NEW ORLEANS — 'Twas the last game before Christmas, when all through Xavier . . . fans were wondering if Rayshawn Mart would be the savior.
     He was. Again.
     The sophomore standout produced the third game-winner of his Xavier University of Louisiana career — two free throws with 1.9 seconds remaining — to lift the Gold Rush to a 78-76 basketball decision Wednesday over the University of the Virgin Islands.
     XULA (7-5) won for the second straight day and stretched its winning streak to three. Next will be a trip to Williamsburg, Ky., for the Cumberlands Classic, where the Gold Rush will play NAIA No. 5 Campbellsville Dec. 29 and No. 21 Cumberlands Dec. 30.
     UVI (7-10) tied the game at 76 with 3.1 seconds remaining when Keith Gilmore made 1-of-2 free throws. Mart rebounded Gilmore's miss, was fouled in the air by Gilmore, then delivered the winning points.
     "I was pretty calm when I was at the line," Mart said. "I just focused on the free throws. I was blessed to be in that situation and very confident that I could make them. I believed in my work and put it to use."
     The Buccaneers' Harold Cardwell missed a desperation 3-point attempt at the buzzer — it hit the top of the backboard from about 40 feet.
     Jeff Dixon scored 19 points and William Loyd 17 for the Gold Rush, and Mart and Ed Carter scored 15 apiece. Dylan Spriggins scored 20, Cardwell 18, Gilmore 15 and Kobie Johnson 12 for the Buccaneers, a second-year NAIA member.
     Both teams had double-digit leads — UVI by 11 in the seventh minute, XULA by 10 early in the second half — and there were eight ties and nine lead changes. Before Mart's winning points, the Rush struggled at the line, making 7-of-17 second-half free throws.
     "UVI was a scrappy team," Mart said. "The game wasn't pretty. It was about finding a win. We faced some adversity and did a good job fighting with our backs against the wall."