GAME NOTES
 
INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler women's basketball team will play #11 Marquette and (RV) DePaul this weekend to end the month of February. Friday's tip at the Al McGuire Center will go up at 8 PM. Wintrust Arena will hold the action on Sunday at 3 PM. Each game will stream live on BEDN.
 
Bulldog Bits                                                                                                                       
- Tori Schickel pulled down a season-high 19 rebounds in the OT loss to Providence
- Naira Caceres set a new career-high rebound total vs. the Friars with 11
- BU is 1-2 in overtime games this season and 3-1 in games decided by 5 pts or less
- Whitney Jennings and Kristen Spolyar scored 45 of Butler's 63 points vs. PC
- Spolyar (5) or Jennings (2) have led BU in scoring over the last seven games
- Butler went on a 25-0 scoring run against Creighton to notch a 20-point win
- Butler dominated inside by outscoring Creighton 42-14 in the paint
- BU limited Audrey Faber to just 7 points, snapping a 27-game double-digit scoring streak
- Butler has not reached 20 wins since 2010-11 (Finished 20-14 overall 12-6 HL)
- BU is 0-4 in BIG EAST games when they commit 20 or more turnovers
- Butler ranks 10th in the NCAA in total steals (293); Finished 17-18 with 260 steals
 
Scouting #11 Marquette                                                                                              
Marquette's first conference loss of the season (13-1) came last weekend at St. John's 81-74. A 9-1 scoring run in the fourth quarter lifted the Red Storm over the Golden Eagles on Friday night. Marquette responded with a 109-63 win at Seton Hall just two days later moving their overall record to 22-4. Natisha Hiedeman came off the bench to score 34 points. She only missed four shots (14-18), connecting on six of her eight attempts from 3-point land. Hiedeman ranks second in the BIG EAST in scoring (18.0) and ranks third in the conference in assists (4.6).
 
Marquette at Butler Recap                                                                         
In a meeting between the top two teams in the standings, MU never trailed and used a 30-point third quarter to pull away. BIG EAST leading scorer Natisha Hiedeman posted a game-high 21 points, leading the speedy Golden Eagles to 20 fast-break points on the afternoon. Kristen Spolyar had 13 points for the Bulldogs. Marquette hit 11 3-point field goals compared to just six from the Bulldogs. The Golden Eagles also dominated at the line, hitting 24 of their 33 free throw attempts. BU only got to the charity stripe nine times, connecting on six attempts.
 
Scouting DePaul                                                                                                              
The Blue Demons have won four-straight games, improving their overall record to 19-7. They are receiving votes in each national poll. A non-stop, full-court, trapping defense makes DePaul one of the most unique teams in the BIG EAST. The Blue Demons also make more 3-point field goals than any other team in the conference (11.3 per game). The balanced offense scores 82.1 ppg and doesn't have a single player averaging over 15.
 
DePaul at Butler Recap                                                                                
A game of runs which included eight ties and nine lead changes went in favor of the visiting Blue Demons, who improved to 16-0 all-time against the new-look Bulldogs. Butler led by 12 with 6:07 remaining before DePaul went on a 20-3 run en route to a 30-11 fourth quarter. Each team had four players score in double figures with DePaul's Chante Stonewall posting a game-high 25 points off 9-of-12 shooting, including 6-of-7 from deep. Kristen Spolyar led the Bulldogs with 22 points. DePaul drained 16 three-pointers to Butler's four, while the Bulldogs scored 44 points in the paint to the Blue Demons' 18.
 
Spolyar Lands On BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll                                 
Spolyar averaged 17.5 points and 6.0 rebounds in a 1-1 weekend for the Bulldogs. She scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds against Providence on Sunday after going for 13 and five in Friday's win over Creighton.
 
What's at Stake                                                                                               
#11 Marquette will clinch a share of the regular-season title along with the No. 1 seed in the BIG EAST Tournament with one more win, and will earn the regular-season championship outright with two wins. Winners of four-straight, (RV) DePaul can lock up a top-two finish with a pair of wins, while Butler can guarantee a first-round bye with just one win.
 
Worlds Collide                                                                                                 
Marquette leads the league in scoring offense (85.3) while Butler is the conference leader in scoring defense (56.4). Field goal percentages back up each squad with the Golden Eagles ranked first in FG% (.474) and Butler on top in FG% defense (35.8).
 
Race to 20                                                                                                                          
Only 10 Butler women's basketball teams have reached 20 wins in a single-season since the program moved to the Division 1 level. The 2018-19 team is trying to become the 11th with at least five more games remaining on the schedule. The victory over Creighton was Butler's 19th of the season. They will now try to become the first team to notch 20 wins since the 2010-11 season when BU went 20-14 overall as members of the Horizon League. 19 wins is the highest total under current head coach Kurt Godlevske.
 
Double-Double                                                                                               
Tori Schickel recorded her 12th double-double of the season against Providence with 10 points and a season-high 19 rebounds. She ranks 23rd in the NCAA in double-doubles and second in the BIG EAST (A'riana Gray, Xavier - 13).
 
Recipe for Success                                                                                                          
Butler leads the BIG EAST in scoring defense (56.4), field goal pct defense (.358), steals (293), steals per game (11.7) and turnovers forced (19.8).
 
Michelle Making Plays                                                                                 
Michelle Weaver has placed her name into the Butler record book in two separate categories this season. The senior leads the team, the BIG EAST and ranks seventh in the NCAA in steals (87) moving her career total to 206. She ranks sixth all-time at Butler in total steals. Weaver also leads the team in assists with 113. She ranks eighth all-time at BU with 313 career assists.
 
Schickel Sets All-Time Rebound Record at Seton Hall     
Tori Schickel broke the Butler women's basketball all-time rebound record at Seton Hall (Feb. 3) by pulling down a team-high 10 rebounds. That performance moved her career total to 1,052, giving her two more rebounds than Elza Purvlicis (1980-84). The all-time great now has 1,087 rebounds in her career.
 
Most Minutes                                                                                                 
Tori Schickel has logged 3,662 minutes of playing time in her Bulldog a career, a total that ranks her second all-time in school history. She is just 89 minutes' shy of Jackie Closser's school record (3,751 / 2004-07).
 
Schickel Ranks Third on All-Time Scoring List                     
Tori Schickel ranks third all-time on the Butler women's basketball scoring list (1,548). Lade Akande ranks second all-time with 1,705 points and topping the list is former BU assistant coach Julie Shelton (VonDielingen) with 2,018 points.
 
Rim Protector                                                                                                   
Tori Schickel is now tied for second place at Butler in career blocked shots with 164. Elza Purvlicis also blocked 164 shots during her BU career from 1981-84. The all-time leader in blocks at Butler is Liesl Schultz with 254 (1992-95).
 
Up Next                                                                                                                              
The final two games of the 2018-19 regular season will be played at Hinkle Fieldhouse next weekend when Butler hosts Georgetown and Villanova. The BIG EAST Tournament will follow from March 9-12 at Wintrust Arena.