Xavier, Marquette Set for New Year's Day Game

Thursday, January 1

Cincinnati, Ohio

1 p.m.

Xavier University

Marquette

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Xavier, Marquette Set for New Year's Day Game

12.31.25 | Women's Basketball

Live Stats ESPN+Varsity Network XU Notes (PDF)

Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. on Thursday at Cintas Center

By: Greg Lautzenheiser, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI - Xavier continues BIG EAST action vs Marquette on Thursday, Jan. 1. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m. with the game being aired on ESPN+ and The Varsity Network.

GAME INFORMATION

XAVIER MUSKETEERS (8-5, 1-3) vs MARQUETTE GOLDEN EAGLES (8-5, 2-2)
Game Info - Thursday, Jan. 1 - 1 p.m. ET - Cintas Center (10,224) - Cincinnati, Ohio
Live Stats - statb.us/b/621516
ESPN+ - bit.ly/4q3iEa9
Varsity Network - bit.ly/43a3vKI

PROMOTIONS

Youth Basketball Day
Post-game Layups (Kids 8th Grade and under)

ABOUT THE GOLDEN EAGLES

2025-26 Record: 8-5 (2-2 BIG EAST)
2024-25 Record: 21-11 (12-6 BIG EAST)
2025 Postseason: WBIT
Series History: Marquette leads, 25-7
Last Meeting: Marquette 62, Xavier 37 (Feb. 27, 2025 - Milwaukee, Wis.)

NOTABLES
• Marquette was picked to finish second in the Preseason BIG EAST Coaches' Poll. The Golden Eagles return all five starters from last season, including three players who earned preseason all-conference honors: Skylar Forbes, Halle Vice and Lee Volker.
• Skylar Forbes ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in scoring (16.7) and first in total blocks (23). Halle Vice ranks second in the BIG EAST in rebounding (8.3) and third in field-goal percentage (.570).
• Marquette ranks third in the NCAA in three-point field-goal percentage (.394) and 37th in three-pointers made per game (8.6). The Golden Eagles also rank 47th in the NCAA in field-goal percentage (.459).

SERIES HISTORY

Xavier trails the all-time series with Marquette, 25-7. The Musketeers have dropped 18 straight in the series.
The Musketeers last win over the Golden Eagles was on Jan. 15, 2016 at Cintas Center (W, 71-66).
Xavier is 3-20 vs the Golden Eagles since joining the BIG EAST for the 2013-14 season.

LAST FIVE MEETINGS
Feb. 27, 2025 - Marquette 62, Xavier 37 (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Jan. 29, 2025 - Marquette 67, Xavier 38 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Feb. 24, 2024 - Marquette 86, Xavier 60 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 6, 2024 - Marquette 81, Xavier 51 (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Feb. 25, 2023 - Marquette 58, Xavier 46 (Cincinnati, Ohio)

LAST TIME OUT

Xavier is coming off a 75-55 loss at Seton Hall on Dec. 28.
Vivien Nejašmić scored a team-high 15 points on 6-for-10 shooting in 30 minutes of action off the bench. She added six rebounds and one steal.
Meri Kanerva added 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting. The guard added a team-high four assists

NOTABLES

Mariyah Noel is averaging 15.0 points per game, ranking fifth in the BIG EAST and 165th 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 (6.5), 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.
Savannah White is averaging a team-high 7.1 rebounds per game to go along with 6.8 points per game. She ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in rebounding and 192nd in the NCAA. The forward also ranks third in the BIG EAST and 52nd in the NCAA in blocks per game (1.7). White has added 17 steals, ranking tied for first on the team.
Meri Kanerva is averaging 9.0 points per game. She has added a team-high 53 assists and 17 steals. The guard is averaging 37.4 minutes per game, ranking first in the NCAA.
Sophomore MacKenzie Givens is averaging 11.4 points and 4.7 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 (.492). Her 11.9 points per game average ranks tied for 16th in the BIG EAST.
Xavier ranks third in the BIG EAST and 61st in the NCAA in free-throw percentage (.750). 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 (4.0) and seventh in free throws made per game (10.4). Xavier also ranks fourth in the conference in field-goal percentage defense (.382), while ranking 126th in the NCAA.
Vivien Nejašmić is averaging a team-leading 13.5 points per game in BIG EAST only games with a .513 field-goal percentage. She has added 4.5 rebounds per game. The guard has led the team in scoring in three of the team's four conference games.
Vivien Nejašmić scored a team-high 24 points on 10-for-17 shooting in 25 minutes of action off the bench at Butler on Dec. 19. She 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).
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