Xavier, Seton Hall Set for Sunday Matinee

Sunday, December 28

South Orange, N.J.

1 p.m.

Xavier University

Seton Hall

12.26.25 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats ESPN+XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is set for 1 p.m. from Walsh Gymnasium

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier continues BIG EAST action at Seton Hall on Sunday, Dec. 28. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. with the game being aired on ESPN+.

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (8-4, 1-2) at SETON HALL PIRATES (8-4, 2-1)
Game Info - Sunday, Dec. 28 - 1 p.m. ET - Walsh Gymnasium (1,316) - South Orange, N.J.
Live Stats - statb.us/v/xavi/608759
ESPN+ - bit.ly/4ay0Df7

ABOUT THE PIRATES

2025-26 Record: 8-4 (2-1 BIG EAST)
2024-25 Record: 23-10 (13-5 BIG EAST)
2025 Postseason: WBIT
Series History: Seton Hall leads, 24-3
Last Meeting: Seton Hall 48, Xavier 40 (March 8, 2025 - Uncasville, Conn.)

NOTABLES
• Seton Hall was picked to finish third in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. Guards Savannah Catalon and Jada Eads were named to the preseason all-conference team.
• Mariana Valenzuela ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in scoring (14.0) and fourth in rebounding (7.7). Savannah Catalon ranks ninth in the conference in scoring (13.4) and 11th in rebounding (6.0).
• Seton Hall ranks third in the BIG EAST in scoring offense (73.1) and eighth in scoring defense (64.3). The Pirates rank first in the conference in rebounds per game (40.0) and fifth in steals (9.6).

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier trails the all-time series, 24-3. The Musketeers have dropped 14 straight games vs the Pirates.
Xavier's last win over the Pirates was on Feb. 1, 2019 in South Orange, N.J. (W, 80-76).
Meri Kanerva averaged 10.7 points, 5.3 assists and 3.0 rebounds per game in three meetings vs the Pirates last season. She added a .414 field-goal percentage (12-for-29) and three steals.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS SETON HALL
March 8, 2025 - Seton Hall 48, Xavier 40 (Uncasville, Conn.)
March 2, 2025 - Seton Hall 59, Xavier 57 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 8, 2025 - Seton Hall 72, Xavier 47 (South Orange, N.J.)
Feb. 10, 2024 - Seton Hall 86, Xavier 62 (South Orange, N.J.)
Jan. 13, 2024 - Seton Hall 61, Xavier 47 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 64-58 loss at Butler on Dec. 19.
Vivien Nejašmić scored a team-high 24 points on 10-for-17 shooting in 25 minutes of action off the bench. She added six rebounds and knocked down two, 3-pointers.
Vivien Nejašmić is one of only two Xavier players to make 10 or more field goals in a game since the start of the 2022-23 season (Meri Kanerva also had 10 field goals vs Kent State on Nov. 14, 2025).
The 24 points by Vivien Nejašmić are the second most in a single game by a Xavier player this season (MacKenzie Givens scored 25 points at Cincinnati on Dec. 7).
Vivien Nejašmić was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Dec. 22.

NOTABLES

A win on Sunday would be Xavier's first road BIG EAST victory since Feb. 20, 2022 at Butler (W, 73-54), snapping a 29-game losing streak in road conference games.
Mariyah Noel is averaging 15.7 points per game, ranking fifth in the BIG EAST and 130th 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 (6.7), while ranking eighth in the BIG EAST. Noel is one of five players who rank in the top-10 in the BIG EAST in both rebounding and scoring.
Savannah White is averaging a team-high 7.2 rebounds per game to go along with 7.1 points per game. She ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in rebounding and 184th in the NCAA. The forward also ranks third in the BIG EAST and 56th in the NCAA in blocks per game (1.6). White has added 15 steals, ranking second on the team.
Meri Kanerva is averaging 8.8 points per game. She has added a team-high 49 assists and 17 steals. The guard is averaging 37.2 minutes per game, ranking first in the BIG EAST and second in the NCAA.
Sophomore MacKenzie Givens is averaging 11.9 points and 5.0 rebounds per game this season. She averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game last season. Givens ranks first on the team in field-goal percentage (.500). Her 11.9 points per game average ranks 16th in the BIG EAST.
Xavier ranks third in the BIG EAST and 46th in the NCAA in free-throw percentage (.759). The Musketeers only hit 65.2 percent of their free throws last season, ranking 11th in the BIG EAST and 321st in the NCAA.
The Musketeers rank fourth in the BIG EAST in blocks per game (4.1) and fifth in free throws made per game (10.7). Xavier also ranks third in the conference in field-goal percentage defense (.376), while ranking 96th in the NCAA.
Vivien Nejašmić is averaging 13.0 points per game in BIG EAST only games with a .483 field-goal percentage. Savannah White has added 9.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game to go along with a .538 field-goal percentage.
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).
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.

BIG EAST WEEKLY HONORS

Nov. 24 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Nov. 17 - Mariyah Noel - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 8 - MacKenzie Givens - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 15 - MacKenzie Givens - BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll
Dec. 22 - Vivien Nejašmić - 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 played 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 71 non-conference games over the last eight seasons with a 57-19 mark at Cintas Center.
Xavier played 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.
Xavier snapped its two-game losing streak in the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout series on Dec. 7 and pick up its first win at Fifth Third Arena since Dec. 11, 2016 (W, 72-61). Xavier is 13-8 in the last 21 meetings vs the Bearcats with a 7-4 record in games played at Fifth Third Arena.
Xavier played 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