Women's Basketball Continues Season-Opening Road Trip at Utah

Saturday, November 13

Salt Lake City, Utah

2 p.m. ET

Xavier University

Utah

Women's Basketball Continues Season-Opening Road Trip at Utah

11.12.21 | Women's Basketball

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

Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. ET from the Huntsman Center

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball continues its season-opening road swing at Utah on Saturday, Nov. 12. Tip-off is slated for 2 pm. ET from the Huntsman Center.

THE MATCHUP AT UTAH

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (0-1) at UTAH UTES (1-0)
Game Info - Saturday, Nov. 13 - 2 p.m. ET - Huntsman Center (8,400)
Live Video (Pac-12 Plus) - bit.ly/3kpaPf2
Live Stats - bit.ly/3c4d9Ue

ABOUT UTAH

2021-22 Record: 1-0
2020-21 Record: 5-16 (4-15 Pac-12)
Series History: Xavier leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Xavier 70, Utah 63 (Nov. 9, 2019 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• Utah was picked to finish 10th in the Pac-12 Preseason Media Poll after posting a 5-16 (4-15 Pac-12) record last season.
• Dru Gylten and Brynna Maxwell were both tabbed to the Pac-12 Preseason Media Honorable Mention Team. Gylten was named to the Nancy Lieberman Watch List prior to the season. She averaged 8.1 points, 5.1 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game last year, while Maxwell averaged 12.8 points per game.
• Utah opened the season with a 105-56 win over Lipscomb on Wednesday, Nov. 10. The Utes made a school record 19 three-pointers, while the 105 points were the third most scored in a single-game in program history.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier leads the series, 1-0. The Musketeers defeated the Utes, 70-63, on Nov. 7, 2019 at Cintas Center. The game was the head coaching debut for Melanie Moore.

• Xavier returns only two players from that game in Courtney Prenger and Ayanna Townsend. The two players combined for 14 points and 12 rebounds. Prenger pulled down a career-high nine rebounds in the game.

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off an 84-64 season-opening loss at Memphis on Nov. 9 at Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

• Nia Clark led three Musketeers in double figures with a game-high 16 points, her 14th career game with 10 or more points. The guard was 7-for-13 from the floor.

• Aanaya Harris scored 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting in her collegiate debut. She added three rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes of action off the bench.

• Shelby Calhoun added 10 points in her Xavier debut, going 4-for-11 from the floor. The guard added six rebounds, five steals and four assists in a team-high 35 minutes of action.

• Newcomer Mikayla Hayes pulled down a game-high eight rebounds to go along with four points. Newcomer Shaila Beeler chipped in six points, five rebounds and five assists.

• Memphis won the battle on the glass, 47-33, and had one more steal (12-11) than the Musketeers. The Tigers also held a 27-10 advantage in points off of turnovers and scored seven more second-chance points (20-13). Xavier scored five more fastbreak points (18-13) than Memphis.

• Xavier finished the game with a .400 field-goal percentage (27-for-68), while the Tigers hit 45 percent (30-for-63) of their shot attempts. The Tigers also took 14 more free throws (23-9) than Xavier.

NOTABLES

• Xavier ranks second in the BIG EAST with seven newcomers, only trailing Providence (eight newcomers).

• Xavier is replacing over half of its points, rebounds and assists from players who departed the program in the offseason. The Musketeers lost 57.9 percent of their total points (549), 54.8 percent of their total rebounds (297) and 66.7 percent of their total assists (140).

• All told, the Musketeers five players who graduated in the offseason (A'riana Gray, Aaliyah Dunham, Sarah Leyendecker, Lauren Wasylson, Deja Ross) combined for the following career statistics: 406 games played, 2,933 points, 1,764 rebounds and 636 assists.

• Xavier had 11 steals in its season opener. The Musketeers had eight games with 10 or more steals last season, ranking second in the BIG EAST in steals per game (9.9).

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• Xavier returns two of its top three scorers from last season in Nia Clark and Kae Satterfield. The Musketeers finished the season with a 5-10 (2-8 BIG EAST) record.

• Nia Clark averaged 11.5 points per game last season, ranking second on the team. She also led the team in three pointers made (16) and total steals (26). The Indianapolis, Ind., native averaged 2.0 steals per game, ranking sixth in the BIG EAST and 126th in the NCAA.

• Kae Satterfield averaged 9.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. She ranked second on the team in rebounding, while ranking 14th in the BIG EAST. The New York, N.Y., native also posted a team-best .468 field-goal percentage (58-for-124).

• The Musketeers welcome seven newcomers to the team this season, comprised of four transfers and three true freshmen. The four transfers are Shelby Calhoun (Virginia Tech), Mikayla Hayes (Florida/Clemson), Taylor Smith (Ole Miss) and Shaila Beeler (Indiana/Vincennes). The true freshman are Kaysia Woods (Lincoln, Neb.), Kaybriana Hallman (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and Aanaya Harris (Omaha, Neb.).

AYANNA TOWNSEND CAREER WATCH

• Ayanna Townsend has 59 career blocks, ranking tied for ninth all-time at Xavier with Jennifer Phillips (1998-02). She is one block away from moving into eighth place with Maddison Blackwell (2013-17).

SCHEDULE NOTES

• Xavier will play nine non-conference games (five on the road, four at home). The Musketeers will play teams from eight different conferences (AAC, Pac-12, MAC, MVC, Horizon, ASUN, MAAC, OVC). The contest with Niagara on Dec. 8 will be the first meeting between the two schools.

• Xavier plays six teams that advanced to postseason action last season: Wright State (NCAA), Marquette (NCAA), UConn (NCAA), Villanova (WNIT), DePaul (WNIT), Creighton (WNIT).

• The Musketeers will play four games on national television: Jan. 15 at UConn (SNY), Jan. 23 vs DePaul (CBS Sports Network), Feb. 13 at Providence (FS1) and Feb. 18 vs UConn (SNY). Xavier's remaining 16 conference games will be aired BIG EAST Digital Network (BEDN) presented by SoFi. FloSports will serve as the digital home for conference women's basketball for the second straight season.

• The conference season begins on Dec. 3 at Marquette and concludes on Feb. 27 at Cintas Center vs Villanova. The Musketeers will play four BIG EAST games before the start of 2022.

• The BIG EAST Tournament will be held at Mohegan Sun Arena for the second straight year. The tournament will be held on March 5-7.

• The Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout returns after the game was canceled last season due to COVID-19 issues. Xavier has won four of the last six meetings between the two teams and 11 of the last 16 meetings. The game will be played at Fifth Third Arena on Sunday, Dec. 12.

• The Musketeers have won 47 non-conference games over the last six seasons with a 39-9 mark at Cintas Center.

BIG EAST COACHES' POLL

1.	UConn (10)	100
2.	DePaul (1)	90
3.	Seton Hall	80
4.	Marquette	74
5.	Villanova	62
6.	Creighton	54
7.	St. John's	51
8.	Providence	32
9.	Georgetown	27
10.	Xavier	18
11.	Butler	17

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

• Xavier returns home for back-to-back games, starting with a contest vs in-state foe Miami (Ohio). The home opener vs the RedHawks is set for Wednesday, Nov. 17 at 7 p.m.