Musketeers Continue Season-Opening Homestand on Friday

Friday, November 18

Cincinnati, Ohio

12 p.m.

Xavier University

Southeast Missouri State

Musketeers Continue Season-Opening Homestand on Friday

11.17.16 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Live SEMO Notes (PDF)XU Notes (PDF)

Xavier women’s basketball takes on Southeast Missouri at noon

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball continues its six-game homestand to open the 2016-17 season on Friday, Nov. 18 against Southeast Missouri State. Tip-off is slated for noon from Cintas Center as the Musketeers are expected to have over 3,000 local elementary students in attendance.

The Musketeers (1-0) are taking on an Ohio Valley Conference opponent for the second straight game. Xavier defeated Tennessee State, 63-54, on Nov. 12. Xavier will also face a new opponent for the second time in as many weeks.

THE MATCHUP VS SEMO

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (1-0) vs SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE REDHAWKS (1-2)
Game Info: Friday, Nov. 18 - 12 p.m. - Cintas Center (10,250)
Live Stats: http://bit.ly/1lYmT6d
Watch Live: http://bit.ly/2gnbyyF

ABOUT SOUTHEAST MISSOURI

2016-17 Record: 1-2 (0-0 Ohio Valley)
Series History: First meeting

NOTABLES
• The Redhawks are 1-2 on the year, most recently dropping a 100-87 contest at Western Illinois on Nov. 16. Friday's contest will be Southeast Missouri's first road game of the year.
• Southeast Missouri is coached by Rekha Patteson who is 16-17 in two seasons. The Redhawks were picked to finish fifth in the preseason OVC Coaches Poll after placing fifth a year ago with an 8-8 record.
• Bri Mitchell was tabbed to the preseason All-OVC Team. The senior guard is averaging 15 points and 7.6 assists per game. Classmate Olivia Hackmann paces the team in scoring (22.5) and rebounding (11.0).
• Southeast Missouri has hit 52.2 percent of its shot attempts this season. The Redhawks are also averaging 87 points per game.

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier defeated Tennessee State, 63-54, in its season opener – moving to 17-0 in home openers at Cintas Center. Xavier is now 15-3 in season openers over the last 18 seasons.

• Xavier held a 38-25 advantage on the glass and outscored the Tigers, 33-21, in the second half. The Musketeers also forced 15 turnovers, turning the miscues into 20 points.

FASTBREAK POINTS

• Marquia Turner scored a career-high 15 points on 6-for-12 shooting against Tennessee State. The junior guard added four rebounds and three assists.

• Raeshaun Gaffney scored a game-high 18 points on 4-for-9 shooting against Tennessee State. She was also 9-for-10 from the foul line. The senior guard scored 13 points in the second half, including eight in the third quarter.

• Kindell Fincher scored 10 points in her first game back coming off a season-long injury in 2015-16. The sophomore guard missed nearly all of last season with a broken hand.

• Xavier is 10-11 all-time against teams currently in the Ohio Valley Conference.

SCHEDULE NOTES

• Xavier will play six straight games at Cintas Center to open the season. The Musketeers went 15-4 at home a year ago, totaling 19 games – the most home games in school history.

• Xavier will take on four new opponents for the first time in program history this season: Tennessee State, Southeast Missouri State, North Florida and Southern Miss. The Musketeers are also facing three different opponents for only the second time in school history: Delaware State, Wake Forest and Oklahoma.

• The Musketeers have won 19 non-conference games over the last two seasons with a 16-3 mark at Cintas Center.

OPPONENT BREAKDOWN

• Xavier's non-conference opponents combined to post a 145-194 overall record a year ago. Three teams posted winning records, while two teams advanced to postseason play (Michigan – WNIT; Oklahoma – NCAA).

• The Musketeers face two teams from both the OVC and Atlantic Sun during non-conference play. All told, Xavier will take on an opponent from nine different conferences.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• The Musketeers posted a winning record last season, the 22nd winning record for Xavier since joining the NCAA Division I ranks in 1982-83.

• Xavier returns two starters in seniors Raeshaun Gaffney and Maddison Blackwell. Gaffney led the team in scoring (11.1 ppg) and rebounding (4.8) last year, while Blackwell added 9.2 points per game in BIG EAST play with a .516 field-goal percentage – the fourth highest in the conference.

• Brian Neal returns to the bench for his fourth season as head coach. Last season, he picked up his 200th career victory as a head coach. He now has a 215-81 in 10 years as a head coach.

BIG EAST DIGITAL NETWORK

• The BIG EAST Digital Network will provide coverage of 73 additional women's basketball conference games. BEDN, launched in September 2014, is its own dedicated section within FOX Sports GO, the mobile app that provides live streaming video of FOX Sports content at home or on-the-go. FOX Sports GO is currently available for iOS, Android, Kindle Fire tablets and Fire phones, select Windows devices, and on desktops through FOXSportsGO.com. Streaming on FOX Sports GO is also now available on several connected devices, including Apple TV, Roku and Chromecast. Fans can download the mobile app for free from the iTunes App Store, Google Play, Amazon App Store and Windows Store.

NATIONAL BROADCASTS

• Xavier will play four nationally broadcasts games this season via FOX or CBS Sports Network. The Musketeers will play two games on FS1, one on FS2 and one on CBS Sports Network.

CBS Sports Network
Monday, Jan. 2 vs St. John's - 7 p.m.

FS1 Games
Friday, Jan. 20 vs Georgetown - 8 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 17 at Villanova - 7:30 p.m.

FS2 Games
Friday, Feb. 24 vs Creighton - 7 p.m.

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action on Tuesday, Nov. 22 against North Florida. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center.