BIG EAST Notes - 12.18.18
Last Night In #BIGEASTwbb – 12.18.18
BIG EAST women’s basketball teams combined for a 3-0 Monday night mark as then-No. 19/16 Marquette (9-2), No. 20/18 DePaul (8-3) and Butler (8-1) all scored large-margin victories. The Golden Eagles posted the top two scoring performances on the night as Isabelle Spingola (24) and Allazia Blockton (20) each reached the 20-point mark in MU’s 93-40 victory over Binghamton, while the Blue Demons joined Marquette with four players in double figures, led by a trio of 18-point scorers in Mart’e Grays, Kelly Campbell and Dee Bekelja. DePaul posted its third 90-plus-point outing of the season with its 95-73 defeat of Tennessee State. Meanwhile in Indianapolis, Butler held an opponent under 50 points for the fifth time in 2018-19 as the Bulldogs knocked off Indiana State 72-49. Tori Schickel stuffed the stat sheet for the Bulldogs with eight points, nine rebounds and a BIG EAST season-high seven blocks. The win was Butler’s second straight, the third in a row for Marquette and fourth in a row for DePaul.
Butler 72, Indiana State 49 - Recap
20/18 DePaul 95, Tennessee State 73 - Recap
19/16 Marquette 93, Binghamton 40 - Recap
Coming Down The Homestretch Of Non-Conference
A total of 18 non-conference games will be played this week as nine of 10 BIG EAST teams wrap up the non-league portion of their 2018-19 schedules. BIG EAST teams are currently a combined 68-29 (.701) in non-conference action and finished last season 72-39 (.649) for their most wins and highest winning percentage since conference realignment. Villanova is the lone team to not play this week as the Wildcats are off until BIG EAST play begins on Dec. 29, but still have one non-league game remaining (Jan. 16 at Penn). Butler, Creighton (4-5), Providence (5-4) and Seton Hall (7-2) will all play in multi-game events this week, with the Bulldogs, Bluejays and Pirates taking their talents to Florida, while PC remains home for a three-game Friar Holiday Classic against Pepperdine, Northern Kentucky and La Salle. Notable Sunshine State matchups include Creighton against RV/RV South Florida, Butler versus Ohio State and Seton Hall against Georgia Tech. No. 20/18 DePaul, Georgetown (5-5), No. 19/17 Marquette and St. John’s (7-3) all have single games this week, while Xavier (7-2) will play a pair.
All Eyes On FS1
The final game on the BIG EAST schedule this week will be the one to watch as No. 19/17 Marquette welcomes reigning national champion No. 2/2 Notre Dame to the Al McGuire Center on Saturday at 1:40 p.m. ET. The game will air on FS1, the first of 15 regular-season games airing on FS1 or FS2 this year for BIG EAST teams. Among the notable storylines for Saturday – Marquette’s Allazia Blockton leading five 1,000-point scorers for the Golden Eagles and being just 21 points shy of 2,000 for her career; MU nearly pulling off the upset at current No. 4/4 Mississippi State earlier this month; and Marquette-Notre Dame decided in overtime in last season’s meeting in South Bend. Notre Dame (9-1) has one more game prior to its contest in Milwaukee as the Fighting Irish host Western Kentucky on Wednesday.
Upcoming Schedule
Tuesday
Alabama State at Xavier, 7 p.m.
Wednesday
Pepperdine at Providence, 4:30 p.m.
Thursday
Seton Hall vs. Georgia Tech, 12:15 p.m.#
Butler vs. Ohio State, 12:15 p.m.#
Northern Kentucky at Providence, 4:30 p.m.
Creighton vs. RV/RV South Florida, 6:15 p.m.%
20/18 DePaul at Loyola-Chicago, 8 p.m.
Friday
St. John’s at James Madison, 2 p.m.
La Salle at Providence, 2:30 p.m.
Butler vs. Eastern Michigan, 4:45 p.m.#
Georgetown at Rider, 7 p.m.
Seton Hall vs. UNC Greensboro, 7 p.m.#
Creighton vs. Vanderbilt, 8:30 p.m.%
Saturday
New Orleans at Xavier, 12 p.m.
2/2 Notre Dame at 19/17 Marquette, 1:40 p.m.
#West Palm Beach, Fla.
%Orlando, Fla.
All times Eastern