GAME NOTES
 
INDIANAPOLIS – Butler (6-7, 1-3 BIG EAST) will play at Seton Hall (10-4, 3-1) on New Year's Eve this year looking to even out their overall record. The two teams will come together at Walsh Gym for a 4 PM tip on Saturday afternoon. Each program picked up a win on Wednesday and will be looking to bring in the new year with two-straight against conference competition.
 
GameDay
Date: Saturday, Dec. 31
Time: 4:00 PM
Location: Walsh Gym
Live Stats: SHUPirates.com – Statbroadcast
Watch: FloSports.com / BEDN
 
BIG EAST Standings
St. John's 3-0, 12-0
UConn 3-0, 10-2
DePaul 3-0, 10-4
Seton Hall 3-1, 10-4
Villanova 2-1, 11-3
Marquette 2-2, 9-4
Creighton 2-2, 8-4
Georgetown 1-3, 8-5
Butler 1-3, 6-7
Providence 0-4, 9-6
Xavier 0-4, 7-6
 
Bulldog Bits
- Saturday is the 21st overall meeting between Butler and Seton Hall.
- Butler's 79-point performance at Xavier is the second-highest scoring game for the Bulldogs this season.
- BU hit a season-high 14 3-pointers at Xavier, just two shy of tying the school record (16 at Georgetown (1/11/14).
- Rachel McLimore scored a game-high 20 points at Xavier.  She has led the team in scoring six times this season.
- McLimore has scored in double figures eight times this year and has two 20+ point games.
- McLimore dished out a career-high seven assists at Xavier. Her nine 3-point field goal attempts were also a career-high.
- McLimore will start for the 90th time in her career on Saturday. She is just two points shy of 1200.
- Chloe Jeffers set career-high totals in points (8) and rebounds (2) at Xavier. She went 2-for-3 from 3-point range in nine minutes of playing time.
- Butler went on a 19-0 scoring run at Xavier and recorded a season-high 20 assists in the victory.
- Kelsy Taylor saw extended playing time in Cincinnati with Sydney Jaynes in foul trouble. She responded with nine points and seven rebounds in 24 minutes.
- Caroline Strande scored 11 points at Xavier to reach double figures for the fifth time this season. She also helped on the glass with six rebounds.
- Tenley Dowell matched her season-high scoring total with 11 points at Xavier. She has hit at least one 3-pointer in five-straight games.
- Shay Frederick has nine steals over her last two games. She hit a season-high four 3-pointers at Xavier to help score a season-high 14 points.
- The Bulldogs have not won back-to-back conference road games since the 2019-20 season. That year, they knocked off Providence (50-47) and Creighton (73-67) in late January.
- Butler's last win at Walsh Gym on Jan. 4, 2014, Butler's first year in the BIG EAST.
 
Scouting Seton Hall                                                                               
The Pirates are 10-4 overall with a 3-1 mark in the BIG EAST Conference. League wins for Seton Hall came against Xavier (74-55), Marquette (82-78) and most recently Georgetown (72-62). Their lone setback was a 98-73 outcome at UConn. Head Coach Anthony Bozzella has a powerful one-two punch in the SHU starting five unit. Lauren Park-Lane and Sidney Cooks were All-BIG EAST First Team selections a year ago. Park-Lane is a point guard that averages a team-high 21.1 points and is also the team leader in assists (5.9). Cooks is a 6-4 forward scoring 15.4 points per contest. She leads the club in rebounds (6.6) and blocked shots (1.2). Cooks posted 17 points and six boards in the win over Georgetown while Park-Lane contributed with 23 points and eight assists.
 
All-Time Series vs. Seton Hall                                                              
Butler trails Seton Hall in the all-time series 15-5. The Pirates have won the last eight meetings. Butler's last win came just four days into 2019 (62-59 at Hinkle Fieldhouse).
 
Last Game vs. Seton Hall                                                                                    
Seton Hall and Butler met in the first round of the BIG EAST Tournament last year. Butler played as the No. 11 seed while Seton Hall took the floor as the No. 6 seed. The contest featured each team scoring 24 first half points, but SHU would pull away over the final 20 minutes to win 58-39. The turning point came in the third quarter with the Pirates outscoring the Bulldogs 16-4. Lauren Park-Lane scored a game-high 21 points and Sydney Jaynes led BU with 10
 
Seton Hall's Last Game                                                                         
Seton Hall used a 17-2 run in the fourth quarter to rally past Georgetown (72-62) in Walsh Gym for their eighth victory in the last nine games. The Pirates trailed 54-50 with 8:39 left in the game but went on a furious run over the next 6:06 to grab a commanding 67-56 advantage with just 2:33 to go. The Hall's Lauren Park-Lane had 12 of her game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter, including a pair of timely three-pointers. Park-Lane also had a game-high eight assists, adding to her Seton Hall career record. Ariel Jenkins had a career-high 18 points for the Hoyas (8-5, 1-3), while Kennedy Fauntleroy had 10 points and four steals. GU shot .364 from the field while SHU won the rebounding battle 41-34.
 
Good Looks                                                                                                           
Butler ranks 10th in the NCAA in 3-point field goal percentage (38.6). Five different Bulldogs hit multiple 3-pointers in Butler's last game at Xavier. Shay Frederick led all players with four makes from behind the arc while Tenley Dowell and Rachel McLimore each made three. McLimore is the top 3-point shooter on the roster with 19 makes on 50 attempts (38.0%). Frederick is second on the team with 15 made 3-pointers and Dowell is third with 13. 11 of the 14 Bulldogs to see playing time this season have hit at least one shot from distance. Butler also ranks 51st in the NCAA in field goal percentage (3rd in BIG EAST). Four Bulldogs are shooting over 50 percent from the field this season.
 
3-Pointers                                                                                                              
Butler made 14 3-pointers at Xavier while shooting 48.3 percent from distance. Their new season-high total doubles as the most made in a BIG EAST game this season. Before the game at Xavier, BU was in a three-way tie with UConn and Villanova with 13 makes from 3-point range. Butler made 13 earlier this season vs. Binghamton while hitting at a 56.5 clip. The Bulldogs average 7.5 made 3-point field goals per game placing them in a tie for third in the conference along with UConn.
 
Xavier Recap                                                                                                         
The Bulldogs used a 19-0 scoring run in the first quarter to build a lead and claim a 79-65 BIG EAST road win at Xavier on Wednesday afternoon. Butler buried a season-high 14 3-pointers in the victory and shot 42 percent from the field. Four Bulldogs finished in double figures, including a game-high 20 points for Rachel McLimore who also tallied a game-best seven assists. Butler (6-7, 1-3) registered 20 assists on 26 field goals. Mackayla Scarlett led Xavier (7-6, 0-4) with 16 points, including an 8-for-8 clip from the free-throw line. The Musketeers shot .421 from the field and .455 from three, but Butler shot .473 and .483, respectively.
 
Keep Her Off the Line                                                                           
Lauren Park-Lane has attempted 104 of Seton Hall's 238 free throws this season (43.6%). Butler's top free throw shooter has just 40 attempts in 13 games. So far this season, BU is 6-3 when shooting more free throws than their opponent but are 0-4 when the opposition shoots more from the charity stripe. The good news for Bulldogs fans is that Butler ranks 17th in the country in fouls per game, committing just 13 per contest.
 
Slow Down Seton Hall                                                                          
The Pirates are third in the BIG EAST in scoring offense (73.7) and second in free throw percentage (77.3). The Bulldogs are 0-2 this season when their opponent tops 70 points, a number Seton Hall has reached in 11 of their 14 games this season.
 
Career Assist Leaders                                                                           
Together, Shay Frederick and Lauren Park-Lane have dished out 1,090 assists during their collegiate careers. Park-Lane ranks fifth among active assist leaders (573) and Frederick comes in at 13th (517).
 
Milestone Markers                                                                                              
Rachel McLimore hit two 3-pointers vs. Southern Indiana to move her career total to 100! She only needs one more steal to reach 100.
 
Injury Update                                                                                         
Jessica Carrothers (Knee), Jordan Meulemans (Back) Trinity White (Non-COVID related illness) Anna Mortag (Knee) and Abby Stoddard (Knee) were inactive at Xavier. There is no timetable for their return.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                  
Butler will play #8 UConn on Tuesday, Jan. 3. Action inside Hinkle Fieldhouse will get underway at 7 PM.