Home Finale Slated for Sunday Against Seton Hall

Sunday, February 21

Cincinnati, Ohio

2 P.M.

Xavier University

Seton Hall University

Tickets

Home Finale Slated for Sunday Against Seton Hall

02.20.16 | Women's Basketball

Xavier will recognize its three seniors in a pregame ceremony

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier women's basketball concludes the home portion of its regular-season home schedule on Sunday, Feb. 21 against Seton Hall. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. from Cintas Center.

Sunday's game will serve as 'Senior Day' for the Musketeers' three seniors: Jenna Crittendon, Briana Glover and Aliyah Zantt.

The Musketeers (17-9, 8-7 BIG EAST) enter the game on a three-game losing streak, matching their longest losing skid of the season. Xavier looks to move to 16-3 at Cintas Center this season and pick up its first-ever win against the Pirates.

Seton Hall is 19-7 on the year and 9-6 in BIG EAST action to rank third in the conference standings. The Pirates are 8-4 in road games this year, most recently picking up a 72-67 win at Butler on Friday night. Tabatha Richardson-Smith leads the Pirates and the BIG EAST in scoring (19.8 ppg).

THE SENIOR CLASS

• Xavier's senior class of Jenna Crittendon, Briana Glover and Aliyah Zantt have combined to play in 338 games over the last four seasons. The class has scored 2,686 points.

• The three seniors have helped the Musketeers post 56 wins over the last four years.

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off a 69-56 home loss to St. John's on Friday night. Xavier outscored the Red Storm, 32-25, in the second half, but couldn't overcome a 20-point halftime deficit.

• After taking a 20-18 lead after one quarter of play, the Musketeers were outscored, 26-4, in the second quarter.

SERIES HISTORY

• Seton Hall leads the all-time series, 5-0. The Pirates defeated Xavier in the last meeting at Cintas Center, 66-60, on Feb. 27, 2015.

LAST TIME OUT VS SETON HALL

• Xavier dropped an 82-66 road game at Seton Hall on Jan. 22 in the first meeting this season. The Musketeers committed 20 turnovers that the Pirates converted into 30 points.

• Jenna Crittendon led four Musketeers who scored in double figures with a season-high 17 points. The senior guard scored 14 points in the second half on 5-for-9 shooting.

NOTABLES

• Marquia Turner matched her career high in scoring with 14 points against St. John's on 5-for-7 shooting. She has averaged 10.3 points per game in her last three outings, while hitting 63.2 percent of her shot attempts.

• Briana Glover has averaged 11.3 points per game in her last three outings with a .600 field-goal percentage. She has also added 4.3 rebounds per game.

• Raeshaun Gaffney has averaged 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in her last two games.

• Xavier held a 40-34 advantage on the glass against St. John's, out rebounding its opponent for the second straight game. The Musketeers have out rebounded their opponents 14 times this year.

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

• The Musketeers are one win away from matching their win total from a year ago with three regular-season games remaining.

XU DEFENSE

• Xavier has held an opponent under 50 points five times this season. The Musketeers currently rank second in the BIG EAST in scoring defense (60.6).

• Xavier is 12-2 when out rebounding its opponents this season. The Musketeers currently rank fourth in the BIG EAST in rebounding margin (+2.3).

BIG EAST HONORS

• Xavier has had a player earn BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll honors nine times this year. Maddison Blackwell (Feb. 13), Raeshaun Gaffney (Jan. 4), Briana Glover (Dec. 7, Dec. 14, Jan. 11, Jan. 25) and Aliyah Zantt (Dec. 28, Nov. 23, Feb. 1) have all been recognized.

GLOVER - 1,000 POINT CLUB

• Senior Briana Glover became the 24th member of the Xavier 1,000-point club on Jan. 24 at St. John's with a layup late in the third quarter. She now has 1,056 career points.

BIG EAST PLAY

• The Musketeers rank fifth in the BIG EAST standings with an 8-7 record, matching their win total from a year ago in conference play (8-10). Xavier is 6-2 in home conference games.

• Maddison Blackwell ranks fourth in the conference in field-goal percentage during BIG EAST play, hitting 51.5 percent of her shot attempts. She has added 8.4 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action on Friday, Feb. 26 at Villanova. Tip-off is slated for 9 p.m. with the game being aired nationally on FOX Sports 1.

CHARITY STRIPE SUCCESS

• Xavier ranks third the conference in free-throw percentage (.729).

• Individually, Xavier has two players ranked in the top-10 in free-throw percentage: Briana Glover (2nd - .830) and Raeshaun Gaffney (7th - .770).

• Xavier has been able to put teams away late in the game due to its free-throw success. The Musketeers are 72-for-90 from the foul line in the final two minutes of play, while their opponents are 16-for-19. Raeshaun Gaffney is 38-for-45 from the foul line in the final two minutes of play.

RECORD WATCH

• Senior Aliyah Zantt has 192 career steals, ranking second all-time at Xavier.

• Senior Briana Glover ranks eighth all-time at Xavier in blocks (53), while Jenna Crittendon ranks ninth (52).

NCAA STAT RANKINGS

• Xavier ranks sixth nationally in fewest fouls per game (13.1), while ranking 63rd in free-throw percentage (.729) and 104th in scoring defense (60.6).

• Individually, Briana Glover ranks 72nd in free-throw percentage (.830).

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 214-77 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 10th 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 195-64 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.