Xavier University Athletics

Xavier Plays Host to Providence on Wednesday Night
02.10.25 | Women's Basketball
Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center
CINCINNATI - Xavier continues BIG EAST action on Wednesday, Feb. 12 vs Providence. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. from Cintas Center.
XAVIER MUSKETEERS (6-18, 1-12) vs PROVIDENCE FRIARS (10-16, 3-10)
Game Info - Wednesday, Feb. 12 - 7 p.m. ET - Cintas Center (10,224)
Live Stats - bit.ly/4aLZbUB
Watch Live (FloCollege) - flosports.link/3zR1kxj
2024-25 Record: 10-16 (3-10 BIG EAST)
2023-24 Record: 13-21 (6-12 BIG EAST)
2024 Postseason: WNIT First Round
Series History: Xavier trails, 12-11
Last Meeting: Providence 51, Xavier 45 (Jan. 15, 2025 - Providence, R.I.)
NOTABLES
• Providence was picked to finish third in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. Senior forward Olivia Olsen was named to the preseason all-conference team.
• The Friars rank third in the BIG EAST and 61st in the NCAA in field-goal percentage defense (.379). Providence also ranks second in the BIG EAST and 56th in the NCAA in blocks (4.0).
• Olivia Olsen ranks first on the team in rebounding (8.4), while ranking second in the BIG EAST. She has added 9.9 points per game.
• Grace Efosa leads the team in scoring (13.8). She has added 4.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game.
• Xavier trails the all-time series with Providence, 12-11. The Musketeers have dropped five straight in the series and have a 7-4 record vs the Friars at Cintas Center.
• Xavier's last win in the series was on Feb. 13, 2022 at Providence (W, 62-60).
LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS PROVIDENCE
Jan. 15, 2025 - Providence 51, Xavier 45 (Providence, R.I.)
Feb. 18, 2024 - Providence 66, Xavier 42 (Providence, R.I.)
Jan. 27, 2024 - Providence 69, Xavier 60 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 28, 2023 - Providence 50, Xavier 48 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 11, 2023 - Providence 64, Xavier 50 (Providence, R.I.)
WEEKLY HONORS
Jan. 20 - Loren Christie - Weekly Honor Roll
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
GAME INFORMATION
XAVIER MUSKETEERS (6-18, 1-12) vs PROVIDENCE FRIARS (10-16, 3-10)
Game Info - Wednesday, Feb. 12 - 7 p.m. ET - Cintas Center (10,224)
Live Stats - bit.ly/4aLZbUB
Watch Live (FloCollege) - flosports.link/3zR1kxj
ABOUT PROVIDENCE
2024-25 Record: 10-16 (3-10 BIG EAST)
2023-24 Record: 13-21 (6-12 BIG EAST)
2024 Postseason: WNIT First Round
Series History: Xavier trails, 12-11
Last Meeting: Providence 51, Xavier 45 (Jan. 15, 2025 - Providence, R.I.)
NOTABLES
• Providence was picked to finish third in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll. Senior forward Olivia Olsen was named to the preseason all-conference team.
• The Friars rank third in the BIG EAST and 61st in the NCAA in field-goal percentage defense (.379). Providence also ranks second in the BIG EAST and 56th in the NCAA in blocks (4.0).
• Olivia Olsen ranks first on the team in rebounding (8.4), while ranking second in the BIG EAST. She has added 9.9 points per game.
• Grace Efosa leads the team in scoring (13.8). She has added 4.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.8 steals per game.
SERIES HISTORY
• Xavier trails the all-time series with Providence, 12-11. The Musketeers have dropped five straight in the series and have a 7-4 record vs the Friars at Cintas Center.
• Xavier's last win in the series was on Feb. 13, 2022 at Providence (W, 62-60).
LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS PROVIDENCE
Jan. 15, 2025 - Providence 51, Xavier 45 (Providence, R.I.)
Feb. 18, 2024 - Providence 66, Xavier 42 (Providence, R.I.)
Jan. 27, 2024 - Providence 69, Xavier 60 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 28, 2023 - Providence 50, Xavier 48 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Jan. 11, 2023 - Providence 64, Xavier 50 (Providence, R.I.)
LAST TIME OUT VS THE FRIARS
- Providence won the first meeting with Xavier this season, 51-45, on Jan. 15, 2025 at Alumni Hall.
- Aizhanique Mayo led Xavier with 14 points and a career-high seven rebounds.
- Loren Christie added 11 points on 5-for-10 shooting. The forward pulled down five rebounds and dished out two assists.
- Petra Oborilova chipped in six points and four rebounds. Daniela López finished with five points, one rebound and one steal. Tae'lor Purvis had a game-high five steals. Meri Kanerva dished out a team-high four assists.
LAST TIME OUT
- Xavier is coming off a 72-47 loss at Seton Hall on Feb. 8. The Musketeers have now lost 33 straight road games.
- The Musketeers committed a season-high 33 turnovers that the Pirates converted into 37 points.
- Aizhanique Mayo scored 12 points on 4-for-10 shooting. She added three rebounds, one steal and one assist. The guard now has 17 career double-figure scoring games.
- Loren Christie added 12 points on 4-for-7 shooting. The forward added three rebounds, one steal and one assist. She now has 27 career double-figure scoring games.
- Meri Kanerva finished with seven points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL
WEEKLY HONORS
Jan. 20 - Loren Christie - Weekly Honor Roll
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 4.6 points per game and her rebounding average by 0.6 rebounds per game. The forward has also posted a .486 field-goal percentage (85-for-175), an increase of 11.7 percent.
- Loren Christie has 38 blocks through 24 games. She posted a career-best 35 blocks during the 2021-22 season at Buffalo.
NOTABLE
- Meri Kanerva leads the team in scoring (10.0) and assists (3.2). The freshman guard has added 27 steals and 28 three pointers. She ranks fourth among BIG EAST freshman in scoring and third in assists.
- Loren Christie ranks first on the team in rebounding (4.5), while ranking second in scoring (8.8). The forward ranks second in the BIG EAST in blocks (1.6), while ranking 63rd in the NCAA.
- Loren Christie ranks 52nd in the NCAA in total blocks (38). Xavier has 62 blocks on the year, ranking seventh in the BIG EAST.
- Tae'lor Purvis leads the team in total steals (51), while ranking second in field-goal percentage (.459). The senior guard has added 6.0 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.
- The Musketeers rank fourth in the BIG EAST in turnovers forced per game (17.1). Tae'lor Purvis ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in steals (2.1), while ranking 114th in the NCAA.
- The Musketeers have posted 10 or more steals in nine 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 6.1 points per game. The guard has made a team-high 35 three pointers.
- Xavier has made 10 or more three pointers in a game three times this season.
- Xavier ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in field-goal percentage defense (.417).
- In BIG EAST only games, the Musketeers rank seventh in the conference in three pointers made per game (5.6).
- 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 32 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).
- 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 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 continues its homestand on Sunday, Feb. 16 vs Villanova. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. from Cintas Center.
Players Mentioned
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Lucía Martínez López
Tuesday, September 23
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Denise Neves
Saturday, September 20
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Payton Richards
Friday, September 19
2025-26 Meet the Musketeers: Penda Dieng
Monday, September 08