Cincinnati, Ohio - Jason Love and Brad Redford each scored a career-high 15 points to help No. 22 Xavier snap a two-game slide with a 78-57 win over the Robert Morris University men's basketball team on New Year's Eve at the Cintas Center.

RMU, which has dropped consecutive games to opponents from the Atlantic 10 Conference, falls to 6-7 overall on the year, while the Musketeers improve to 10-2.

Senior forward Ifeanyi Ehirim (Toronto, Ontario / Eldon Academy Prep) opened the game's scoring with a jumper in the paint, but Xavier reeled off 11 straight points, including five from Love, to take an 11-2 advantage.

Jamel McLean gave the Musketeers their first double-digit lead, 20-9, with a pair of free throws at the 12:29 mark of the first half, and a three-pointer by Redford gave Xavier its biggest lead before the break, 38-19.

Trailing, 45-27, entering the second half, Robert Morris reeled off an 8-1 run after intermission to close within 48-35. Junior forward Rob Robinson (Waldorf, Md. / Globe Institute of Technology) scored four points, while juniors guards Mezie Nwigwe (Hyattsville, Md. / High Point) and Jimmy Langhurst (Willard, Ohio / Willard) each had buckets.     

A jumper from senior guard Jeremy Chappell (Cincinnati, Ohio / Northwest) and another layup by Langhurst trimmed the RMU deficit to 50-39 with 13:54 to play, but Redford squashed any hopes of a Colonial comeback with a pair of long three-pointers over a minute span that quickly pushed the Xavier lead to 60-41.

Chappell, making a return to his hometown for the first time on his career, led all scorers in the game with 17 points while also adding five rebounds, three assists and a steal. Robinson was the only other Colonial to reach double figures scoring, finishing with 12 points in 18 minutes off the bench.

Love finished 7-for-9 shooting from the floor for the Musketeers, while Redford was 5-for-8, with all of his shot coming from beyond the arc. B.J. Raymond contributed 13 points as Xavier shot 52.1 percent (25-for-48) from the field compared to 39 percent (23-for-59) for Robert Morris. 

The Colonials return to action Saturday, Jan. 3, at the Charles L. Sewall Center, hosting in-state rival Saint Francis (Pa.) for a 7:00 p.m. tip.