WBB Notes - 1.16 Update
Weekend Ahead
Nine more BIG EAST women’s basketball contests are on the docket this weekend, beginning with four on Friday which includes two midday contests and one nationally televised tilt. St. John’s welcomes Providence and Seton Hall hosts -/RV Creighton in a pair of 11 a.m. ET matchups, both of which are streaming live on the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi. Marquette at Butler follows at 6:30 p.m. in a game airing on FS2, before No. 14/15 DePaul visits Xavier at 7 p.m. (BEDN) for the nightcap. Saturday features one contest as Villanova hosts Georgetown at 6 p.m., streaming on BEDN.
Why We’re Watching …
Providence at St. John’s - Friday, 11 a.m. (
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Caffeine): Both squads are eager to return to their winning ways and will look to do so in front of more than 5,000 elementary school children on Friday. In last year’s Field Trip Day meeting in Queens, the Friars edged the host Red Storm by one in overtime for the third straight victory over their longtime foe. St. John’s picked up the second meeting of the season in Providence later that year to split the annual series. Some of the younger stars in the league will be on display this year, including PC sophomore Mary Baskerville (13.9 ppg, 8.1 rpg) and St. John’s rookie Leilani Correa (13.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg).
-/RV Creighton at Seton Hall - Friday, 11 a.m. (
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Caffeine): The Pirates will look to rebound after a tough road swing to the Midwest last week, but will have a tall task when facing the leading scorer in conference play in Creighton’s Jaylyn Agnew. Agnew’s averaging 23.4 points against conference foes and 19.6 overall to list second in the league. Barbara Johnson is catching her stride for The Hall, averaging 18.5 points, 8.0 rebounds in last weekend’s DePaul-Marquette trip. Home teams prevailed in last year’s meetings with both games decided by single digits.
Marquette at Butler - Friday, 6:30 p.m. (FS2): Tied for fourth place at 3-2 in the conference standings, both squads carry three-game winning streaks into Friday’s matchup in Indianapolis. Defense has come alive for the Bulldogs during their three-game stretch, holding opponents to a combined 32-percent shooting clip on their respective home courts while collecting nearly 10 steals per contest. The Butler defense, led by Naira Caceres (2.0 spg), will look to keep reigning BIG EAST Player of the Week Selena Lott in check on Friday. Lott averaged 26.5 points last week and has posted 18.2 points per game in BIG EAST play this season.
14/15 DePaul at Xavier - Friday, 7 p.m. (
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Caffeine): The Blue Demons have an unbeaten (12-0) mark against the Musketeers in BIG EAST play, but the last two meetings at the Cintas Center were decided by a combined three points, including last year’s overtime, 73-71, decision in favor of DePaul. A’riana Gray will look to lead Xavier over DePaul, with the junior posting the numbers to do so – averaging 22.0 points and 7.4 rebounds in BIG EAST play. Gray will battle with Blue Demon standout Chante Stonewall on Friday night, with Stonewall averaging 18.2 points and 4.2 rebounds against conference foes this season. DePaul has won six straight games and is the lone remaining undefeated team in BIG EAST play at 5-0.
Georgetown at Villanova - Saturday, 6 p.m. (
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Caffeine): Four of the last five meetings between the longtime foes have been decided by single digits with the lone exception being the surprising 91-43 Villanova win last February – the most points the Wildcats have ever scored against the Hoyas in nearly 70 meetings. VU’s Mary Gedaka had 21 points off 10-of-11 shooting in that game a year ago, while Gedaka’s averaging 16.8 points and 5.8 rebounds in BIG EAST play this year. Gedaka will have her hands full on the glass as the Hoyas are the No. 2 rebounding offense in the BIG EAST at 38.5 boards per game. Anita Kelava leads the Hoyas with 7.1 rebounds along with 1.6 blocks per game.
Last Night In #BIGEASTwbb:
Villanova 70, Penn 58
After trailing for the entirety of the first half, Villanova outscored Penn 38-22 in the second half and held the Quakers to a nine-minute scoring drought to claim the Big 5 victory, 70-58. Freshman Maddy Siegrist led the scoring effort for Villanova with 27 points, including five triples. Mary Gedaka tallied 21 points and nine rebounds with 11 points coming in the final stanza to seal the victory for the Wildcats. Villanova (10-7, 4-2 BIG EAST) has won six of their last eight contests and 16 of their last 17 meetings with Penn.
Full Recap
Up Next
Friday
Providence at St. John’s, 11 a.m.*^
-/RV Creighton at Seton Hall, 11 a.m.*^
Marquette at Butler, 6:30 p.m.*!
14/15 DePaul at Xavier, 7 p.m.*^
Saturday
Georgetown at Villanova, 6 p.m.*^
Sunday
Providence at Seton Hall, 1 p.m.*^
Marquette at Xavier, 2 p.m.*^
-/RV Creighton at St. John’s, 2 p.m.*^
14/15 DePaul at Butler, 2 p.m.*^
All times Eastern
*BIG EAST contest
^BEDN
!FS2