Xavier Opens BIG EAST Action vs No. 1 UConn

Sunday, November 30

Cincinnati, Ohio

2:30 p.m.

Xavier University

UConn

Buy Tickets

11.28.25 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats FS1 Varsity Network XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 2:30 p.m. at Cintas Center on Nov. 30

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier women's basketball opens BIG EAST action on Sunday, Nov. 30 vs No. 1 UConn. Tip-off is slated for 2:30 p.m. from Cintas Center with the game being aired nationally on FS1.

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (4-2, 0-0) vs UCONN HUSKIES (6-0, 0-0)
Game Info - Sunday, Nov. 30 - 2:30 p.m. ET - Cintas Center (10,224) - Cincinnati, Ohio
Live Stats - statb.us/b/621524
FS1 - bit.ly/4p5m4bJ
Varsity Network - bit.ly/43a3vKI

PROMOTIONS

Halftime: Ready Go Dog Show

ABOUT UCONN

2025-26 Record: 6-0 (0-0 BIG EAST)
2024-25 Record: 37-3 (18-0 BIG EAST)
2025 Postseason: NCAA Champion
Series History: UConn leads, 9-0
Last Meeting: UConn 81, Xavier 27 (Jan. 8, 2025 - Hartford, Conn.)

NOTABLES
• UConn was picked to finish first in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll after claiming the 2025 NCAA National Championship. Sarah Strong was named the preseason player of the year, while teammates KK Arnold, Azzi Fudd, Ashlynn Shade ans Serah Williams all earned preseason all-conference honors.
• The Huskies rank ninth in the NCAA in scoring offense (88.0) and 74th in scoring defense (57.0). UConn also ranks 15th in the NCAA in scoring margin (+31.0), 25th in field-goal percentage (.487) and 15th in steals per game (14.2).
• Azzi Fudd ranks 16th in the NCAA in scoring (21.0), while Sarah Strong ranks 38th (18.8). Strong also ranks eighth in the NCAA in rebounding (8.5) and 15th in total blocks (16).

SERIES HISTORY

UConn leads the all-time series with the Musketeers, 9-0. Sunday's meeting will be the first of two matchups this season.
Xavier dropped last year's meeting with the Huskies, 81-27, at PeoplesBank Arena.
The Huskies won the first meeting in program history, 86-84, on March 14, 1999 inside Gampel Pavilion. The meeting was in the NCAA Midwest Second Round with the Musketeers as the No. 8 seed, and the Huskies as the No. 1 seed.

LAST FIVE VS UCONN
Jan. 8, 2025 - UConn 81, Xavier 27 (Hartford, Conn.)
Feb. 14, 2024 - UConn 86, Xavier 40 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 27, 2023 - UConn 60, Xavier 51 (Storrs, Conn.)
Jan. 5, 2023 - UConn 73, Xavier 37 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 18, 2022 - UConn 89, Xavier 35 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

XAVIER VS THE TOP-25

The Musketeers are 11-60 all-time against teams ranked in the top-25. The last time Xavier played a top-25 team was on Jan. 8, 2025 (L, 81-27 at No. 7 UConn).
The Musketeers last win over a top-25 team was on Nov. 26, 2009 over No. 18 Kansas, 76-71, at the Junkanoo Jam in the Bahamas.

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 64-57 road win at Akron on Monday, Nov. 24. MacKenzie Givens and Mariyah Noel combined for 40 points.
Sophomore MacKenzie Givens scored a career and game-high 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting. She added four rebounds and one assist. The guard/forward made her first start of the season vs the Zips (now has six career starts).
Mariyah Noel added 19 points on 6-for-10 shooting in 26 minutes of action off the bench. The guard added a game-high nine rebounds.
The win snapped a 35-game road losing streak in true road games for the Musketeers (last road win was at SIUE on Nov. 27, 2022).

NOTABLES

Mariyah Noel is averaging 18.0 points per game, ranking third in the BIG EAST and 56th in the NCAA. The junior guard entered the season with a 1.8 points per game scoring averaging in 39 games at Ole Miss. She also ranks second on the team in rebounding (7.2), while ranking eighth in the BIG EAST. Noel is one of four players who rank in the top-10 in the BIG EAST in both rebounding and scoring.
Mariyah Noel posted back-to-back games with 22 points on Nov. 7-11, becoming the first player to score 20 or more points in consecutive games since A'riana Gray in 2020 (scored 20 points in back-to-back games on Jan. 10-12).
Savannah White is averaging a team-high 7.5 rebounds per game to go along with 7.8 points per game. She ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in rebounding and 150th in the NCAA. The forward also ranks fourth in the BIG EAST and 47th in the NCAA in blocks per game (1.8). White has added a team-high 13 steals.
Meri Kanerva is averaging 8.8 points per game. She has added 19 assists and eight steals. The guard is averaging 37.6 minutes per game, ranking first in the BIG EAST and second in the NCAA.
Xavier ranks second in the BIG EAST and 13th in the NCAA in free-throw percentage (.809). The Musketeers only hit 65.2 percent of their free throws last season, ranking 11th in the BIG EAST and 321st in the NCAA.
Xavier ranks sixth in the BIG EAST and 103rd in the NCAA in scoring defense (59.3). The Musketeers also rank fifth in the conference in turnovers forced per game (18.6) and fourth in blocks per game (4.3).
Sophomore MacKenzie Givens is averaging 11.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game this season. She averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game last season. Givens has posted a team-high .500 field-goal percentage (27-for-54).
Xavier posted a 74-53 win vs Ohio on Nov. 20 at Cintas Center. The 21-point margin of victory was Xavier's largest margin of victory since Dec. 15, 2023 vs SIUE (W, 68-43).
Xavier scored 74 or more points in a home game for the first time since Nov. 22, 2022 (W, 84-68 vs McNeese State).
Xavier had two players with 11 or more rebounds in a game for the first time since Dec. 19, 2021 (W, 65-58 vs Southeast Missouri) vs Ohio on Nov. 20.
Xavier had 20 assists vs Ohio on Nov. 20, the first time the Musketeers posted 20 or more assists in a game since Dec. 15, 2023 (23 assists in a 68-43 win vs SIUE).
Xavier had 12 steals vs New Haven on Nov. 4, the 11th time the Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in a game over the last two seasons.
Xavier has pulled down 43 rebounds in a game twice this season. The last time Xavier had 43 or more rebounds in a game was on Dec. 9, 2022 vs Cincinnati (47 rebounds; W, 48-35).

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

Nov. 24 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Nov. 17 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll

KANERVA NAMED TO ALL-BIG EAST TEAM

Meri Kanerva was named to the 2025-26 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention Team on Oct. 21 at BIG EAST Media Day at Madison Square Garden. She is the first Musketeer to pick-up preseason all-conference honors since A'riana Gray in 2020.

SCHEDULE NOTES

Xavier will play seven non-conference home games at Cintas Center, including five straight to open the 2025-26 season. The Musketeers will play a total of 17 home games during the season (10 home BIG EAST games; seven non-conference games).
The Musketeers have won 68 non-conference games over the last eight seasons with a 55-19 mark at Cintas Center.
Xavier will play teams from five different leagues during non-conference action: Mid-American (3), Northeast (3), Horizon, Big 12 and Atlantic 10. The Musketeers non-conference opponents combined to make two postseason appearances last season.
The Musketeers travel to Cincinnati on Sunday, Dec. 7 for the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout. Xavier looks to snap its two-game losing streak in the series and pick up its first win at Fifth Third Arena since Dec. 11, 2016 (W, 72-61).
Xavier will play two opponents for the first time in program history in New Haven and Long Island.
Xavier played Kent State for the third time in as many seasons.
The Musketeers renewed their rivalry with Dayton on Nov. 11. The two teams played each other for the first time since Feb. 7, 2013.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS

Xavier returns six letterwinners from the 2024-25 season, highlighted by Meri Kanerva who was named to the All-BIG EAST Freshman Team. The guard led the team in scoring (11.2) and assists (3.4).
The Musketeers also welcome back starter Petra Oborilova. She averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game, while knocking down 33 three pointers (ranked third on the team).
Third-year head coach Billi Chambers welcomes eight newcomers to the team this summer, including four transfers: Savannah White (Indiana State), Mya Moore (Cleveland State), Audia Young (Auburn) and Mariyah Noel (Ole Miss).
Xavier also welcomes four freshman to the program: Penda Dieng (Louga, Senegal), Denise Neves (Lisbon, Portugal), Payton Richards (Lake Travis, Texas) and Kodee Williams-Sefo (Auckland, New Zealand).
All told, the Musketeers will have players from eight different countries on the 2025-26 roster.

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.

TV BROADCAST INFORMATION

The upcoming season marks the first of a six-year media agreement, which will span from 2025-26 through 2030-31, encompassing coverage on FOX Sports (FOX, FS1), NBC Sports (NBC, Peacock), and TNT Sports (TNT, TBS, truTV and Max). The agreement will provide major national broadcast, cable, and direct-to-consumer streaming coverage of BIG EAST women's and men's basketball games. ESPN+ will also stream a minimum of 75 women's basketball games.
Xavier will play 27 games on ESPN+ (16 home games; 11 away games). The Musketeers will also play one game on FS1 (Nov. 30 vs UConn) and one game on Peacock (Jan. 8 at UConn).

RADIO BROADCAST INFORMATION

Xavier has added to its broadcast coverage for the upcoming 2025-26 season by providing radio broadcasts on The Varsity Network.
All 17 home games (and select road games) will be aired on The Varsity Network. The free app can be downloaded in the Apple Store or Google Play Store on any mobile device.
John Baldridge ('25) will handle the play-by-play for the Musketeers. He did play-by-play broadcasts for the Xavier women's basketball program during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons on the Xavier University Sports Radio Network.
Baldridge served as a broadcaster for the Peoria Chiefs (St. Louis Cardinals High-A Affiliate) in the summer of 2025. Baldridge also has broadcaster experience with the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders (Northwoods League) and the Cincinnati Steam (Great Lakes League).

PRESEASON COACHES POLL

1. UConn - 100 (10 first-place votes)
2. Marquette - 85
3. Seton Hall - 80 (1)
4. Villanova - 78
5. Creighton - 61
6. St. John's - 56
7. Georgetown - 48
8. DePaul - 32
9. Butler - 30
10. Providence - 20
11. Xavier - 15

TICKET INFORMATION

Buy season tickets now at GoXavier.com/Tickets. Single-game tickets are also on sale at GoXavier.com/Tickets.
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