GAME NOTES
 
LIVE STATS | FACEBOOK LIVE
 
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler will host Wisconsin in women's basketball action on Friday night. The 7 PM tip will stream on Facebook Live. The Bulldogs head into the matchup with a 5-4 overall record. The Badgers are 1-1 this week moving their record to 6-4.
 
Bulldog Bits
- Butler is 2-0 at home this year with wins over Austin Peay and Lipscomb
- BU ranks second in the BIG EAST with a 78.2 free throw percentage (122-156)
- The Bulldogs rank second in the conference in rebound margin (+5.0)
- Tori Schickel ranks 6th in the NCAA in total rebounds with 102
- Whitney Jennings is the second highest scorer in the BIG EAST at 19.2 ppg
- Sarah Humphrey and Marsha Howard went to the same high school (Crete-Monee)
- Michelle Weaver scored a season-high 12 points at Illinois State
- Kristen Spolyar tied her career-high steal total with four at Illinois State
- Weaver, Schickel and Spolyar scored 52 of BU's 55 pts against Wisconsin last year
- Butler's last win over a Big Ten opponent came in 2012-13 (59-56 vs. Indiana)
 
Scouting Wisconsin
The Badgers have been busy this week, taking a loss at Marquette on Monday (88-65), followed by a 28-point win at home vs. UT Rio Grande Valley on Wednesday. Wisconsin heads to Hinkle Fieldhouse with a 6-4 overall record. They average 66 points per contest, shooting 42 percent from the field. Cayla McMorris is the top scoring option on the roster. The 6-0 senior is averaging 14.4 points per game in 30 minutes of playing time. She is the second-best 3-point shooter on the team and leads the Badgers in free throw makes (34). Wisconsin ranks 33rd in the NCAA in free throw attempts with McMorris and Marsha Howard responsible for nearly half of the attempts. Howard leads the team in rebounds, averaging 8.3 per contest. She also gives the team a lift on offense by scoring 11.6 points per game. Howard helps Wisconsin control the action on the inside. The Badgers are +7.0 in rebound margin, averaging 39 rebounds per game.
 
Last Year at Wisconsin
Last year's game between Wisconsin and Butler came down to the wire with the Bulldogs holding a two-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter. The Badgers would outscore BU 23-16 over the final 10 minutes to earn the 60-55 victory. There were five ties and seven lead changes in the contest. BU won the opening quarter 14-12 and the two evenly matched teams would post the same amount of points in both the second (11) and third quarter (14). Each team ended the contest with more free throw makes than field goals. Wisconsin had two different players hit 10 free throws to help them finish with 27 points from the charity stripe. Cayla McMorris went 0-7 from the field including 0-4 from 3-point land, but she collected 10 points from the line. Howard came off the bench last year to impact the outcome with nine points and six rebounds. Butler was led by Michelle Weaver who dropped a game-high 20 points. Tori Schickel just missed a double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds. Kristen Spolyar was also in the box score with 17 points, six rebounds and three steals. Both Schickel and Spolyar would foul out of the game.
 
Notable November
For the first time since 2011-12, all BIG EAST teams finished the opening month of play with a .500 or better record. All 10 league squads combined for a 43-20 (.683) November mark, with the 43 wins being the most since conference realignment (2013-14). Of those 43 wins, eight came against leagues which sent multiple teams to the NCAA Tournament in 2017, highlighted by a 3-0 record against ACC foes and a 2-2 mark against the Big Ten.
 
RPI Revealed
The first NCAA RPI of the season was unveiled this week with nine out of 10 BIG EAST teams landing in the top 100. The BIG EAST ranked sixth in the league rankings, with Villanova at No. 5 and St. John's at No. 10 to individually lead the charge. Butler (40), Xavier (61), Providence (92), Marquette (93), DePaul (95), Seton Hall (98) and Creighton (100) all opened with top-100 rankings. The BIG EAST is one of only five leagues to have at least nine teams in the top 100, joining the ACC, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC.
 
Paradise Jam
Butler and Wisconsin each played in the Paradise Jam over Thanksgiving Break, yet the two teams were split into different divisions. Butler went 1-2 in the Island Division and the Badgers posted a 1-2 record in the Reef Division against a field that included Syracuse, Vanderbilt and host George Washington.
 
Own the Glass
Tori Schickel has led the team in rebounding in 41-straight games. She broke the Butler school record for most rebounds recorded in a single-season last year with 364.
 
One-Two Punch
Tori Schickel and Whitney Jennings account 51 percent of Butler's scoring over the first nine games of the regular season. Jennings ranks second in the BIG EAST with a 19.2 scoring average. Schickel ranks sixth in the league by averaging 16.2 points per contest.
 
Double-Double Counter
Tori Schickel is one of three BIG EAST players to record five double-doubles this season, a total that ranks 12th in the NCAA.
 
All-Time Great
Tori Schickel has 659 rebounds in her Butler career. She currently ranks ninth all-time at Butler in career rebounds and is now just 25 rebounds away from eighth place. Schickel is on pace to become the top rebounder in Butler women's basketball history.
 
1,000 Point Watch
Junior Tori Schickel heads into the month of December with 859 career points. She is on pace to become just the 22nd player in Butler women's basketball history to reach 1,000.
 
Protect The Rim              
Tori Schickel ranks 10th all-time at Butler in career blocks. She leads the team with 11 on the year, moving her career total to 91.
 
Buck For Three
Sydney Buck has hit 172 3-point field goals during her Butler career, a total that ranks her fourth all-time. The senior is now six three-point field goals away from third place all-time. That spot is currently held by Blaire Langlois (177), Buck's teammate from 2014-16.
 
Weaver With The Steal
Michelle Weaver has recorded a steal in six-straight games. She's one of four players on the roster to have 10 or more steals on the season, joining Schickel (18) and Jennings (17), and Spolyar (14). Weaver recorded a season-high five steals against #11 West Virginia.
 
Up Next
Butler will return to action on Monday, Dec. 18 when they host Loyola at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Opening tip is slated for 7 PM.