Xavier, Villanova Set for Saturday Matinee

CINCINNATI - Xavier closes its BIG EAST road trip on Saturday, Jan. 25 at Villanova. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. from Finneran Pavilion.

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (6-13, 1-7) at VILLANOVA WILDCATS (10-10, 4-4)
Game Info - Saturday, Jan. 25 - 2 p.m. ET - Finneran Pavilion (6,501)
Live Stats - bit.ly/42w2r4t
Watch Live (FloCollege) - flosports.link/3zR1kxj

ABOUT VILLANOVA

2024-25 Record: 10-10 (4-4 BIG EAST)
2023-24 Record: 22-13 (11-7 BIG EAST)
2024 Postseason: WBIT Championship - Runner-Up
Series History: Xavier trails, 20-1
Last Meeting: Villanova 86, Xavier 45 (Dec. 30, 2023 - Cincinnati, Ohio)

NOTABLES
• Villanova was picked to finish sixth in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Wildcats return one starter and seven letterwinners from the 2023-24 roster.
• Freshman Jasmine Bascoe leads the team in scoring (15.1), assists (4.3) and steals (1.9). She has added a .424 field-goal percentage (97-for-229) and 4.4 rebounds per game.
• Maddie Webber has added 12.8 points per game and a team-high 33 three pointers. Denae Carter has added a team-high 5.9 rebounds per game to go along with 8.9 points per game.
• The Wildcats rank third in the BIG EAST in three-point field-goal percentage (.354) and blocks (3.4), while ranking fifth in scoring offense (64.8) and 10th in scoring defense (66.6).

SERIES HISTORY

• Xavier trails the all-time series with Villanova, 20-1. The Musketeers lone win in the series was a 74-67 overtime victory on Dec. 31, 2015 at Cintas Center.

• The Musketeers have lost 15 straight in the series and are 0-11 when playing the Wildcats in Villanova, Pa.

• Daniela López posted a team-high 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting in the lone meeting last season. The guard added a team-high five rebounds.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS
Dec. 30, 2023 - Villanova 86, Xavier 45 (Villanova, Pa.)
Jan. 17, 2023 - Villanova 76, Xavier 38 (Villanova, Pa.)
Jan. 1, 2023 - Villanova 77, Xavier 49 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 27, 2022 - Villanova 58, Xavier 49 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 30, 2022 - Villanova 82, Xavier 57 (Villanova, Pa.)

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 57-50 loss at DePaul on Jan. 23 at Wintrust Arena. The Musketeers closed within two points in the final minute of the game, but four turnovers down the stretch proved costly as the Blue Demons escaped with the win.
Loren Christie scored a game-high 16 points on 8-for-12 shooting. The forward added four rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
Tae'lor Purvis added 11 points, three rebounds and a game-high six steals (also a career high in steals).
Xavier had 10 steals, the team's second straight game with 10 or more steals.
Meri Kanerva added six points, four rebounds and a team-high six assists (has six games with five or more assists this season).

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 5.5 points per game and her rebounding average by 1.3 rebounds per game. The forward has also posted a .500 field-goal percentage (75-for-150), an increase of 13.1 percent.
Loren Christie has 37 blocks through 19 games. She posted a career-best 35 blocks during the 2021-22 season at Buffalo.

NOTABLE

Meri Kanerva leads the team in scoring (10.3) and assists (3.4). The freshman guard has added 22 steals and 26 three pointers.
Loren Christie ranks first on the team in rebounding (5.2), while ranking second in scoring (9.7). The forward ranks first in the BIG EAST in blocks (1.9), while ranking 33rd in the NCAA.
Loren Christie ranks 25th in the NCAA in total blocks (37). Xavier has 56 blocks on the year, ranking fifth in the BIG EAST.
Tae'lor Purvis leads the team in total steals (45), while ranking second in field-goal percentage (.477). The senior guard has added 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.
The Musketeers rank fourth in the BIG EAST in turnovers forced per game (17.7). Tae'lor Purvis ranks second in the BIG EAST in steals (2.4), while ranking 66th in the NCAA.
The Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in eight 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 6.3 points per game. The guard has made a team-high 28 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 (6.5), fifth in three-point field-goal percentage (.294) and fifth in three-point field-goal percentage defense (.319).
In BIG EAST only games, Meri Kanerva ranks fifth in the conference in assists (4.0).
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.
Xavier has lost 30 straight road games. The Musketeers have not won a true road game since Nov. 27, 2022 at SIUE (W, 73-65).

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

UP NEXT

Xavier returns to action on Wednesday, Jan. 29 vs Marquette. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center.

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Players Mentioned

Loren Christie

Júlia Garcia Roig

MacKenzie Givens

Meri Kanerva

Daniela López

Aizhanique Mayo

Tae’lor Purvis

Mackayla Scarlett

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