Musketeers Open BIG EAST Road Swing at Seton Hall

Friday, January 22

South Orange, N.J.

7 P.M.

Xavier University

Seton Hall University

Musketeers Open BIG EAST Road Swing at Seton Hall

01.20.16 | Women's Basketball

Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier women's basketball opens a two-game BIG EAST road trip at Seton Hall on Friday, Jan. 22. The game will be carried on the BIG EAST Digital Network with a 7 p.m. tip time from Walsh Gymnasium.

The Musketeers enter the contest with a 14-4 overall record and a 5-2 mark in conference play to rank third in the BIG EAST standings. Xavier is 2-2 in road games this season.

Seton Hall is 14-4 on the year and ranks fifth in the conference standings with a 4-3 record. The Pirates are 6-1 at home this season.

LAST TIME OUT

• The Musketeers are coming off a 70-53 home loss to No. 25 DePaul on Sunday, Jan. 17. Xavier only hit 35.3 percent of its shot attempts and was outrebounded, 37-35.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series with Seton Hall, 4-0.

LAST TIME OUT VS SETON HALL

• Xavier dropped both games of the series last year. The Musketeers averaged 57 points per game, while the Pirates averaged 77.5 points per game.

• Maddison Blackwell averaged 6.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last year against the Pirates. She was 6-for-13 from the floor in the series.

GLOVER CLOSING IN ON MILESTONE

• Senior Briana Glover has 983 career points, needing only 17 more points to become the 24th member of the 1,000th point club at Xavier. She has averaged 8.9 points per game in her career with a .455 field-goal percentage (351-for-771).

NOTABLES

• Briana Glover has made 17 straight free throws. The senior forward is 26-for-28 from the foul line in BIG EAST play.

• Raeshaun Gaffney scored 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting against DePaul, her second game of the season with 20 or more points and the fifth of her career. The junior guard finished the week averaging 15.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.

• Raeshaun Gaffney has scored in double figures 12 times this season and has led the team in scoring five times. She leads the team in scoring (12.7 ppg) and rebounding (5.0 rpg).

• Briana Glover was held to eight points against DePaul after entering the game averaging 23.5 points per game in her previous two outings. She ranks second on the team in scoring (11.9 ppg), while leading the team in field-goal percentage (.510).

BIG EAST PLAY

• Briana Glover and Raeshaun Gaffney have combined to average 27.5 points per game during BIG EAST play. The two have also combined to go 54-for-62 from the foul line.

• Aliyah Zantt continues to pace the Musketeers on the glass during BIG EAST play, grabbing 6.3 rebounds per game. The senior point guard is adding 8.7 points per game.

• Leah Schaefer has hit 70.6 percent of her shot attempts (12-for-17) in BIG EAST play. She has added 23 assists and six steals.

• Maddison Blackwell is averaging 9.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in BIG EAST play with a .583 field-goal percentage. The junior forward entered conference play averaging 3.5 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

ON THE ROAD

• The Musketeers are 2-2 in road games this year. Xavier has averaged 59 points per game on the road with a .394 field-goal percentage.

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action at St. John's on Sunday, Jan. 24. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m.

CHARITY STRIPE SUCCESS

• Xavier ranks second in the conference in free-throw percentage (.769).

• Individually, Xavier has three players ranked in the top-10 in free-throw percentage: Briana Glover (1st - .850), Raeshaun Gaffney (3rd - .829) and Aliyah Zantt (10th - .755).

• Xavier has been able to put teams away late in the game due to its free-throw success. The Musketeers are 59-for-73 from the foul line in the final two minutes of play, while their opponents are 12-for-15. Raeshaun Gaffney is 29-for-34 from the foul line in the final two minutes of play.

DOMINATING DEFENSE

• Xavier ranks second in the conference in scoring defense (59.0), while ranking first in rebounding margin (+3.8) and fourth in field-goal percentage defense (.379).

RECORD WATCH

• Senior Aliyah Zantt has 180 career steals, ranking tied for fourth all-time at Xavier. She is eight steals away from moving into third.

NCAA STAT RANKINGS

• Xavier ranks eighth nationally in fewest personal fouls per game (13.4), 10th in free-throw percentage (.769) and 82nd in scoring defense (59.0). The Musketeers also rank 87th in rebounding margin (+3.8).

• Individually, Briana Glover ranks 51st (.850) in free-throw percentage, while Raeshaun Gaffney ranks 72nd (.829).

NEAL RECORDS WIN NO. 200

• Head coach Brian Neal picked up his 200th career victory in the win over Southeastern Louisiana on Nov. 25. He has compiled a 211-72 record in 10 years as a head coach.

NOTEWORTHY PERFORMANCES

• Xavier committed a season-low five turnovers against Kennesaw State, the fewest in a game since the Musketeers had four miscues against Temple on March 4, 2007. The Musketeer backcourt had zero turnovers on the day.

• Xavier held Southeastern Louisiana to 27 points, the fewest allowed by the Musketeers since defeating Maryville, 67-21, on Dec. 5, 1980. The 40-point win is also the largest margin of victory since Nov. 30, 2010 when the Musketeers topped Mississippi Valley State, 85-40.

• Xavier also pulled down 64 rebounds in the win over Southeastern Louisiana, the second most in school history. The Musketeers had 68 rebounds against Wright State on Feb. 12, 1976. The 64 rebounds are the most by a BIG EAST team this season, while ranking ninth nationally.

• Maddison Blackwell scored a career-high 27 points on 11-for-15 shooting versus Villanova. The junior forward's 11 field goals are the most by a Xavier player since Tyeasha Moss hit 11 on Jan. 28, 2012 versus Rhode Island.

• Aliyah Zantt pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds against Villanova, the most in a game by a XU player since Jenna Crittendon's 17 rebounds against Wright State on Dec. 15, 2012.

• Sophomore Marquia Turner dished out a career-high eight assists in the win over Maryland Eastern Shore, the most by a Xavier player since Ty O'Neill had eight versus High Point on Nov. 19, 2012.

PRESEASON POLL

• Xavier was picked to finish sixth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches Poll as announced at the conference's annual media day at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 14.

THE SCHEDULE

• Xavier will play 19 games at Cintas Center this season, the most in school history. The Musketeers previously set the record last year when they hosted 18 games, including two postseason tournament contests.

• Xavier has posted a 192-63 overall record at Cintas Center since the building opened in 2000.

• The Musketeers posted a 12-6 mark at home last year, the team's 10th season with 10 or more wins inside Cintas Center.

• Xavier faced four teams this season for the first time in school history (Maryland-Eastern Shore, Southeastern Louisiana, Tennessee Tech and Radford).

XU BASKETBALL HISTORY

• Xavier has made nine NCAA Tournament appearances, most recently advancing to the tournament's second round in 2011.

• The Musketeers' best NCAA Tournament finish was in 2001 and 2010 as XU advanced to the Elite Eight.

• The Musketeers have posted a .500 or better record 21 times since joining the NCAA Division I ranks in 1982-83.

BIG EAST DIGITAL NETWORK

• Every BIG EAST women's basketball game that will not be carried on FOX Sports 1 or FOX Sports 2 will be aired on the BIG EAST Digital Network (BEDN).

• The BEDN launched in 2014-15 with its own branded channel on the FOX Sports GO app. The league is the first and only collegiate conference to be hosted on FOX's mobile platform, FOX Sports Go. The app provides live streaming video of FOX Sports content at home or on-the-go.

NATIONAL BROADCASTS

• Xavier will play four nationally broadcasts games this season via FOX. The Musketeers will play three games on FOX Sports 1 and one on FOX Sports 2.

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT

• DePaul's McGrath-Phillips Arena will serve as the host site of the 2016 BIG EAST Women's Basketball Tournament as voted on by the conference's athletic directors. The tournament will be held on March 5-8 in the Lincoln Park neighborhood of downtown Chicago.