butler, and Darius Johnson-Odom to outmatch the Musketeers 66-55. The most disappointing part about the game was Holloway's performance on the big stage. He shot one of eight from the field for five points, and also had five turnovers. Holloway was shown crying as he left the floor knowing he hadn't put together his best performance when the lights were shining most bright.  

Holloway had a very difficult decision to make as to whether to play his fourth season with the Musketeers or leave early and test the NBA waters like Jordan Crawford and Derrick Brown recently before him. He was considered a sure fire first round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, possibly going as high as the lottery. Holloway garnered comparisons to top NBA point guard Chris Paul, and the only knock on his game was his short stature of 5'11, which hasn't stopped players like Nate Robinson and Jameer Nelson from succeeding in the NBA. 

The point guard announced his decision to remain a Musketeer for one more season on Twitter, and although the brawl with UC put a damper on the basketball program his senior season, Holloway showed that he could lead a team to regroup and play well in the NCAA Tournament. Holloway's shooting percentage improved his senior year as he shot almost 43% from the field. Holloway averaged 17.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game for the Musketeers. Although he looked bored and passive at times on the court, Holloway was more interested in benefiting from getting his teammates involved and becoming a more unselfish player than being a volume shooter.

Xavier entered the tournament as a ten seed after a disappointing loss in the Atlantic 10 Tournament to Andrew Nicholson and St. Bonaventure. The Musketeers played clutch basketball and knocked off Notre Dame by four points in the first round matchup in the NCAA Tournament behind Holloway's game high 25 points. Holloway was ten for fifteen from the floor against the Irish. 

The Musketeers were then shocked to face Lehigh in the second round for a trip to the Sweet 16. Lehigh pulled off one of the greatest upsets in Tournament history against Duke, but the Musketeers were too experienced and too hungry to resurrect their performance from a year prior to let Lehigh continue its dance. Holloway played 39 grueling minutes against CJ McCollum and scored 21 points, including a marksman-like four for eight from behind the three point line. Xavier rolled over Lehigh 70-58. 

Next, the Musketeers were one victory away from returning to the Elite Eight, where they had played once under Sean Miller. Baylor was the team that proved too much for Holloway and Xavier to handle. The Musketeers put up a stellar effort in the 75-70 loss, but Baylor's athleticism and top recruits were overwhelming. The Bears lost in the next round to the eventual National Champion Kentucky. Holloway capped off his college career by righting his ship at Xavier. He made the memory of the Marquette loss erased in the minds of Xavier fans with his dazzling display of scoring, averaging 22.7 points in the 2012 NCAA Tournament. He led all scorers against Baylor with 22 points, and also had four rebounds and three assists. 

Holloway was expected to be drafted in 2012 after Xavier finished the season 23-13, but each pick went by without Holloway hearing his name called. Prior to the draft, it was believed that Holloway would be taken at some point in the second round, but it just didn't work out. The Raptors picked up Holloway and placed him on their summer league roster, but he failed to stick and later signed on with the Mavericks. On October 2, the Mavs released Holloway, and he decided to take his talents to Turkey when Aliaga Petkim signed the former Xavier star. 

Holloway played in 18 games for the Turkish team, scoring 5.5 points a game. Holloway and Aliaga Petkim agreed to part ways after the season, meaning Holloway could be preparing for another shot at the NBA in the upcoming summer league. Even though Holloway hasn't been able to reach his dream of making an NBA roster just yet, he restored his legacy as a Xavier great his senior season and placed his name amongst the greatest players in Cincinnati college basketball history.