Musketeers Return to Action on Sunday at St. John’s

Sunday, January 24

Queens, N.Y.

1 P.M.

Xavier University

St. John's University

Musketeers Return to Action on Sunday at St. John’s

01.23.16 | Women's Basketball

Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. from Carnesecca Arena

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier women's basketball closes its BIG EAST road trip at St. John's on Sunday, Jan. 23. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. from Carnesecca Arena.

The Musketeers enter the game with a 14-5 (5-3 BIG EAST) record following an 82-66 loss at Seton Hall on Friday night. Xavier has now dropped two straight games for the first time this season.

St. John's is coming off a 68-41 win against Butler on Friday night. The Red Storm is 15-4 (6-2 BIG EAST) this season with an 8-1 mark in home games.

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off an 82-66 road loss at Seton Hall on Friday night. The Musketeers led by as many as 10 points early in the first half before the Pirates took advantage of 20 Xavier turnovers. Seton Hall scored 30 points off of turnovers and hit 54 percent of their shot attempts to move to 15-4 (5-3 BIG EAST) on the year.

SERIES HISTORY

• The all-time series with St. John's is tied, 2-2. The two schools have split the conference series in each of the last two seasons with the home team winning each game.

LAST TIME OUT VS ST. JOHN'S

• Xavier averaged 58 points per game in the series last year, while the Red Storm averaged 63 points per game. The Musketeers collected five more steals (17-12) in the series last year.

• Raeshaun Gaffney averaged a team-high 12.5 points per game in the series last year with a .526 field-goal percentage (10-for-19). Aliyah Zantt added 12 points per game on 9-for-15 shooting to go along with a team-high six steals.

• Jenna Crittendon added 10 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in the series vs. the Red Storm a year ago.

GLOVER CLOSING IN ON MILESTONE

• Senior Briana Glover has 993 career points, needing only seven 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 .454 field-goal percentage (352-for-775).

NOTABLES

• Briana Glover had a streak of 18 made free throws snapped at Seton Hall as the senior forward missed her second attempt on Friday night. She finished the game 7-for-8 from the foul line as she is now 33-for-36 in BIG EAST play.

• Jenna Crittendon scored a season-high 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting with two 3-pointers at Seton Hall. She scored 14 of those points in the second half as the senior guard has now scored in double figures three times this season.

• Xavier had for players score in double figures at Seton Hall, the second time the Musketeers have had four players score in double figures this year. Xavier is 1-1 in those games.

• Leah Schaefer pulled down a team-high six rebounds at Seton Hall in 23 minutes off action off the bench. The junior forward added seven points.

• Raeshaun Gaffney scored 16 points on 5-for-10 shooting at Seton Hall, her fourth straight game in double figures and 13th of the season. She matched her season high in assists with five, while adding five rebounds.

• Briana Glover has hit 50.3 percent of her shot attempts this season to rank fourth in the BIG EAST in field-goal percentage. She also ranks 18th in scoring with 11.8 points per game.

• Aliyah Zantt ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in steals per game (1.9 spg), while ranking 10th in defensive rebounds (4.2 rpg).

BIG EAST PLAY

• Briana Glover and Raeshaun Gaffney have combined to average 27.3 points per game during BIG EAST play. The two have also combined to go 66-for-76 from the foul line.

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

• Leah Schaefer has hit 66.7 percent of her shot attempts (14-for-21) in BIG EAST play. She has added 14 assists and seven steals.

• Maddison Blackwell is averaging 8.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in BIG EAST play with a .577 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 2-3 in road games this year. Xavier has averaged 60.4 points per game on the road with a .390 field-goal percentage.

• Xavier has hit 79.2 percent (76-for-96) of its free throws on the road. Briana Glover and Raeshaun Gaffney have combined to go 43-for-49 from the charity stripe.

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action against Butler on Friday, Jan. 29. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center.

CHARITY STRIPE SUCCESS

• The Musketeers were 21-for-24 from the foul line at Seton Hall. Xavier leads the conference in free-throw percentage (.776).

• Individually, Xavier has three players ranked in the top-10 in free-throw percentage: Briana Glover (1st - .853), Raeshaun Gaffney (3rd - .829) and Aliyah Zantt (10th - .765).

• 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 leads the BIG EAST in rebounding margin (+3.3), while ranking second in scoring defense (60.2) and rebounding defense (35.3).

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 sixth nationally in free-throw percentage (.776), seventh in personal fouls per game (13.3) and 93rd in rebounding margin (+3.3).

• Individually, Briana Glover ranks 42nd in free-throw percentage (.853), while Raeshaun Gaffney ranks 67th with a .829 field-goal percentage.

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 211-73 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.