#BIGEASTwbb Tourney Journey Begins for Six More Teams On Quarterfinal Saturday
WBB Notes - BET QF
CHICAGO – The 2020 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep tipped off at Wintrust Arena on Friday with No. 8 seed Providence outlasting No. 9 seed Georgetown 49-46 and No. 7 seed Villanova edged No. 10 seed Xavier in overtime 64-56. The Friars advance to face top-seeded DePaul and the Wildcats move on to face second-seeded Marquette in two of four games on Saturday. The full quarterfinal slate tips off on Saturday at noon CT with the Blue Demons and Providence, followed by No. 4 seed Seton Hall against No. 5 seed Butler at 2:30 p.m. The evening session tips off at 6 p.m. with the Golden Eagles and Wildcats, before the nightcap at 8:30 p.m., featuring No. 3 seed St. John’s against No. 6 seed Creighton. All four of Saturday’s games will air on FS2, with the quarterfinal winners moving on to Sunday’s semifinals on FS1.
No. 1 seed DePaul vs. No. 8 Seed Providence, Noon CT
FS2
This Season: DePaul, 80-67 (@ PC); DePaul, 93-71 (@ DP)
BIG EAST Tournament history: DePaul, 1-0 – 2019 Quarterfinals, 85-60
DePaul and Providence meet in the BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals for the second consecutive season after the Friars topped Georgetown in Friday’s First Round, 49-46. The Blue Demons enter the conference postseason as the No. 1 seed for the fourth time and first since 2017. In last season’s PC-DPU postseason meeting, the Blue Demons scored an 85-60 win. DePaul has won 16 consecutive meetings with Providence. PC’s Mary Baskerville averaged 12.5 points, 4.5 rebounds in two games against DePaul this season, while the Blue Demons’ Sonya Morris went for 21.0 points, 3.5 rebounds against the Friars. Regular-season champions DePaul (25-5) has won the last two BIG EAST Tournament titles and four of the last six in total.
Providence (13-18) withstood a late surge from Georgetown in Friday’s First Round tilt as Alyssa Geary scored 15 points, recorded six blocks and snagged six rebounds. After winning in last year’s first round, the Friars advance in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 1994-95. Taylor Barnes scored a game-high 25 points, including the first 11 for Georgetown, which finishes the season 5-25.
Full Recap
No. 4 seed Seton Hall vs. No. 5 Seed Butler, 2:30 p.m. CT
FS2
This Season: Seton Hall, 67-62 (@ BU); Seton Hall, 66-53 (@ SHU)
BIG EAST Tournament history: First Meeting
Two of five teams who finished tied for third place with an 11-7 BIG EAST record, Seton Hall and Butler meet in the conference tournament for the first time. The Bulldogs have never advanced to the BIG EAST Tournament Semifinals, while the Pirates eye their first trip to the final four since 2016. The Hall (18-11) swept the season series with the Bulldogs (19-10) as Alexis Lewis averaged 18.5 points against Butler, which was sparked by Kristen Spolyar’s 12.5 points and 8.0 rebounds in the series. Spolyar ranks third in the BIG EAST in scoring at 18.4 points per game, while Lewis is the league’s active points leader with more than 1,600 in her career.
No. 2 seed Marquette vs. No. 7 seed Villanova, 6 p.m. CT
FS2
This Season: Marquette, 57-52 (@ MU); Villanova, 61-47 (@ VU)
BIG EAST Tournament history: Marquette, 2-1
The Golden Eagles are winners of five of their last six, with the lone setback during that stretch being to the Wildcats on Feb. 21. Villanova has also won 5-of-6, with its setback being to fellow third-place squad Creighton. Nova and Marquette (22-7) split the regular-season series, with VU’s Mary Gedaka averaging 18.5 points, 3.5 rebounds against the Golden Eagles and MU’s Lauren Van Kleunen going for 11.5 points, 8.0 rebounds against the Wildcats. Saturday’s showdown will be the fourth BIG EAST Tournament meeting between Villanova and Marquette, with the Golden Eagles holding a 2-1 advantage after 56-53 win at Allstate Arena in the 2014 Quarterfinals. It’ll be a battle between one of the hottest young coaches in recently crowned BIG EAST Coach of the Year Megan Duffy out of Marquette, and 42-year veteran Harry Perretta of Villanova – a four-time BIG EAST Coach of the Year himself.
Villanova (18-12) is coming off its first BIG EAST Tournament win since 2015, edging 10
th-seeded Xavier in overtime 64-56. Raven James scored a career-high 20 points, going 6-of-7 from three including a pair of overtime daggers to lead the Wildcats. Maddy Siegrist gathered a game-high 17 rebounds, while Mary Gedaka notched a double-double of 19 points and 12 boards. A’riana Gray led a trio of Musketeers in double figures with a team-high 17 points, grabbing 12 boards as well for her 10
th double-double of the season. Xavier (3-27) was 0-for-9 from three on the game until Aaliyah Dunham drained the game-tying three with time expiring in regulation to force the extra period. James went on to score eight of her 20 points in the final five minutes.
Full Recap
No. 3 seed St. John’s vs. No. 6 seed Creighton, 8:30 p.m. CT
FS2
This Season: St. John’s, 63-58 (@ SJU); St. John’s, 77-70 (@ CU)
BIG EAST Tournament history: First Meeting
For the fifth time in seven BIG EAST Tournaments St. John’s and Creighton will go head-to-head. The Bluejays ended a string of three consecutive Red Storm wins in the conference tournament series two seasons ago, as Creighton bounced St. John’s 66-58 in the 4-5 showdown of the Quarterfinals. The four previous postseason meetings were decided by just 7.3 points, including an overtime decision and a meeting in the 2016 tourney title game which St. John’s won, 50-37. The Red Storm swept the regular-season series this year in a pair of tightly contested contests as Alisha Kebbe averaged a double-double of 12 points and 10.5 rebounds in the wins. Creighton was without recently crowned BIG EAST Player of the Year Jaylyn Agnew and starter Tatum Rembao in the Jan. 19 meeting, as Temi Carda averaged 15.5 points in the two tilts with the Red Storm. Creighton has advanced to the semifinals in four consecutive seasons and five times overall, while St. John’s has advanced to the semis in four tournaments since 2014, most recently in 2017. At No. 3, St. John’s has its highest seed since 2014.
2020 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep
All times local – Central
First Round – March 6
Game 1: #8 Providence 49, #9 Georgetown 46 –
RECAP | BOX SCORE
Game 2: #7 Villanova 64, #10 Xavier 56 OT –
RECAP | BOX SCORE
Quarterfinals – March 7
Game 3: #1 DePaul vs. #8 Providence, Noon (FS2)
Game 4: #5 Butler vs. #4 Seton Hall, 2:30 p.m. (FS2)
Game 5: #2 Marquette vs. #7 Villanova, 6 p.m. (FS2)
Game 6: #6 Creighton vs. #3 St. John’s, 8:30 p.m. (FS2)
Semifinals – March 8
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 5 p.m. (FS1)
Game 8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 7:30 p.m. (FS1)
Final – March 9
Game 9: Semifinal winners, 7 p.m. (FS1)