Women's Basketball Opens BIG EAST Road Trip at DePaul

Wednesday, January 22

Chicago, Ill.

8 p.m. ET

Xavier University

DePaul

Women's Basketball Opens BIG EAST Road Trip at DePaul

01.20.25 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Live XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday from Wintrust Arena

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier opens a BIG EAST road trip at DePaul on Wednesday, Jan. 22 at DePaul. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. ET from Wintrust Arena.

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (6-12, 1-6) at DEPAUL BLUE DEMONS (9-11, 4-3)
Game Info - Wednesday, Jan. 22 - 8 p.m. ET - Wintrust Arena (10,387)
Live Stats - bit.ly/40jSYdL
Watch Live (FloCollege) - flosports.link/3zR1kxj

ABOUT DEPAUL

2024-25 Record: 9-11 (4-3 BIG EAST)
2023-24 Record: 12-20 (4-14 BIG EAST)
2024 Postseason: None
Series History: Xavier trails, 28-1
Last Meeting: DePaul 65, Xavier 60 (Jan. 2, 2025 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• DePaul was picked to finish ninth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. Senior forward Jorie Allen was tabbed to the preseason all-conference team.
• In BIG EAST only games, Jorie Allen ranks second in the conference in scoring (18.6) and third in assists (3.9). Taylor Johnson-Matthews ranks tied for third in scoring (17.7), while Meg Newman ranks fifth in rebounding (8.0).
• DePaul ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in scoring (63.6) in conference only games, while ranking tied for 10th in scoring defense (65.0). The Blue Demons also rank third in assists (15.4) and fifth in field-goal percentage (.388).
• DePaul has dropped two straight games, most recently a 92-71 loss at Creighton on Jan. 18. The Blue Demons are 6-4 at home this year with a 2-1 record in BIG EAST games.

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series, 28-1. The Musketeers lone victory was on Jan. 23, 1984 in the first meeting between the two schools, 82-72, in Cincinnati.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS DEPAUL
Jan. 2, 2025 - DePaul 65, Xavier 60 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 16, 2024 - DePaul 79, Xavier 47 (Chicago, Ill.)
Dec. 20, 2023 - DePaul 76, Xavier 55 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 4, 2023 - DePaul 93, Xavier 48 (Chicago, Ill.)
Jan. 14, 2023 - DePaul 91, Xavier 56 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

FIRST MEETING VS DEPAUL

DePaul won the first meeting of the 2024-25 season with Xavier, 65-60, at Cintas Center on Jan. 2.
Meri Kanerva scored a team and career-high 20 points on 7-for-18 shooting with four 3-pointers. She also dished out a game and career-high seven assists.
Aizhanique Mayo scored 12 points, while Petra Oborilova rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 points.
Loren Christie added a team-high nine rebounds to go along with seven points and a game-high seven blocks. The seven blocks are the most in a game by a BIG EAST player this season, while ranking tied for 12th in the NCAA. The seven blocks also rank tied for fourth in single-game school history.
Xavier matched its season high in three pointers made with 11. The Musketeers also made 11 three pointers vs Temple on Dec. 21, 2024.

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 50-49 win over Butler on Jan. 18 at Cintas Center. Xavier snapped a 47 BIG EAST regular-season game losing streak, earning the team's first conference win since Feb. 20, 2022 at Butler (W, 73-54).
Meri Kanerva scored a game-high 16 points on 7-for-10 shooting (scored 12 points in the first quarter). The freshman guard added four assists, three rebounds and two steals.
Loren Christie finished with 10 points on 5-for-7 shooting in 18 minutes of action. The forward added four rebounds, one block and one steal.
Xavier posted 10 steals, the team's seventh game of the year with 10 or more steals.
The Musketeers posted a season-high .541 field-goal percentage (20-for-37). The .541 field-goal percentage is Xavier's highest percentage since Dec. 8, 2021 vs Niagara (Xavier posted a .596 field-goal percentage in an 82-78 win at Cintas Center).

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL

Loren Christie was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, Jan. 20. The forward averaged a team-high 10.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game last week. She added a team-high .588 field-goal percentage (10-for-17) to go along with two blocks, two steals and two assists.
The London, England, native is the first Musketeer to be named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll since Feb. 12, 2024 (Mackayla Scarlett).

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 5.4 points per game and her rebounding average by 1.4 rebounds per game. The forward has also posted a .473 field-goal percentage (62-for-131), an increase of 11.7 percent.
Loren Christie has 35 blocks through 18 games. She posted a career-best 35 blocks during the 2021-22 season at Buffalo.

NOTABLE

Meri Kanerva leads the team in scoring (10.6) and assists (3.3). The freshman guard has added 22 steals and 25 three pointers.
Loren Christie ranks first on the team in rebounding (5.3), while ranking second in scoring (9.3). The forward ranks first in the BIG EAST in blocks (1.9), while ranking 32nd in the NCAA.
Loren Christie ranks 26th in the NCAA in total blocks (35). Xavier has 52 blocks on the year, ranking sixth in the BIG EAST.
Tae'lor Purvis leads the team in total steals (39), while ranking second in field-goal percentage (.468). The senior guard has added 5.9 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.
The Musketeers rank fourth in the BIG EAST in turnovers forced per game (17.3). Tae'lor Purvis ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in steals (2.2), while ranking 106th in the NCAA.
The Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in seven games this season. Xavier only had five games with 10 or more steals during the 2023-24 season.
Aizhanique Mayo ranks fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 6.2 points per game. The guard has made a team-high 25 three pointers.
Xavier has made 10 or more three pointers in a game three times this season.
In BIG EAST only games, the Musketeers rank fifth in the conference in three pointers made per game (6.4) and sixth in three-point field-goal percentage (.302).
In BIG EAST only games, Meri Kanerva ranks sixth in the conference in assists (3.7).
Xavier has scored a season-high 71 points twice this season. The Musketeers did not score 70 or more points during the 2023-24 season and only scored 70 or more points four times during the 2022-23 campaign.
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 played 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 played Bowling Green, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Temple and Youngstown State for the second time in as many seasons.
The Musketeers have won 65 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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