DaytonDailyNews.com

OXFORD — So what does Miami University basketball coach Charlie Coles think about his RedHawks facing their third top-25 team in the last four games?

"That's crazy, isn't it?" said Coles, whose team will take on the No. 16 Xavier Musketeers today, Nov. 29, after having already faced No. 4 UCLA and No. 6 Pittsburgh. Miami lost those two matchups on the road, falling 64-59 to the Bruins and 82-53 to the Panthers.

Coles said the RedHawks have played multiple ranked teams before, "though I don't know if we've had top 25 teams this close together."

Coles said it will be important for his players to concentrate more on themselves than on the Muskies.

"We just take the approach that we'll go down there and do the best we can, and not worry about what Xavier is going to do to us," he said, "but just worry what we are going to do to us."

Easier said than done. Just ask Coles. If he isn't downright worried about Xavier, he definitely shows signs of concern.

"I'll tell you what, they're pretty doggone good," he said. "In the last five or six years, they've really come on, starting when (David) West and (Lionel) Chalmers came in there.

"This year's team has got what I call versatile players in (Derrick) Brown, C.J. Anderson, B.J. Raymond," Coles added. "Those guys can play three different positions. They can shoot; they can run; they can jump; they can defend. That's a talented trio there."

Coles doesn't expect to see the same Muskies who lost their opener to Miami 59-57 last year, then won 24 of their next 27 games.

"It's a different team from last year when they had (Drew) Lavender at point guard," Coles said, "but I think they're every bit as effective.

"Last year, they'd come off that ball screen and throw it to (Josh) Duncan, who was a good outside shooter," he said, adding that the Muskies still set the ball screen, but now they're passing it into the post more often.

"This is a big, big, big test for us," Coles said.