GAME NOTES | TICKETS
 
INDIANAPOLIS – The Bulldogs will enter BIG EAST play this weekend with a pair of home games lined up vs. St. John's and DePaul. Johnny Soper and Garrett Butcher will call the action on Friday night when the Bulldogs host the Red Storm at 7 PM inside Hinkle Fieldhouse. Sunday afternoon, Brendan King and Mike Schmaltz will have the call for Butler vs. DePaul at 2 PM. Tickets are available for each game and those not able to attend can steam the games on FloSports.com.
 
GameDay vs. St. John's
Date: Friday, Dec. 2
Time: 7:00 PM
Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse
Live Stats: Statbroadcast.com
Watch: FloSports.com
 
GameDay vs. DePaul
Date: Sunday, Dec. 4
Time: 2:00 PM
Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse
Live Stats: Statbroadcast.com
Watch: FloSports.com
 
Bulldog Bits
- The Bulldogs are on a three-game win streak for the first time since the 2019-20 season (Jan. 31-Feb. 9).
- Butler has won their last three games by an average of 23 points per game.
- Butler never trailed their opponent at the Florida Atlantic Thanksgiving Tournament.
- This is the start of four-straight home games for the Bulldogs.
- The Bulldogs are 0-5 all-time in BIG EAST home openers. Their lone win to open the conference schedule came at Villanova in 2018-19.
- BU still has three non-conference opponents remaining on the schedule; Southern Indiana, Illinois, and Indiana.
- Butler leads the BIG EAST in 3-point field goal percentage (40.2%) and ranks second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (23.8).
- Caroline Strande leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (6-7 / 87.5%).
- Rachel McLimore ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in 3-point field goal percentage (6-9 / 47.4%).
- Five of Butler's top six scorers are newcomers.
- Butler ranks second in the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (48.3%).
- BU has shot over 44% from the field in every game this season.
- Jessica Carrothers made the first start of her BU career against Binghamton. She ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (61.3%).
- BU leads the league in rebounding margin (+11.7).
- Anna Mortag ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in defensive rebounds (5.5).
- Mortag ranks second in the BIG EAST in free throw percentage (14-15 / 93.3%).
- Shay Frederick has over 500 assists in her career.
- Butler's last win over a ranked opponent came against DePaul in 2021 (3/1).
 
BIG EAST Standings
Creighton 1-0, 6-0
St. John's 0-0, 6-0
UConn 0-0, 5-0
Marquette 0-0, 6-1
Villanova 0-0, 6-1
Providence 0-0, 6-2
Butler 0-0, 4-2
Georgetown 0-0, 4-2
DePaul 0-0, 4-3
Seton Hall 0-0, 4-3
Xavier 0-1, 6-1
 
Scouting St. John's                                                                                               
At 6-0, St. John's is off to its best start since 2014-15 when it won its first 10 games of the year. Four of the Red Storm's wins have been by double figures, including three by 22 points or more. SJU is coming off a 2-0 trip at the Las Vegas Invitational where it scored victories over Memphis and UTSA. Kadaja Bailey (15.2 ppg) has been solid for the Red Storm, while newcomer Kayla Everett has provided another consistent scoring threat, averaging 14.5 points per game. The Johnnies are an experienced group that start two graduate students and three redshirt-seniors.
 
All-Time Series vs. St. John's                                                               
The Red Storm lead the all-time series over the Bulldogs 13-4. These two programs only played once last year due to COVID issues. St. John's came to Indianapolis on Feb. 9 and recorded a 73-61 win. With the victory, St. John's secured their fifth-straight win against the Bulldogs. Butler's last win over STJ came during the 2018-19 season. They swept the Johnnies that season with a 66-45 win at home and an overtime 73-68 victory in Queens.
 
Last Meeting vs. St. John's                                                                                 
Butler and St. John's were separated by just one point at the half last year, but the Red Storm would outscore the Bulldogs 19-11 in the third quarter to help pull out a 73-61 victory. Rayven Peeples ended the contest with 16 points and 10 rebounds for St. John's. Trinity White had 10 points for the Bulldogs and Sydney Jaynes chipped in with nine by going 3-for-3 from 3-point range. Each team shot over 40 percent from the field. The Bulldogs outrebounded STJ and had 30 bench points compared to just 13 from the Johnnies.
 
Scouting DePaul                                                                                                   
The Blue Demons recently went 2-1 in the Elevance Health Fort Myers Tip-Off Tournament by recording wins against No. 14 Maryland (76-67) and Pittsburgh (74-59) followed by a 64-56 setback to Towson. DePaul sits at 4-3 on the season as we head into the month of December. They rolled American 96-45 in the season opener, but lost back-to-back games right after vs. Northern Illinois and Cleveland State. 2021-22 Second Team All-American Aneesah Morrow returns to campus for her sophomore campaign. She is averaging 26.7 points and 12.1 rebounds per game over the first seven contests of the year. Darrione Rogers is another scoring threat for head coach Doug Bruno. She is the top 3-point shooter on the roster and averages 18.1 points per game.
 
All-Time Series vs. DePaul                                                                                 
DePaul is 22-1 against Butler in the all-time series. These two teams started playing each other in 1984-85 and Butler's lone win would come in the 2021 season finale at Chicago. The Bulldogs shocked the Blue Demons that day to win 86-81 at Wintrust Arena.
 
Last Meeting vs. DePaul                                                                                     
Aneesah Morrow scored 33 points and pulled down 15 rebounds to help the Blue Demons defeat the Bulldogs 103-69 last year at Hinkle Fieldhouse. DePaul had five players score in double figures and would take complete control of the outcome by outscoring Butler 34-14 in the third quarter. DePaul's full-court press caused 22 Butler turnovers, resulting in 31 points. Each team also shot the ball well from 3-point range. The Bulldogs hit 10 triples in the setback and DePaul ended the game with 12 makes from behind the arc.
 
Around the BIG EAST                                                                            
Four BIG EAST women's basketball teams were listed in the Associated Press Top 25 on Monday: No. 3 Connecticut, No. 13 Creighton, No. 24 Marquette and No. 25 Villanova. The BIG EAST last had four teams in the AP Top 25 in the final poll of the 2012-13 season, prior to conference realignment. The Conference is off to an impressive start, posting a combined 56-14 (.800) non-conference record, including 8-2 against Top-25 opponents.
 
Boca Raton Recap                                                                                                
Butler went 2-0 in the 2022 Florida Atlantic Thanksgiving Tournament by posting wins over Sacred Heart (64-39) and Binghamton (78-51). The Bulldogs shot 45 percent from the field in the two games and 46 percent from 3-point range (18-39) to average 71 points per game. BU outscored their opponents 42-17 in the fourth quarter while in Boca Raton and had four student-athletes average 10 points or more per game. Caroline Strande went 4-for-4 from 3-point range over this two game stretch and Anna Mortag averaged a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
 
National Rankings                                                                                                
The Bulldogs are ranked 10th in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (40.2) and 20th in field goal percentage (48.3). In addition, BU is ranked 11th in the NCAA in defensive rebounds per game (31.8) and 19th in rebound margin (+11.7).
 
Floor General                                                                                         
Shay Frederick has 504 assists in her collegiate career, the 12th-highest total of any Division I player. Two other BIG EAST players appear in the top-ten. Lauren Park-Lane of Seton Hall ranks fifth with 531 assists and Mimi Reid of St. John's ranks 10th with 508 assists.
 
Milestone Markers                                                                                              
Shay Frederick is just two 3-pointers shy of 200 for her career while Rachel McLimore is just five 3-pointers away from 100 in her career. McLimore is also just two rebounds shy of 300.
 
Bulldog Bench Points                                                                            
The Butler bench has scored at least 25 points in every contest this year. BU reserves recently scored 37 of BU's 64 points vs. Sacred Heart and 26 of the 78 points in the win over Binghamton. Over the first seven games of the season, the bench is averaging 31 points per game.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                  
The Bulldogs will play two home games next week against non-conference opponents. Butler will host Southern Indiana Wednesday night at 7 PM. Over the weekend, BU will host Illinois at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Sunday at 2 PM.