Xavier Set for Raising the B.A.R. Invitational

Saturday, December 21

Berkeley, Calif.

10:35 p.m. ET

Xavier University

Temple

2024 Raising the B.A.R. Invitational - Preview

Xavier Set for Raising the B.A.R. Invitational

12.19.24 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Live Audio XU Notes (PDF)

The Musketeers travel to Berkeley, Calif. on Dec. 21-22

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball closes non-conference action at the Raising the B.A.R. Invitational powered by Cal on Dec. 21-22. The two-day tournament is being played at Haas Pavilion.

The Musketeers open tournament action vs Temple on Saturday, Dec. 21 at 10 p.m. ET.

At the Raising the B.A.R. Invitational (Basketball. Activism. Representation.), teams are activating the "activism" pillar of the invitational with this campaign by fundraising for local charities in each of the participating schools cities. More information HERE.

Join the Musketeers in raising funds for Cincinnati Stepping Stones by donating HERE.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

SATURDAY, DEC. 21
No. 24 Cal vs Fordham - 8 p.m. ET
Xavier vs Temple - 10 p.m. ET

SUNDAY, DEC. 22
Consolation Game - 6 p.m. ET
Championship Game - 8 p.m. ET

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (4-6) vs TEMPLE OWLS (5-4)
Game Info - Saturday, Dec. 21 - 8 p.m. ET - Haas Pavilion (11,877)
Live Stats - bit.ly/3Duwrmw
Live Audio (Temple Radio feed) - bit.ly/3VPn3jT

ABOUT TEMPLE

2024-25 Record: 4-6
2023-24 Record: 20-12 (13-5 American)
2024 Postseason: None
Series History: Xavier leads, 14-13
Last Meeting: Temple 78, Xavier 41 (Dec. 1, 2023 - Tempe, Ariz.)

NOTABLES
• Temple was picked to finish eighth in the American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. Senior guard Tiarra East was named to the preseason all-conference team.
• Tiarra East leads the team in scoring (16.4), while ranking second in rebounding (8.7). She has added 25 assists, 10 steals and three blocks. She ranks fourth in the AAC in scoring.
• Anissa Rivera has added a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game to go along with 8.7 points per game. The forward has added a team-high 18 steals to go along with eight blocks and 11 assists.
• Temple is led by third-year head coach Diane Richardson. She has a career record of 116-100.
• Temple ranks seventh in the AAC in scoring defense (62.0) and ninth in scoring offense (61.4). The Owls also rank second in steals (9.8) and 12th in field-goal percentage (.362).

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier leads the all-time series with Temple, 14-13.
The Musketeers are playing the Owls in a neutral site game for the second time in as many seasons. Temple defeated Xavier, 78-41, on Dec. 1, 2023 in Tempe, Ariz., at the Briann January Classic.

ABOUT FORDHAM

2024-25 Record: 6-3
2023-24 Record: 13-17 (8-10 Atlantic-10)
2024 Postseason: None
Series History: Xavier leads, 19-3
Last Meeting: Fordham 48, Xavier 41 (Jan. 23, 2013 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• Fordham was picked to finish tied for ninth in the Atlantic-10 Preseason Coaches' Poll. Taylor Donaldson was named to the preseason all-conference first team after leading the A-10 in scoring (17.9) last season.
• Bridgette Mitchell is in her second season as the team's head coach. She has a career head coaching record of 52-50.
• Taylor Donaldson leads the team in scoring, averaging 16.0 points per game. She has added 4.1 rebounds per game to go along with 16 steals and 14 assists. She ranks eighth in the A-10 in scoring and 125th in the NCAA.
• Irene Murua has added 11.7 points per game and a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game. She also leads the team in field-goal percentage (.574).
• The Rams rank 42nd in the NCAA in scoring defense (55.6) and 53rd in field-goal percentage defense (36.5).

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier leads the all-time series with Fordham, 19-3. The Musketeers dropped the last meeting between the two schools, 48-41, on Jan. 23, 2013 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Prior to the 2013 meeting, the Musketeers won 17 straight in the series from Jan. 24, 1998 - Feb. 11, 2012.

ABOUT CAL

2024-25 Record: 11-1
2023-24 Record: 19-15 (7-11 Pac-12)
2024 Postseason: WBIT - Second Round
Series History: Xavier trails, 1-0
Last Meeting: Cal 88, Xavier 79 (Dec. 30, 1991 - Berkeley, Calif.)

NOTABLES
• Cal entered the Associated Press Top-25 Poll at No. 24 on Dec. 16, the first time the Golden Bears have been ranked since Jan. 7, 2019 (also No. 24).
• Cal was picked to finish 14th in the Atlantic Coast Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• The Golden Bears rank 43rd in the NCAA in scoring offense (78.2) and 107th in scoring defense (59.4). Cal also ranks 11th in the NCAA in three pointers made per game (10.3), 13th in three-point field-goal percentage (.390) and 50th in field-goal percentage (.460).
• Five players are averaging double figures for Cal: Lulu Twidale (15.6), Ioanna Krimili (15.4), Marta Suárez (12.7), Kayla Williams (11.9) and Ugonne (Michelle) Onyiah (10.2). Onyiah has added a team-high 7.4 rebounds per game to go along with a team-high 23 blocks.
• Charmin Smith has a 67-81 overall record in six seasons as the head coach of the Golden Bears.

SERIES HISTORY

Cal leads the all-time series with Xavier, 1-0. The Golden Bears defeated the Musketeers, 88-79, in the lone meeting on Dec. 30, 1991 in Berkeley, Calif.

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 60-48 loss to Cincinnati in the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout on Dec. 15 at Cintas Center.
The Musketeers led by three points, 45-42, with 7:03 left in regulation, but the Bearcats closed the game on an 18-3 run - pulling away for the victory. Cincinnati went 11-for-15 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. All told, the game featured six ties and seven lead changes.
Daniela López scored a team-high 13 points on 5-for-10 shooting. The guard pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. She now has nine career double-figure scoring games.
Meri Kanerva finished with 11 points, five assists and two rebounds. The five assists matches her career high (has posted five assists in a game three times this season). The freshman guard has now scored in double figures seven times.
Loren Christie added three points, six rebounds, three blocks and three steals.

CHRISTIE BREAKOUT SEASON

Loren Christie entered the season with a career scoring average of 4.2 points per game and a career rebounding average of 3.9 rebounds per game. The forward also had a career field-goal percentage of .369 (166-for-450). She entered the season playing in 104 games over four seasons between two schools: Buffalo (2019-2022) and San Francisco (2022-23).
This season, Loren Christie has increased her scoring average by 6.9 points per game and her rebounding average by 2.5 rebounds per game. The forward has also posted a .489 field-goal percentage (45-for-92), an increase of 12 percent.
Loren Christie has 23 blocks through 10 games. She posted a career-best 35 blocks during the 2021-22 season at Buffalo.

NOTABLE

Meri Kanerva ranks tied for first on the team in scoring (11.1), while ranking 19th in the BIG EAST. The guard also leads the team in total assists (30). She also ranks third in the BIG EAST among freshman in scoring.
Loren Christie ranks tied for first on the team in scoring (11.1), while also leading the team rebounding (6.4). The forward ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in rebounding, while ranking first in blocks (2.3). She also ranks 19th in the conference in scoring.
Loren Christie ranks 23rd in the NCAA in total blocks (23). Xavier has 89 blocks on the year, ranking tied for 10th in single-season school history.
Júlia Garcia Roig leads the team in field-goal percentage (.550), while ranking 11th in the BIG EAST. The guard ranks fourth on the team in scoring (6.3) and second in total steals (14).
Xavier ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in steals (8.9), while ranking 144th in the NCAA. The Musketeers rank 77th in the NCAA in turnovers forced per game (19.4). Tae'lor Purvis ranks second in the BIG EAST in steals (2.4), while ranking 76th in the NCAA.
Xavier is averaging 2.1 more steals per game this season than during the 2023-24 campaign (8.9 vs 6.8).
The Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in six of their 10 games this season. Xavier only had five games with 10 or more steals during the 2023-24 season.
The Musketeers went 10-for-24 from behind the arc vs the RedHawks on Nov. 10, the first time Xavier has made 10 or more three pointers in a game since Dec. 20, 2023 (11-for-27 vs DePaul; L, 76-55).
Xavier scored 71 points vs the RedHawks on Nov. 10, the first time Xavier has scored 70 or more points in a game since Nov. 27, 2022 at SIUE (W, 76-65).
Xavier scored 27 points in the opening quarter vs the RedHawks on Nov. 10, the most points in a quarter for the Musketeers since Nov. 13, 2022 vs Saint Francis (PA) at Cintas Center. The Musketeers scored 28 points in the third quarter vs the Red Flash (W, 78-52).
Xavier hit over 50 percent of its shot attempts in back-to-back games vs Miami (Ohio) and Mercyhurst - the first time the Musketeers have hit over 50 percent of their shot attempts in back-to-back games since Feb. 12, 2011 - Feb. 16, 2011 (Xavier hit 53.8 percent of its shot attempts in a 77-55 win vs Fordham on Feb. 12; Xavier hit 66.1 percent of its shot attempts in a 92-60 win at Saint Louis on Feb. 16).
The Musketeers scored 26 points off of turnovers vs Mercyhurst on Nov. 15. The last time Xavier scored 26 or more points off of turnovers was on Nov. 13, 2022 vs Saint Francis (PA) - scored 29 points off of turnovers in a 78-52 win at Cintas Center.

SCHEDULE NOTES

Xavier will play two games on national television: Jan. 8 at UConn (SNY) and Feb. 8 at Seton Hall (FS1).
Xavier played six home non-conference games at Cintas Center, including four straight to open the 2024-25 season. The Musketeers will play a total of 15 home games during the season (including nine home BIG EAST games).
Xavier will play teams from six different leagues during non-conference action: Mid-American (4), Horizon, Sun Belt, Big 12, Mountain West and Northeast. The Musketeers non-conference opponents combined to make three postseason appearances last season.
Xavier played three opponents for the first time in program history in Arkansas State, Mercyhurst and San Jose State.
Xavier will be playing Bowling Green, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Temple and Youngstown State for the second time in as many seasons.
The Musketeers have won 64 non-conference games over the last eight seasons with a 52-17 mark at Cintas Center.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

Xavier entered the season with 12 international players from the following countries: Spain (4), Finland, Australia, Slovakia, Croatia, Germany, Serbia, England, Republic of Georgia.
Xavier returns six letterwinners from the 2023-24 season, highlighted by Aizhanique Mayo who earned All-BIG EAST Freshman Team honors. The guard ranked second in conference only games among freshman in scoring, averaging 9.8 points per game. The Musketeers also return graduate student Tae'lor Purvis who led the team in assists (69) and steals (43) a year ago. The guard ranked 12th in the BIG EAST in steals last season.
The Musketeers also welcome back sophomores Júlia Garcia Roig and Daniela López. The Spanish guards combined to average 9.4 points and 3.9 rebounds during their freshmen campaigns, while adding 82 assists and 37 steals.
Second-year head coach Billi Chambers welcomes eight newcomers to the team this summer, including local standout MacKenzie Givens (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton HS). Xavier also returns Loren Christie who brings a wealth of experience to the frontcourt, having played in 104 games during her college career - including a game in the 2022 NCAA Tournament. She missed the 2023-24 season due to injury.

XAVIER 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.

PRESEASON COACHES POLL

1. UConn – 100 (10 first-place votes)
2. Creighton – 91 (1)
3. Providence – 71
4. St. John's - 67
5. Georgetown – 66
6. Villanova – 56
7. Seton Hall – 51
8. Butler – 46
9. DePaul – 24
10. Marquette - 23
11. Xavier - 10

TICKET INFORMATION

Single-game tickets start as low as $10. Group tickets can be purchased for $3 (Groups of 15-24) and $2 (Groups of 25-99).
Fans can purchase season tickets for as low as $50 for 15 home games.
Xavier faculty and staff receive two complimentary tickets to all home games. Tickets can be claimed by showing your Xavier ID at the main ticket office window at the south entrance to Cintas Center.
For more information on season tickets, single-game tickets and group tickets - fans can contact the Xavier Athletics Ticket Office at (513) 745-3411 x7 or tickets@xavier.edu

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