Xavier, Butler Set for Opening Round Game of BIG EAST Tournament

Saturday, March 4

Milwaukee, Wis.

5 p.m.

Xavier University

No. 10 seed Butler

Xavier, Butler Set for Opening Round Game of BIG EAST Tournament

03.01.17 | Women's Basketball

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Musketeers take on the Bulldogs on Saturday, March 4 at 5 p.m. ET

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball takes on Butler in the opening round of the BIG EAST Tournament on Saturday, March 4 at 5 p.m. ET. The single-elimination tournament is being hosted by Marquette at the Al McGuire Center.

The No. 7 seed Musketeers finished regular-season action with a 12-17 (4-14 BIG EAST) record. No. 10 seed Butler enters the game with a 5-24 (2-16 BIG EAST) record.

The winner of Saturday's game will take on No. 2 seed Creighton on Sunday, March 5 at 1 p.m. ET in the quarterfinals.

THE MATCHUP VS BUTLER

NO. 7 SEED XAVIER MUSKETEERS (12-17, 4-14) vs NO. 10 SEED BUTLER (5-24, 2-16)
Game Info: Saturday, March 4 - 5 p.m. ET - Al McGuire Center (3,700)
Live Stats: http://bit.ly/2mexTAr
Live Video - BEDN: http://bit.ly/1sjW14c
Live Audio: http://bit.ly/2mFXXli

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS

2016-17 Record: 5-24 (2-16 BIG EAST)
Series History: Xavier trails, 25-17

NOTABLES
• Tori Schickel and Sydney Shelton earned All-BIG EAST honors for the Bulldogs.
• Schickel landed on the All-BIG EAST Second Team after averaging 14.5 points and 11.8 rebounds per game during the regular season. The only BIG EAST player to average a double-double this season, Schickel was also the only Bulldog to start in all 29 games while averaging 35.2 minutes per game.
• Shelton represents Butler on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team. The shooting guard averaged 8.8 points per game and was the top 3-point shooting freshman in the conference, knocking down 46 shots from distance.
• The Bulldogs have lost 13 straight games. Butler's last win was in overtime at Xavier, 65-62, on Jan. 8.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

• Xavier is 1-3 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament action. Butler defeated the Musketeers last season in the conference tournament, 48-47, at McGrath-Phillips Arena. Xavier was the No. 8 seed and Butler was the No. 9 seed.

• The Musketeers lone BIG EAST Tournament win was over Georgetown, 70-67, on March 7, 2015.

• All told, Xavier is 36-22 in conference tournament history. The Musketeers posted a 28-12 record in Atlantic 10 Tournament action (1996-2013) with six championships.

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Year	Results	Round
2016	No. 9 seed Butler 48, No. 8 seed Xavier 47	First Round
2015	No. 7 seed Xavier 70, No. 10 seed Georgetown 67	First Round
2015	No. 2 seed DePaul 87, No. 7 seed Xavier 53	Quarterfinals
2014	No. 8 seed Georgetown 56, No. 9 seed Xavier 37	First Round

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series with Butler, 25-17. The Musketeers are 3-2 in the last five meetings.

FIRST MEETING VS PROVIDENCE

• Xavier won the first meeting between the two schools earlier this season, 54-51, on Dec. 28. The Musketeers trailed by as many as 14 points in the second half before pulling off the comeback, engineered by 13 points from Maddison Blackwell.

• Maddison Blackwell paced the Musketeers with 15 points and nine rebounds. She was 7-for-13 from the floor with 13 points in the second half.

• Senior Raeshaun Gaffney added 11 points and six rebounds. Classmate Leah Schaefer chipped in nine points on 4-for-6 shooting to go along with seven rebounds.

• Kindell Fincher scored nine points on 3-for-8 shooting with all nine points coming in the second half. The sophomore guard was 3-for-5 from the floor in the second half with two 3-pointers.

2016-17 VS BUTLER

• Xavier and Butler split the season series with the road team winning each game. Xavier averaged 57.5 points per game in the series, while limiting the Bulldogs to only 54 points per game and a .336 field-goal percentage.

• Raeshaun Gaffney led the team in scoring (14.5) and rebounding (8.0) against the Bulldogs. She was also 12-for-14 from the foul line. Marquia Turner added 11.5 points per game.

• Maddison Blackwell averaged 9.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game versus the Bulldogs. The senior forward added a team-high six blocks and five steals.

CAREER STATS VS BUTLER

• Maddison Blackwell has averaged 6.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game in nine career games against Butler. The senior forward has added 17 steals and seven blocks in those games.

• Raeshaun Gaffney has averaged 10.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in seven career outings versus the Bulldogs. She was 25-for-30 from the foul line in those games.

ALL-BIG EAST HONORS

• Senior guard Raeshaun Gaffney was named to the All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention Team on Wednesday. She becomes the second Xavier player to earn All-BIG EAST honors, joining Briana Glover who earned the same recognition last season. Xavier joined the BIG EAST in 2013.

• Gaffney leads the team in scoring at 14.1 points per game, ranking 10th in the BIG EAST. She also ranks sixth in three-point field-goal percentage (.392) and ninth in free-throw percentage (.750).

• She has scored in double figures in all but five games this season and has eclipsed the 20-point barrier four times. The guard scored a career-high 33 points in the win over Seton Hall on Jan. 4, the second most points in a game this season by a BIG EAST player.

LAST TIME OUT: VS PROVIDENCE

• Xavier ended regular-season action with a 67-57 Senior Day win over Providence. The Musketeers jumped out to a nine-point halftime advantage and never relinquished the lead.

• Raeshaun Gaffney led the Musketeers with 16 points on 5-for-10 shooting. Na'Teshia Owens finished with a career-high 14 points as the freshman guard went 5-for-5 from the floor.

FROM BEHIND THE ARC

• Xavier has made 158 three-pointers this season, 50 more than its total from all of last season. The Musketeers are averaging 5.4 three pointers per game, while hitting 33.0 percent of their shots from behind the arc – ranking fourth in the BIG EAST.

• Xavier finished ninth in the BIG EAST in three-point field-goal percentage (.276) last season.

TALE OF TWO HALVES

• Xavier has shot nearly four percent better in the first half of games this season versus the second half (42.5% vs. 38.6%). The Musketeers have also hit 38.4 percent of their three pointers in the first half compared to a .267 clip in the second half.

FASTBREAK POINTS

• Imani Partlow has hit 68.2 percent (15-for-22) of her shot attempts over her last four games. She has averaged 8.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in those games.

• Anniina Äijänen has hit 53.3 percent (8-for-15) of her shot attempts over her last five games. She has average 4.6 points per game, while going 5-for-6 from the foul line.

• Xavier has played three teams ranked in the top-25 this season. The Musketeers are 0-4 in those outings.

• Raeshaun Gaffney ranks 10th in the BIG EAST in scoring (14.1 ppg) and ninth in free-throw percentage (.754).

• Raeshaun Gaffney has hit 40 three-pointers this season, 26 more than she posted all of last season. She has drained 39.2 percent (40-for-102) of her shot attempts from behind the arc.

• Marquia Turner ranks sixth in the conference in assists per game (3.8), while Maddison Blackwell ranks ninth in rebounds per game (6.2).

• Xavier ranks third in the BIG EAST in field-goal percentage defense (.387), third in three-point field-goal percentage defense (.304) and sixth in scoring defense (64.1).

• Over the last two seasons, Xavier has held an opponent under 50 points 10 times.

• The win over Michigan marked the 200th program victory at Cintas Center. Xavier has compiled a 201-73 record since the building opened for the 2000-01 season.

RECORD WATCH: LEAH SCHAEFER

• Leah Schaefer has 89 career blocks to rank fourth all-time at Xavier. The forward has also pulled down 582 career rebounds, 23 rebounds shy of entering the career top-10 in the statistical category.

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 226-99 in 11 years as a head coach.

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.

UP NEXT

• The winner of Saturday's game will take on No. 2 seed Creighton on Sunday, March 5 at 1 p.m. ET in the quarterfinals.