Twitter - @ButlerWBB

INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler women's basketball team will return to action today with an 8 p.m. tip against No. 19 Oregon State. The matchup will be the third overall contest of the Tom Westin Invite.

Gameday Information
Date: Thursday, Nov. 27, 2014 - 8:00 PM
Location: Laie, Hawaii – Cannon Activities Center
Series History: The all-time series is tied at 0-0
Last Meeting: This is the first-ever meeting between the two programs. 

About Butler
The Bulldogs are still trying to find their stride as they enter today's game against No. 19 Oregon State with an 0-5 record. The team has had a hard time trying to gel with so many different lineups due to a series of early season obstacles.

The BU starting five has been shifted multiple times, but the first matchup of the Tom Westin Invite featured Ijeoma Uchendu, Blaire Langlois, Sydney Buck, Lexus Murry and Loryn Goodwin taking the court for tip-off. Newcomer Belle Obert was the first player off the bench for BU. Obert logged 27 minutes of action in her debut, splitting time between the forward and center position.

All five starters played at least 20 minutes against the Cougars with Andrianna Moore, Serena Sandusky, Emmy Schabel and Laura Tonner all rounding out the action. Butler was able to post 15 bench points with the second unit, a total that matched their opponents total for the first time this season.

Scouting No. 19 Oregon State
No. 19 Oregon State is currently 3-0 with wins over Portland, Utah State and most recently Concordia (Oregon). The high-powered offense features a balanced scoring attack with four players all averaging double figures and two more close behind at nine points per game. Ruth Hamblin has the best numbers on the team at 15.7 points per game to go along with 9.7 rebounds. Hamblin is joined in the starting five by Sydney Wiese (11.7 ppg), Ali Gibson (10.7 ppg), Deven Hunter (10.7 ppg) and Jamie Weisner (9.7 ppg).

The Beavers are coming off a successful 2013-14 season that included a trip to the NCAA Tournament. They ended the year with a 24-11 overall record that included a 14-1 mark at home. Oregon State is a strong favorite to return to the tournament this year as they return nine letter-winners from last year's squad, including all five starters.

All-Time Series
The all-time series between Butler and Oregon State is currently tied at 0-0.

Last Time Out
A 14-0 first half scoring run separated Butler and BYU on Wednesday afternoon as the Bulldogs lost by the final score of 81-62. The Cougars shot 55% from the field and 37% from distance in the win.

Bulldog Bits
- Loryn Goodwin scored a team-high 16 points vs. BYU.
- Sydney Buck came up with 12 points by knocking down two 3-point field goals.
- Butler hit 12 of their 14 free throw attempts against the Cougars.
- 10 players saw court time on Wednesday, the highest total this season.
- Belle Obert made her Butler debut finishing with six points and three rebounds.
- Andrianna Moore returned to action after missing the Fairfield game (Leg).
- The Bulldogs have scored 171 points in the 2nd half compared to just 108 in the 1st.
- Butler is 0-5 at the start of the year for the first time since the 2001-02 season.
- Butler added four highly talented recruits during the early signing period.

Probable Starters
#01 Ijeoma Uchendu, 6-1 Forward… Senior from Lagos, Nigeria
#02 Blaire Langlois, 5-8 Guard…  Junior from Carmel, Indiana
#12 Sydney Buck, 5-7 Guard… Freshman from Fort Wayne, Indiana
#23 Lexus Murry, 5-7 Guard… Junior from Indianapolis, Indiana
#32 Loryn Goodwin, 5-9 Guard… Redshirt-Sophomore from Houston, Texas

Scouting BYU-Hawaii
The 2-1 Seasiders have two wins over Oakland City and one loss vs. Minot State. They will face BYU on Thursday before hosting the Bulldogs on Saturday. BYU-Hawaii is led in scoring by a pair of guards in Bry Tatupu-Leopoldo and Danna Lynn Hooper. Each player averages 15 points per game and logs over 30 minutes of playing time.

Conference Leaders
Blaire Langlois and Sydney Buck are ranked first and second in the BIG EAST in minutes played. Langlois holds the top spot averaging 39.4 minutes of court time per game and Buck is close behind in second with a 39.2 average.

Charity Stripe
Butler ended the game against BYU by knocking down 12-of-14 free throws, posting the second highest free throw percentage of any BIG EAST team this season (85.7%).

Goodwin a Go-To Scorer
Loryn Goodwin has reached a double figure scoring total in each of her three games played this season. She recorded 18 points in her debut, dropped a season-high 23 points in her second appearance at Fairfield and most recently scored 16 points, all of which were recorded in the first half against BYU.

Non-Conference Schedule Features Multiple 20 Win Teams  
First-year head coach Kurt Godlevske and the Butler women's basketball program will have a challenging non-conference schedule in 2014-15 that includes four teams that reached last year's NCAA Tournament, three teams that were included in the Women's National Invitational Tournament bracket and one team that participated in the Women's Basketball Invitational.

Butler vs. NCAA Tournament Teams
Nov. 19 vs. Chattanooga (29-4)
Nov. 26 vs. BYU (28-7)
Nov. 27 vs. Oregon State (24-11)
Dec. 5 vs. Wright State (26-9)

Butler vs. WNIT Teams
Nov. 16 vs. Indiana State (20-12)
Dec. 7 at Minnesota (22-13)
Dec. 13 vs. Ball State (18-17)

Butler vs. WBI Team
Nov. 22 at Fairfield (22-11)

Fox Sports 1
Butler will play two games in front of a national audience during the month of January with action to be broadcasted on Fox Sports 1. Butler will travel to St. John's on Jan. 9 to face the Red Storm on the network at 8 p.m. and make their second stint on TV at Xavier on Jan. 25.

BEDN
In addition to playing on Fox Sports 1, Butler women's basketball fans will also have the opportunity to stream games free of charge on the BIG EAST Digital Network. The Bulldogs will host three of the four games that will be broadcasted live in partnership with Fox Sport Go. The first contest featured Butler hosting in-state rival Indiana State on Nov. 16. The final three games to be played on BEDN will be BIG EAST contests. Butler will travel to DePaul on Dec. 3 to face the preseason favorite Blue Demons at 1 p.m. The final two appearances on BEDN will take place at Hinkle Fieldhouse as Butler hosts Creighton on Jan. 4 and Marquette on Feb.

BIG EAST Preseason Poll
1) DePaul (9) - 81 Points
2) St. John's (1) - 73 Points
3) Villanova - 60 Points
4) Creighton - 55 Points
5) Seton Hall - 51 Points
6) Providence - 36 Points
7) Marquette - 34 Points
8) Georgetown - 26 Points
9) Xavier - 24 Points
10) Butler - 10 Points

BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year
Marissa Janning, Creighton, Jr., G

BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year
Dorothy Adomako, Georgetown, Fr., G

Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Caroline Coyer, Villanova, Jr., G
Danaejah Grant, St. John's, Jr., G
Aliyyah Handford, St. John's, Jr., G
Alexis Harris, Providence, Sr., F
Brittany Hrynko, DePaul, Sr., G
Arlesia Morse, Marquette, Sr., G
Tabatha Richardson-Smith, Seton Hall, Jr., F
Megan Rogowski, DePaul, Sr., G
Ka-Deidre Simmons, Seton Hall, R-Sr., G
Faith Woodard, Georgetown, So., F

Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention
Sarah Beal, Providence, So., G
Amber Thompson, St. John's, Sr., F

Up Next
The Bulldogs will face BYU-Hawaii on Saturday, Nov. 29. The month of December will begin with a tough in-conference matchup as the Bulldogs will travel to Chicago on Dec. 3 to face DePaul in the 2014-15 BIG EAST opener. The game will be broadcasted live on the BIG EAST Digital Network with tip-off slated for 1 PM.