Women's Basketball Travels to Seton Hall on Saturday

Saturday, February 18

South Orange, N.J.

1 p.m.

Xavier University

Seton Hall

Women's Basketball Travels to Seton Hall on Saturday

02.16.23 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Live XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. from Walsh Gymnasium

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball continues BIG EAST action at Seton Hall on Saturday, Feb. 18. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. ET from Walsh Gymnasium.

THE MATCHUP AT SETON HALL

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (7-18, 0-16) at SETON HALL PIRATES (16-11, 9-8)
Game Info - Saturday, Feb. 18 - 1 p.m. ET - Walsh Gymnasium (1,000)
Live Video (BEDN/FloSports) - flosports.link/3RvqOqo
Live Stats - bit.ly/3YDriON

ABOUT THE PIRATES

2022-23 Record: 16-11 (9-8 BIG EAST)
2021-22 Record: 24-13 (12-8 BIG EAST)
2021-22 Postseason: WNIT Runner-Up
Series History: Xavier trails, 17-3
Last Meeting: Seton Hall 74, Xavier 55 (Dec. 2, 2022 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• Seton Hall was picked to finish tied for fourth in the Preseason BIG EAST Coaches' Poll after posting a 24-13 (12-8 BIG EAST) record last season. Sidney Cooks and Lauren Park-Lane were both tabbed to the preseason all-conference team.
• Seton Hall leads the BIG EAST in free-throw percentage (.795), while ranking third in scoring offense (72.2) and fifth in field-goal percentage (.440). The Pirates also rank third in steals (8.7). The .795 field-goal percentage ranks fourth in the NCAA.
• Lauren Park-Lane ranks seventh in the NCAA in total assists (172) and 17th in points per game (20.2). Sidney Cooks has added 16.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and a team-leading .517 field-goal percentage.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series, 17-3. The Musketeers have dropped seven straight games in the series and are 1-8 when playing at Walsh Gymnasium.

• Xavier's lone win in South Orange, N.J., was on Feb. 1, 2019 (W, 80-76).

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS SETON HALL
Dec. 2, 2022 - Seton Hall 74, Xavier 55 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
March 1, 2022 - Seton Hall 74, Xavier 53 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 4, 2022 - Seton Hall 91, Xavier 86 (South Orange, N.J.)
Feb. 24, 2021 - Seton Hall 108, Xavier 65 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 23, 2021 - Seton Hall 85, Xavier 59 (South Orange, N.J.)

LAST TIME OUT VS SETON HALL

• Xavier dropped the first meeting between the two schools this season, 74-55, at Cintas Center on Dec. 2. Xavier matched its season high in three pointers made with 10. Kaysia Woods led Xavier with 13 points behind four 3-pointers.

• Taylor Smith added 12 points, four rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Courtney Prenger chipped in 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting to go along with three rebounds.

• Xavier held a 15-14 advantage in points off of turnovers. Seton Hall scored eight more second-chance points (13-5) and held a 42-20 advantage in points in the paint. The Pirates also scored 11 more fastbreak points (14-3).

LAST TIME OUT

• Xavier is coming off a 73-53 loss at Creighton on Feb. 12. Nila Blackford led the Musketeers with a season-high 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting, her 54th career double-figure scoring game. The forward also pulled down five rebounds and had two steals.

• Courtney Prenger added 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting, her 13th career game in double figures. The forward added one rebound and one steal.

• Xavier finished the game with a .467 field-goal percentage (21-for-45), the team's fourth highest percentage of the season. The Musketeers were also 1-for-10 from behind the arc and 10-for-11 from the foul line. Xavier had 15 assists on 21 made baskets, the team's eight most assists in a game this season.

• Xavier had nine steals, the team's 11th game of the season with nine or more steals. The Musketeers also forced 16 Creighton turnovers, the fourth most turnovers in a game this season by the Bluejays. Creighton entered the game ranked fifth in the NCAA in fewest turnovers per game (11.6).

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

• Xavier has had two players earn Freshman of the Week honors this season, most recently Fernanda Ovalle on Nov. 28.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOREES
Nov. 14 - Kaleigh Addie - Freshman of the Week
Nov. 21 - Fernanda Ovalle - Freshman of the Week
Nov. 28 - Fernanda Ovalle - Freshman of the Week

BLACKFORD - 1,000 POINT CLUB

• Nila Blackford has 1,082 career points over four seasons of basketball (was at Kent State from 2019-22 before transferring to Xavier in the offseason). She has averaged 11.4 points per game during her career. Blackford is the first Xavier player to eclipse the 1,000-point mark since A'riana Gray (2017-21) who finished her career with 1,155 points.

XU BLOCK RECORDS

• Xavier has 97 blocks this season, ranking seventh in single-season school history. The 97 blocks also rank tied for fourth in the BIG EAST this season, while ranking 69th in the NCAA.

• Individually, Courtney Prenger ranks 59th in the NCAA in total blocks (36). She is three blocks away from moving into 10th in Xavier single-season school history (10th - Terri Coughman - 39 blocks during the 1986-87 season).

NOTABLES

• Junior guard Mackayla Scarlett ranks 21st in the BIG EAST in scoring, averaging 11.4 points per game. She averaged 0.6 points per game as a freshman and 8.1 points per game as a sophomore. She also ranks fifth in free-throw percentage (.821) and 13th in steals (1.3).

• Mackayla Scarlett ranks 11th in the BIG EAST in three pointers made per game (1.6). Kaysia Woods ranks second in the team in three pointers made (32), while Taylor Smith ranks third (24).

• In BIG EAST only games, Mackayla Scarlett ranks fifth in free-throw percentage (.833). Nila Blackford ranks seventh in steals per game (1.7) and 14th in rebounding (5.9).

• Two other Musketeers are averaging eight or more points per game in newcomers Taylor Smith (8.3) and Fernanda Ovalle (8.9). Ovalle also ranks second on the team in field-goal percentage (.429) and rebounding (4.6).

• Fernanda Ovalle leads all BIG EAST freshmen in rebounding (4.6), while ranking second in scoring (8.9). Georgetown's Kennedy Fauntleroy leads all BIG EAST freshmen in scoring (11.8).

• Courtney Prenger is averaging 6.4 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. The senior forward averaged 2.2 points and 3.0 rebounds last season. She also has 36 blocks this season to lead the Musketeers, while ranking third in the BIG EAST.

• Xavier ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in steals (8.0). Nila Blackford paces the team with 28 steals, while Mackayla Scarlett and Aanaya Harris rank second with 27 steals.

• Fernanda Ovalle (20 points) and Mackayla Scarlett (21 points) both set career highs in scoring at SIUE on Nov. 27. It marked the first time since Jan. 10, 2020 that Xavier had two players score 20 or more points in a game (A'riana Gray and Aaliyah Dunham each scored 20 points at Georgetown).

• Xavier defeated Cincinnati, 48-35, on Dec. 9 in the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout. The 35 points are the fewest allowed by a Xavier team since Nov. 17, 2018 vs Fairfield (W, 48-35). The .179 field-goal percentage is the lowest field-goal percentage allowed by a Xavier team since Nov. 25, 2015 (held Southeastern Louisiana to a .190 field-goal percentage on 11-for-58 shooting).

• Xavier dished out 30 assists on 33 made baskets (33-for-70) vs McNeese State, the most by a BIG EAST team this season and tied for the 10th most in a game this season in the NCAA. The 30 assists rank tied for second in single-game school history. The last time Xavier had 30 assists in a game was on Dec. 8, 1999 vs Charlotte.

• Xavier opened its season with an 87-68 win at Miami (Ohio). The 87 points are the most in a game for Xavier since Dec. 18, 2018 vs Alabama State (W, 87-58).

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

• Aanaya Harris returns for her sophomore season after posting 9.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. She added 52 assists, 23 steals and eight blocks.

• Aanaya Harris added a .463 field-goal percentage, ranking second among BIG EAST freshmen and 14th overall. Her 9.2 points per game also ranked third among conference freshmen.

• Senior Shaila Beeler led the team in assists (117) and steals (34) last season, while adding 8.2 points and 2.2 rebounds per game. The guard ranked fourth in the BIG EAST in free-throw percentage (.805) and fifth in assists (4.0).

• Xavier also welcomes five newcomers: Taylor Smith (missed 2021-22 season with an injury), Nila Blackford (transfer from Kent State), Fernanda Ovalle, Bella Ward and June Ruiz Azkue.

SCHEDULE NOTES

• The Musketeers played five of their first six BIG EAST games at Cintas Center. Xavier opened its conference schedule on Black Friday vs Creighton who advanced to the 2022 NCAA Elite Eight.

• Xavier will play four games on national television: at Georgetown on Dec. 4 (FS1), vs Villanova on Jan. 1 (CBS Sports Network), vs UConn on Jan. 5 (SNY) and at UConn on Feb. 27 (CBS Sports Network).

• The BIG EAST Tournament will be played at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., for the third straight season. The tournament will be held on March 3-6.

• Xavier played nine non-conference games (two on the road, seven at home). The Musketeers played teams from seven different conferences (MAC, Horizon, NEC, Sun Belt, Southland, OVC, AAC). Xavier played three teams for the first time in program history (Old Dominion, SIUE, Eastern Michigan).

• Xavier played seven non-conference home games, the most non-conference home games for the Musketeers since 2018-19 (nine games).

• The Musketeers have won 59 non-conference games over the last seven seasons with a 47-12 mark at Cintas Center.

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.

BIG EAST COACHES' POLL

1.	UConn (10)	100
2.	Creighton	89
3.	Villanova (1)	83
T-4.	DePaul	68
T-4.	Seton Hall	68
6.	Marquette	56
7.	St. John's	47
8.	Providence	34
T-9.	Butler	21
T-9.	Georgetown	21
11.	Xavier	18