Xavier Opens BIG EAST Tournament Play vs No. 6 Seed Seton Hall

Friday, March 3

Uncasville, Conn.

4 p.m.

Xavier University

No. 6 seed Seton Hall

2023 BIG EAST Tournament Preview vs Seton Hall

Xavier Opens BIG EAST Tournament Play vs No. 6 Seed Seton Hall

03.02.23 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Live (FloSports)Watch Live (SNY/FoxSportsApp)Tournament Central Bracket (PDF)XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. from Mohegan Sun Arena

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball takes on No. 6 seed Seton Hall in the opening round of the BIG EAST Tournament on Friday, March 3. Tip-off is slated for 4 p.m. ET from Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

The game will air live on SNY and will also stream on the FOX Sports App and FloHoops.

THE MATCHUP VS SETON HALL

NO. 11 SEED XAVIER MUSKETEERS (7-22) vs NO. 6 SEED SETON HALL PIRATES (17-13)
Game Info - Friday, March 3 - 4 p.m. ET - Mohegan Sun Arena (10,000)
Live Video (SNY) - bit.ly/3H8b9LA
Live Stats - bit.ly/3MhiND9

ABOUT THE PIRATES

2022-23 Record: 17-13 (10-10 BIG EAST)
2021-22 Record: 24-13 (12-8 BIG EAST)
2021-22 Postseason: WNIT Runner-Up
Series History: Xavier trails, 18-3
Last Meeting: Seton Hall 72, Xavier 59 (Feb. 18, 2023 - South Orange, N.J.)

NOTABLES
• Lauren Park-Lane averaged a team-best 22.0 points and 8.0 assists per game in the two meetings vs Xavier this season. The senior guard added a .500 field-goal percentage (17-for-34). Sidney Cooks added a team-high 8.0 rebounds per game to go along with 12.5 points per game.
• Seton Hall has dropped two straight games and is 2-5 in its last seven contests. The Pirates are coming off an 83-56 loss to No. 11 Villanova on Feb. 27 in South Orange, N.J.
• The Pirates lead the BIG EAST in free-throw percentage (.782), while ranking third in steals (8.5) and fourth in both scoring offense (71.4) and field-goal percentage (.442).
• Lauren Park-Lane ranks second in the BIG EAST in assists (6.4), while ranking third in scoring (19.7). Sidney Cooks ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in scoring, averaging 16.2 points per game.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series, 18-3. The Musketeers have dropped eight straight games in the series.

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

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS SETON HALL
Feb. 13, 2023 - Seton Hall 72, Xavier 59 (South Orange, N.J.)
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)

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT HISTORY

• Xavier and Seton Hall are meeting for the second time in the BIG EAST Tournament. No. 7 seed Seton Hall defeated No. 10 seed Xavier, 66-42, on March 3, 2018 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

• Xavier is 1-9 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament action. The Musketeers lone BIG EAST Tournament win was over Georgetown, 70-67, on March 7, 2015.

• Since joining the BIG EAST in 2013-14, the Musketeers have never been higher than the No. 7 seed (twice). Xavier has been the No. 10 seed four times, the No. 9 seed twice and the No. 8 seed and the No. 11 seed once.

• The No. 11 seed is 7-19 all-time in BIG EAST Tournament action (0-2 record when No. 6 vs No. 11 in the first round for 2021-present bracket format; 3-4 record when No. 11 vs No. 14 in the first round for 2008-13 bracket format; 4-13 record when No. 6 vs No. 11 in the first round for the 1996-2008 bracket format).

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

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT BRACKET

March 3 – First Round
Game 1: 9 seed Georgetown vs. 8 seed Butler, 11 a.m. (SNY)
Game 2: 10 seed Providence vs. 7 seed DePaul, 1:30 p.m. (SNY)
Game 3: 11 seed Xavier vs. 6 seed Seton Hall, 4 p.m. (SNY)

March 4 – Quarterfinals
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. 1 seed UConn, Noon (FS1)
Game 5: No. 5 seed Marquette vs. No. 4 seed St. John's, 2:30 p.m. (FS2)
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. 2 seed Villanova, 7 p.m. (FS2)
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. 3 seed Creighton, 9:30 p.m. (FS2)

March 5 – Semifinals
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 3 p.m. (FS1)
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 5:30 p.m. (FS1)

March 6 - Final
Game 10: Game 8 winner vs Game 9 winner, 7 p.m. (FS1)

All times Eastern

OVALLE - All-FRESHMAN TEAM

• Fernanda Ovalle was named to BIG EAST All-Freshman Team, becoming the first Musketeers to earn the honors since Aaliyah Dunham in 2018. She's the first Xavier player to earn postseason all-conference honors since 2020 (A'riana Gray).

• The Santiago, Chile, native leads all BIG EAST freshmen in rebounding (4.4), while ranking second in scoring (8.5). She also ranks second in total blocks (10), third in total assists (47), fourth in total steals (19) and fifth in field-goal percentage (.429).

ALL-TIME BIG EAST HONOREES
2021-22 - Ayanna Townsend - Scholar-Athlete of the Year
2019-20 - A'riana Gray - Honorable Mention
2018-19 - A'riana Gray - Honorable Mention
2017-18 - Aaliyah Dunham - All-Freshman Team
2016-17 - Raeshaun Gaffney - Honorable Mention
2015-16 - Briana Glover - Honorable Mention
2013-14 - Maddison Blackwell - All-Freshman Team

XAVIER VS SETON HALL IN 2022-23

• Xavier averaged 57 points per game in two meetings vs the Pirates this season with a .414 field-goal percentage (46-for-111). The Pirates averaged 73 points per game with a .469 field-goal percentage (60-for-128).

• Xavier went 26-for-55 from the floor in the last meeting (Feb. 18) between the two schools. The 26 made baskets are the most in a BIG EAST game this season for the Musketeers.

• Taylor Smith averaged 10.0 points per game in those outings, while Kaysia Woods added 9.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. The two players combined for eight of the team's 11 three pointers.

• Courtney Prenger added 8.5 points per game with a .615 field-goal percentage (6-for-15). Fernanda Ovalle chipped in 7.5 points per game, while Shelby Calhoun posted 7.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. Calhoun also led the team in total assists (8) and total steals (5) vs the Pirates.

BLACKFORD - 1,000 POINT CLUB

• Nila Blackford has 1,100 career points over four seasons of basketball (was at Kent State from 2019-22 before transferring to Xavier in the offseason). She has averaged 11.2 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 106 blocks this season, ranking sixth in single-season school history. The 106 blocks also rank fifth in the BIG EAST this season, while ranking 90th in the NCAA.

• Individually, Courtney Prenger ranks 85th in the NCAA in total blocks (38). She is one block 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 22nd in the BIG EAST in scoring, averaging 10.6 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 (.839).

• In BIG EAST only games, Mackayla Scarlett ranks third in free-throw percentage (.863). Nila Blackford ranks eighth in steals per game (1.6) and 16th in rebounding (5.5).

• Two other Musketeers are averaging seven or more points per game in newcomers Taylor Smith (7.8) and Fernanda Ovalle (8.5). Ovalle also ranks second on the team in field-goal percentage (.429) and third rebounding (4.4).

• Courtney Prenger is averaging 6.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. The senior forward averaged 2.2 points and 3.0 rebounds last season. She also has 38 blocks this season to lead the Musketeers, while ranking third in the BIG EAST.

• Xavier ranks tied for fourth in the BIG EAST in steals (8.1). Courtney Prenger leads the team in steals (32), while Nila Blackford ranks second with 31 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).

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

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

UP NEXT

• The winner of the Xavier/Seton Hall game will advance to the BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals on Saturday, March 4 vs No. 3 seed Creighton. Tip-off is slated for 9:30 p.m. with the game being aired nationally on FS2.