WBB Notes - 3.2.19
Bracket Update
Despite a loss to Georgetown, Butler locked up the No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep. The Bulldogs play Villanova on Sunday and the Wildcats would tie Butler for third place in the standings with a win, but the Bulldogs went 1-1 against top-seeded Marquette while VU went 0-2 to decide the tiebreaker. Additionally, because of Creighton and Georgetown wins, Seton Hall is guaranteed to be in the 8-9 game in the tourney’s first round. If the Pirates beat the St. John’s on Sunday, The Hall with be the No. 8 seed and face the ninth-seeded Red Storm six days later; if St. John’s wins, the Pirates are the No. 9 seed while the Johnnies will have to wait for Georgetown, Providence and Creighton to wrap up as all four can finish 8-10, but GU, PC and CU can also finish 9-9 to trap St. John’s into the eight-seed. Going into Sunday’s regular-season finales, the set seeds are: No. 1 Marquette, No. 2 DePaul, No. 3 Butler and No. 10 Xavier, while Seton Hall is guaranteed to be either No. 8 or 9.
Sunday’s Finales
All 10 teams take the court on Sunday to conclude the regular season. Creighton will host RV/24 DePaul at 2 p.m. ET for the lone national television game as the two tangle on FS2. The Bluejays knocked off the Blue Demons in Chicago back in December, but DePaul is now playing potentially for a regular-season title share. The remaining four games will stream live on the BIG EAST Digital Network, beginning at 1 p.m. when No. 13/12 Marquette visits Providence. The Golden Eagles can block DePaul’s title-share bid with a win. Three games follow at 2 p.m. – Villanova at Butler, Georgetown at Xavier and Seton Hall at St. John’s.
Creighton 71, 13/12 Marquette 65
The Bluejays became the only team to earn wins over the top two seeds in the BIG EAST Tournament this season as Creighton stunned No. 13/12 Marquette in Omaha. Audrey Faber led the charge early and often, finishing with a game-high 24 points off 8-of-13 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds and five assists. Natisha Hiedeman led the Golden Eagles with 22 points and seven boards, while Amani Wilborn added 21 points. Tied at 13-13 with 2:58 left in the first, Creighton went on a 20-0 run, including nine from Faber, and led the rest of the way. MU made one last push at the end, getting within five in the final moments, but the Bluejays clinched with free-throws, totaling 18 points from the charity stripe on the night. Jaylyn Agnew added 15 points, six rebounds and five assists for Creighton.
Full Recap
RV/24 DePaul 76, Providence 61
The Blue Demons remained in contention for a BIG EAST regular-season title share with a win over the Friars combined with a Marquette loss at Creighton. The victory was the seventh straight for RV/24 DePaul and ninth in its last 10 games. The Blue Demons scored 34 points of 23 Providence turnovers. The Friars were within three early in the fourth quarter, but DePaul took advantage of six miscues in that frame and erupted for a 23-point stanza to pull away. Ashton Millender led three Blue Demons in double figures with 17 points off 5-of-9 shooting from deep, while Jovana Nogic matched Millender’s game high with 17 for the Friars, as the senior moved within two three-pointers of the BIG EAST career record for made triples.
Full Recap
Villanova 68, Xavier 63
The Wildcats remained in contention for a top-four seed with its road win over the Musketeers, marking Villanova’s third win in its last four games. VU’s Jannah Tucker led all scorers with 22 points, including a 6-of-10 mark from deep, while Mary Gedaka collected her fourth double-double of the year with 12 points and 12 boards. A’riana Gray shined in the setback, going for 20 points and 21 rebounds – her third 20-rebound outing and BIG EAST-leading 14
th double-double of the season. The Wildcats led by as many as 15 until the Musketeers rallied back within three midway through the fourth quarter. Xavier was back within three with 19 seconds left after a Princess Stewart layup, and the Musketeers got the ball right back after an A’riana Gray steal, but XU was assessed a technical foul after calling a timeout without one remaining, sending Adrianna Hahn to the free-throw line for game-sealing freebies. Hahn finished with 11 points on the night and moved into a tie for second all-time with 165 made three-pointers in BIG EAST play.
Full Recap
Georgetown 72, Butler 42
The Bulldogs scored the game’s first four points but the Hoyas would lead by six by the end of the frame and never looked back thanks to a 23-point, 10-rebound, five-assist night for reigning BIG EAST Player of the Week Dionna White. GU held Butler to seven second-quarter points and kept their foot on the gas in the third by scoring 23 points while holding the host Bulldogs to 12. The win evened the season series between Georgetown and Butler, but the Bulldogs still locked up the No. 3 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament. Butler had previously never seeded higher than sixth in the BIG EAST. The victory was Georgetown’s third straight and moved them to .500 on the season (14-14).
Full Recap
Sunday In The BIG EAST
13/12 Marquette at Providence, 1 p.m.*#
Seton Hall at St. John’s, 2 p.m.*#
Georgetown at Xavier, 2 p.m.*#
Villanova at Butler, 2 p.m.*#
RV/24 DePaul at Creighton, 2 p.m.*+
+FS2 #BEDN *BIG EAST contest
All times Eastern