GAME NOTES | WATCH AT NOVA | STATS AT NOVA | WATCH AT GEORGETOWN | STATS AT GEORGETOWN
 
INDIANAPOLIS – The Bulldogs are back in action this weekend with games on the schedule against Villanova and Georgetown. Friday's tip at Finneran Pavilion will tip at 12 PM while Sunday's game at McDonough Arena will get underway at 2 PM. Each contest will stream live on FloHoops.com presented by the BIG EAST Digital Network.
 
Bulldog Bits
- Celena Taborn leads the NCAA in FG% (73.4) and ranks 13th in the BIG EAST with a 13.4 scoring avg.
- Taborn has logged 305 minutes of playing time this season and has only missed 25 shots on 94 attempts.
- Taborn reached 1,400 career points on Sunday afternoon by scoring a team-best 14 points in the game vs. Marquette.
- Only four active players on the BU roster have played in a game against Villanova/Georgetown. (Sexton, Dowell, Ross, Stoddard)
 
Scouting Villanova                                                                                 
The Wildcats are 11-6 overall with recent wins over Marquette (58-55) and Creighton (74-64). Maddy Siegrist is one of the best players in the BIG EAST Conference with her 24.2 scoring average. Siegrist scored 31 points in 39 minutes in Villanova's win over Creighton. The 6-1 wing also added 12 rebounds and four assists. Lior Garzon and Brianna Herlihy are also scoring threats for head coach Denise Dillon. Garzon has started in all 17 games and is scoring 13.5 points per game. Herlihy is third on the team with an 11.9 scoring average. She nearly averages a double-double by adding 8.7 rebounds per game.
 
All-Time Series vs. Villanova                                                               
Villanova is leading the all-time series against Butler 11-6. Nova swept Butler in 2020-21, but the Bulldogs swept the Wildcats in 2019-20. The first signature win of Coach Godlevske's tenure at Butler came against the Wildcats on Jan. 2 of 2018. Butler went to #21 Villanova and won significantly 76-53. It was Coach G's first win over a nationally-ranked program.
 
Last Meeting vs. Villanova                                                                   
Villanova hit 17 3-pointers the last time these two teams met to post a 98-74 victory. The Wildcats scored 32 points in the first quarter and 35 in the second to build their lead. Ball movement was key to victory with Nova dishing out 22 assists on their first 24 made field goals. Maddy Siegrist led all players with 24 points. Three other Wildcats joined her in double figures, including Herlihy (16) and Garzon (17).
 
Scouting Georgetown                                                                           
The Hoyas are 6-9 overall with one conference win. They defeated Providence in Rhode Island on Dec. 5 to secure their only BIG EAST victory this season. Georgetown is 0-5 since coming back from a COVID-19 pause that canceled four games. They played well last weekend, losing by just 10 points to Creighton before falling in overtime to PC. Kelsey Ransom and Milan Bolden-Morris were the top performers for head coach James Howard in the setback to the Friars. Ransom scored a team-high 21 points while adding nine rebounds. Bolden-Morris was in the box score with 16 points. Each student-athlete played over 43 minutes in the game. Bolden-Morris is a graduate transfer from Boston College and Ransom is fresh off a roster spot on the 2020-21 BIG EAST All-Freshman Team enjoying success now during her sophomore campaign.
 
All-Time Series vs. Georgetown                                                         
Butler leads the all-time series against Georgetown 9-7. Their first win of the 2020-21 season came at home against the Hoyas (58-40). The two teams split that season as Georgetown posted a 56-45 victory in their gym.
 
Last Meeting vs. Georgetown                                                             
Butler led from start to finish in the last meeting and would secure a 58-40 win by outscoring Georgetown 13-0 at the start of the game. Three Bulldog starters scored in double figures and the BU defense limited Georgetown to just 23 percent shooting from the field and 10 percent from the 3-point line. Taylor Baur was the only Georgetown player to reach double figures. She led the team with 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
 
Best vs. the BIG EAST                                                                            
Emilia Sexton and Tenley Dowell have played some of their best basketball against BIG EAST opponents. Sexton ranks second on the team in scoring in conference games, averaging 8.0 points per game. 16 of her 28 total 3-point makes have been against conference foes and she is shooting 42 percent from long range over those seven games. Dowell leads all Butler players in minutes played against teams in the conference (26.4). She has also shot well from behind the arc in league games, hitting 11 of her 18 3-pointers this year vs. BIG EAST opponents.
 
Starting Five Shuffle                                                                              
Butler has used 11 different starting lineups over the first 16 games of the season. The combination of Celena Taborn, Trinity White, Zoe Jackson, Alex Richard and Kendall Wingler have been used the most this year (five times). Wednesday night was the first time Coach G started with Taborn, White, Wingler, Tenley Dowell and Sydney Jaynes. Friday night was the first for Taborn, White, Dowell, Jaynes and Jackson, and Sunday was the first time for Taborn, White, Dowell, Jaynes and Emilia Sexton.
 
Fantastic Freshmen                                                                               
Five Butler freshmen have scored 561 of the 958 Bulldog points this season (58.5%). BU first-year players scored 21 points vs. Marquette. A freshman has led BU in scoring seven times this year, including Wednesday night with Trinity White scoring a team-best 12 points vs. the Bluejays. Four freshmen regularly appear in the starting lineup for the Bulldogs.
 
Taborn Take Over                                                                                                
Celena Taborn notched her first double-double as a Bulldog on Dec. 5 at Marquette with 14 points and 10 rebounds. She followed that effort with 33 points and 10 rebounds vs. Denver. Taborn has now scored in double figures eight times this season (13 games). She has 1,408 points in her collegiate career and is the first Bulldog to score 30+ in a single game since Kristen Spolyar when she scored 30 vs. Marquette on Jan. 17, 2020.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                  
Butler will play at UConn to open the month of February. The Bulldogs and Huskies will clash in Storrs, Conn. on Friday the fourth. Action on SNY will get underway at 7 PM.