Musketeers Continue BIG EAST Action at Butler

Monday, February 22

Indianapolis, Ind.

6 p.m.

Xavier University

Butler

Musketeers Continue BIG EAST Action at Butler

02.21.21 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Live (BEDN/FloHoops)Butler Notes Xavier Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. from Hinkle Fieldhouse

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball returns to action on Monday, Feb. 22 at Butler. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m. from Hinkle Fieldhouse.

THE MATCHUP AT BUTLER

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (4-7, 1-6) at BUTLER BULLDOGS (1-15, 1-14)
Game Info - Monday, Feb. 22 - 6 p.m. ET - Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,100)
Live Video (BEDN/FloHoops) - bit.ly/3aDRLoQ
Live Stats - bit.ly/2ZCGija

ABOUT BUTLER

2020-21 Record: 1-15 (1-14 BIG EAST)
2019-20 Record: 19-11 (11-7 BIG EAST)
Series History: Xavier trails, 30-19
Last Meeting: Butler 63, Xavier 61 (OT) (Jan. 31, 2020 - Indianapolis, Ind.)

NOTABLES
• Butler is coming off a 98-74 loss at Villanova on Feb. 16. The 74 points were a season-high for the Bulldogs.
• Okako Adika led the Bulldogs with 19 points and five rebounds vs the Wildcats. Upe Atosu added 15 points, six rebounds and five assists.
• Adika leads the team in scoring, averaging 13.5 points per game. She ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in three-point field-goal percentage (.414). Jaia Alexander leads the team in rebounding (7.2), ranking sixth in the BIG EAST in the category.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series, 30-19. The Musketeers have lost four straight in the series and are 3-4 when playing at Hinkle Fieldhouse since joining the BIG EAST in 2013-14.

• Nine of the last 11 meetings have been decided by 10 or fewer points.

• A'riana Gray has averaged 11.8 points and 10.8 rebounds in five career meetings vs the Bulldogs. She has posted a .477 field-goal percentage in those games with 10 steals and four blocks.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS BUTLER
Jan. 31, 2020 - Butler 63, Xavier 61 (OT) (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Jan. 4, 2020 - Butler 78, Xavier 70 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 8, 2019 - Butler 63, Xavier 38 (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Jan. 11, 2019 - Butler 63, Xavier 41 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 25, 2018 - Xavier 57, Butler 54 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off an 83-32 loss to No. 1 UConn on Saturday afternoon. The Huskies led from start to finish behind a .508 field-goal percentage. UConn also forced 18 Xavier turnovers, converting the miscues into 29 points.

• Xavier scored a season-low 32 points behind a season-low .246 field-goal percentage. The last time Xavier scored 32 or fewer points was on Jan. 21, 2014 at Villanova (L, 61-32).

• Carrie Gross scored a team-high 10 points on 5-for-9 shooting. The guard added four rebounds in 17 minutes of action off the bench. Gross now has 18 career games with 10 or more points.

• Nia Clark added seven points in 3-for-8 shooting. A'riana Gray added five points and Sarah Leyendecker chipped in four points.

• A'riana Gray also added four rebounds. UConn held a 51-30 advantage on the glass.

• Xavier was 2-for-4 from the foul line, while UConn was 16-for-22.

• The UConn defense held the Musketeers without a three pointer (0-for-16) for the first time this season. The last time Xavier was held without a three pointer was on Jan. 29, 2017 at St. John's (L, 64-55). The Musketeers were 0-for-8 from behind the arc in that contest.

NOTABLES

• Nia Clark leads the Musketeers in scoring with 13.2 points per game, ranking 16th in the conference. The freshman guard ranks second the BIG EAST in steals per game (2.4), while ranking 54th in the NCAA. She also ranks fifth in the conference in three-point field-goal percentage (.407).

• Kae Satterfield is averaging 9.3 points and 6.3 rebounds per game this season with a .436 field-goal percentage (41-for-94). She ranks 15th in the BIG EAST in rebounding.

• Xavier ranks second in the BIG EAST in steals (10.5) and third in blocks (4.4). The Musketeers rank 25th in the NCAA in steals, while ranking 54th in blocks.

• In BIG EAST only games, Xavier leads the conference in free-throw percentage (.778). Sarah Leyendecker ranks 10th in the conference in those games, connecting on 77.8 percent of her free throws (14-for-18).

• Lauren Wasylson leads the team in blocks (13) and ranks tied for first in three-pointers made (11). The junior guard ranks tied for sixth in the conference in blocks this year after only have seven total blocks during the 2019-20 season. She has hit 44.4 percent (8-for-18) of her three pointers in BIG EAST only games, ranking third in the conference.

• A'riana Gray is averaging 6.3 rebounds per game, ranking 14th in the BIG EAST. She also ranks 25th in scoring (11.2) and tied for eighth in steals (1.8).

• Aaliyah Dunham ranks third in the BIG EAST in assist/turnover ratio, while ranking ninth in the NCAA. The senior guard also ranks eighth in the conference in assists (3.7) and fourth in steals (2.1).

• Xavier pulled down 56 rebounds vs Wofford on Dec. 13, the most rebounds in a game by a BIG EAST team this season. The 56 rebounds are the most by the Musketeers since pulling down 64 (2nd in school history) on Nov. 25, 2015 vs Southeastern Louisiana (W, 67-27).

• Xavier had 22 steals at Detroit Mercy, the most steals in a game by a BIG EAST team this season. The Musketeers also forced 28 turnovers, the most in a game by Xavier since Nov. 7, 2018 vs Chicago State (26 turnovers). Nia Clark paced Xavier with 10 steals vs Detroit, the most by a BIG EAST player this season.

• Aaliyah Dunham matched her career high in assists with nine at Valparaiso on Dec. 16. The nine assists are the third most by a BIG EAST player this season.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

Jan. 4 - Kae Satterfield - Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 28 - Nia Clark - Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 14 - Kae Satterfield - Weekly Honor Roll
Nov. 30 - Nia Clark - Freshman of the Week

1,000 CAREER POINTS - ARI GRAY

• Senior forward A'riana Gray became the 25th member of the 1,000-point club at Xavier in the team's win over Wofford on Dec. 13. She currently has 1,083 career points. The last Xavier player to score 1,000 points in their career was Raeshaun Gaffney (1,074 points - 2014-17).

ARI GRAY CAREER WATCH

• Senior A'riana Gray has 807 career rebounds, raking seventh in career rebounding at Xavier. She is 45 rebounds away from moving into sixth place ahead of Taru Tuukkanen (852 - 1997-01). Her 8.5 rebounds per game career average ranks fourth in program history.

AALIYAH DUNHAM CAREER WATCH

• Senior Aaliyah Dunham has 355 career assists to rank ninth all-time at Xavier in assists. She is 22 assists away from moving into seventh place (377 - Sheryl Krmpotich - 1988-92). Her 3.5 assists per game career average ranks 10th in program history.

AYANNA TOWNSEND CAREER WATCH

• Ayanna Townsend has 55 career blocks, ranking 10th all-time at Xavier with Briana Glover (2012-16). She is four blocks away from moving into ninth place with Jennifer Phillips (1998-02).

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• Xavier returns nine letterwinners and all five starters from last season. The Musketeers have a three-person senior class, anchored by two-time All-BIG EAST selection A'riana Gray.

• Senior Aaliyah Dunham averaged 7.5 points, 4.5 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game last year. She ranked fourth in the BIG EAST in assists (4.5), sixth in steals (1.9), sixth in three-point field-goal percentage (.388) and second in assist/turnover ratio (2.3). The guard ranked 25th in the NCAA in assist/turnover ratio and 72nd in total assists (135). she also finished the season ranked ninth in career assists at Xavier (314).

• Sophomore Morgan Sharps averaged 6.1 points per game with 43 assists and 18 steals last season. She led the team in three pointers made (48), while ranking ninth in the BIG EAST. The guard ranked third among BIG EAST freshman in three pointers made.

• After suffering a season-ending injury seven games into her freshman season, Ayanna Townsend bounced back to play in all 30 games (21 starts) in year two with the program. She averaged 5.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game and led the team in blocks with 32, while ranking sixth in the BIG EAST.

ARI GRAY - PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST

• Senior forward A'riana Gray was named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team on Oct. 29 as voted on by conference head coaches. The Cleveland, Ohio, native earned the preseason honors for the second time in as many seasons. Gray averaged a team-high 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game last year. She ranked first in the conference in rebounding and sixth in scoring. Gray also ranked 53rd in the NCAA in rebounding.

• She earned All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention Team honors at the end of the 2019-20 season, picking up the accolades for the second time in her career.

BIG EAST ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS

A'riana Gray - rebounds - 807 - 1st
A'riana Gray - double doubles - 27 - 1st
A'riana Gray - scoring - 1,083 - 2nd
A'riana Gray - steals - 145 - 2nd
A'riana Gray - blocks 48 - 7th

Aaliyah Dunham - assists - 355 - 1st
Aaliyah Dunham - steals - 134 - 3rd

Ayanna Townsend - blocks - 55 - 9th
Sarah Leyendecker - blocks - 48 - 10th

PRESEASON COACHES' POLL

Place	Team (First-Place Votes)	Points
1.	Connecticut (10)	100
2.	DePaul (1)	90
3.	Marquette	83
4.	St. John's	69
5.	Creighton	60
6.	Seton Hall	59
7.	Villanova	44
8.	Butler	37
9.	Xavier	31
10.	Providence	22
11.	Georgetown	10

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.

2021 WBB SIGNEES

• Xavier women's basketball head coach Melanie Moore has announced the signing of three players to the 2021-22 roster. The three players signed National Letters of Intent on Wednesday, Nov. 11.

• Shaila Beeler is a 5-7 guard from Indianapolis, Ind. (Warren Central). She is a transfer from Vincennes University after starting her career at Indiana University. She was rated as the No. 19 recruit by ProspectsNation in 2019 and was rated as a three-star recruit from ESPN Hoopgurlz.

• Kaybriana Hallman is a 6-2 forward from Grand Rapids, Mich. (East Kentwood). She is ranked as the 46th best player in the nation by 2021 ESPN HoopGurlz. Hallman is also rated as a four-star recruit by 2021 ESPN HoopGurlz. She averaged 12.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.5 blocks per game as a junior.

• Aanaya Harris is a 5-11 guard/forward from Omaha Nebraska (Burke). She averaged 14.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game as a junior. Harris earned all-metro honors and all-state honors in 2019-20 and was ranked as the No. 3 player in Nebraska.

• Hallman and Harris are nominees for the 2021 McDonald's All-American Game. Hallman was one of 14 players nominated from Michigan, while Harris was one of only three players nominated from Nebraska.

UP NEXT

• Xavier returns to action on Wednesday, Feb. 24 vs Seton Hall. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center with the game being aired on the BEDN/FloHoops.