WBB Notes - 1.29.20
Halfway Home
BIG EAST women’s basketball teams enter the second half of conference play this weekend after wrapping up the first leg on Sunday. Through nine BIG EAST games, No. 11/12 DePaul leads the pack with a program-best 9-0 record, marking the second straight season a team has completed the first half of BIG EAST play unbeaten after Marquette did so in 2018-19. The 18-19 Golden Eagles posted the best start in the BIG EAST since realignment, winning their first 12 conference games before finishing 15-3 and winning the regular-season title. The Blue Demons have a three-game lead over a trio of second-place squads, including Marquette. MU, Butler and St. John’s are all 6-3, followed by two more three-way ties – Creighton, Seton Hall and Villanova in fifth at 5-4, and Providence, Georgetown and Xavier in eighth at 1-8.
What’s Next
All 10 BIG EAST teams will play their 10
th conference tilt of the season on Friday, with one airing on national television and four streaming on the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi. Of the five games on Friday, four were decided by 10 or less in the first meeting of the season, including the lone overtime game of the first-half of league play in St. John’s-Villanova. The Wildcats edged the Red Storm, 67-62, in Queens back in January – the two tipoff at Finneran Pavilion at 7 p.m. ET on BEDN. Also at 7 p.m., Seton Hall travels to Georgetown for the nationally televised game of the week, airing on FS2. Behind 21 points from Desiree Elmore, The Hall beat the Hoyas 79-60 on Jan. 5. Rounding out the 7 p.m. BEDN slate, Butler hosts Xavier at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Kristen Spolyar and Naira Caceres scored 23 points apiece to lead the Bulldogs over the Musketeers, 78-70, on Jan. 4. Two more games follow on BEDN at 8 p.m., including a rematch of No. 11/12 DePaul’s narrowest BIG EAST win of the season – Creighton. The Blue Demons won in Omaha by three, 74-71, on Jan. 5, thanks to Chante Stonewall’s game-high 26 points. Providence at Marquette rounds out the night, with MU winning 60-50 in Friartown on Jan. 5 as Lauren Van Kleunen scored 18 points.
Blue Demon Domination
Showing its finest start to BIG EAST play since joining the league in 2005-06, DePaul is 100-17 in conference action since realignment (2013-14), including this year’s 9-0 mark. The Blue Demons’ BIG EAST winning percentage is tops among all women’s
and men’s programs at .855, with the next closest team being the Villanova men, who are 96-19 (.835) and have also claimed five regular-season titles and four BIG EAST Tournament titles since realignment – the same numbers as DePaul.
First-Half Heroes
Statistical leaders through the first nine BIG EAST games (minimum 7 appearances):
Scoring: A’riana Gray, Xavier: 19.6 ppg
Rebounding: Maddy Siegrist, Villanova: 10.1 rpg
Assists: Selena Lott, Marquette: 6.7 apg
Steals: Sonya Morris, DePaul: 2.6 spg
This Week In The BIG EAST
Friday
St. John’s at Villanova, 7 p.m.*^
Seton Hall at Georgetown, 7 p.m.*!
Xavier at Butler, 7 p.m.*^
Creighton at 11/12 DePaul, 8 p.m.*^
Providence at Marquette, 8 p.m.*^
Sunday
Seton Hall at Villanova, 1 p.m.*^
St. John’s at Georgetown, 2 p.m.*^
Providence at 11/12 DePaul, 2 p.m.*^
Creighton at Marquette, 3 p.m.*^
All times Eastern
*BIG EAST contest
^BEDN
!FS2