GAME NOTES | TICKETS
 
INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler women's basketball team returns to action this weekend with a 2 PM Saturday tip vs. #19 Villanova. Brendan King and Garrett Butcher will call the action on FloSports.com.
 
GameDay
Date: Saturday, Feb. 4
Time: 2:00 PM
Location: Indianapolis, Ind. - Hinkle Fieldhouse
Live Stats: ButlerSports.com – Statbroadcast
Watch: FloSports.com - BEDN
 
Bulldog Bits
- Saturday will be the 21st overall meeting between Butler and Villanova.
- Butler led Marquette for 27 minutes on Sunday, but were beat at the buzzer by the Golden Eagles.
- Marquette's largest lead over Butler was just three points with 2:53 remaining in the fourth quarter.
- BU shot 50% from the field in the first, second and third quarter vs. Marquette.
- The Bulldogs made four of their first five 3-point attempts to build an 18-10 first quarter lead.
- Caroline Strande led Butler with 14 points, six rebounds and two steals.
- Tenley Dowell landed on 400 career points by scoring nine against Marquette.
- Rachel McLimore and Sydney Jaynes each had 10 points and four rebounds for the Bulldogs.
- Jaynes has scored in double figures in five of her last six games.
- Jaynes ranks 10th in the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (49.7).
- Jessica Carrothers ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (51.3) and 11th in steals (1.4).
- Shay Frederick ranks seventh in the BIG EAST in 3-point field goal percentage (40.3).
- Frederick has made five 3-pointers over the last three games while shooting 50 percent from deep.
- Frederick, Carrothers and Mortag were all inactive in the first meeting between Butler and Villanova.
- Trinity White had her best game of the season at Nova with 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting.
- White and Kendall Wingler each got their first start of the season at Villanova.
- Wingler needs five more 3-pointers to reach 100 in her collegiate career. She hit two vs. Nova on 1/8.
- Jordan Meulemans has hit multiple 3-pointers for Butler in back-to-back games.
- BU played in front of 1,074 fans vs. Marquette marking their third largest home crowd of the season.
 
Scouting #19 Villanova                                                                         
Villanova heads to Hinkle Fieldhouse with a 19-4 overall record that includes a 10-2 mark in conference action. The Wildcats opened BIG EAST play with a home loss to Creighton (67-46), but followed that contest with nine-straight league wins before the five-point setback at UConn (Jan. 29). The Wildcats lead the BIG EAST in scoring defense (57.6), blocks per game (5.5), turnover margin (+4.4) and assist to turnover ratio (1.5). Standout senior Maddy Siegrist leads the nation in scoring (28.2) and is second in the BIG EAST in rebounds (9.5).
 
All-Time Series vs. Villanova                                                               
Villanova defeated Butler earlier this season to move ahead in the all-time series 14-6. Butler's last win over the Wildcats came on Feb. 9, 2020 at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Bulldogs narrowly defeated Villanova that day 63-61. They swept the season series that year by adding a 58-41 win at Villanova.
 
Butler's Last Game vs. Villanova                                                                      
Maddy Siegrist tallied 36 points and 13 rebounds in the home win for Villanova. The nation's leading scorer upped her average following her seventh 30-point game of the season. Siegrist jumped to No. 5 on the BIG EAST's all-time scoring list with 1,279 points over 55 conference games, passing UConn's Maya Moore. Villanova led wire-to-wire, with Butler getting within five late in the third quarter. Kendall Wingler led the Bulldogs with 16 points off 5-of-7 shooting.
 
Villanova's Last Game                                                                          
No. 19 Villanova took control of the game with its second quarter effort. The Wildcats (19-4, 10-2) outscored Marquette (14-8, 7-6) by a 24-4 margin in the second stanza to open-up a 37-17 lead at halftime. Maddy Siegrist was dominant in the second quarter, scoring 14 of her team's 24 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Siegrist finished with a game-high 24 points as she now moves 104 points shy of the BIG EAST career scoring record. Jordan King led Marquette with 18 points. The Golden Eagles welcomed back Liza Karlen, who had missed the month of January due to injury. She came off the bench to add eight points on 4-of-9 shooting along with five rebounds. Lucy Olsen added 16 points and a game-high six assists for the Wildcats. With the win, Villanova earned the season sweep of Marquette.
 
Behind The Arc                                                                                       
Butler ranks 6th in the NCAA and second in the BIG EAST in 3-point field goal percentage (38.8). The Bulldogs average 7.6 made 3-point field goals per game (3rd in the BIG EAST) and have shot 50 percent or better from behind the arc in back-to-back games. Three Bulldogs came off the bench to hit multiple 3-pointers when Butler hosted Marquette last weekend. Nine Bulldogs are shooting over 35 percent from behind the arc this season.
 
Big Butler Upset                                                                                                   
The last time the Bulldogs faced a nationally ranked Wildcat team they won 76-53! Butler traveled to #21 Villanova on Jan. 2, 2018 to play the Wildcats at Jake Nevin Field House. The 'Dawgs led by two at the half, but erupted for 27 third quarter points to take full control of the action. The victory was Butler's first win over a ranked opponent as a member of the BIG EAST Conference (2013-14).
 
Balanced Scoring                                                                                                  
Rachel McLimore leads the team with her 10.9 scoring average. The only other Bulldog teams in program history to have a leading scorer average less than 11 points came in 2008-09 and 2001-02. The balanced scoring approach worked out great for the 2008-09 team. Butler went 20-12 that season and reached the WNIT. For this year's club, (22 games) Butler has had six different players lead the team in scoring. McLimore has done it seven times, but only twice this calendar year.
 
So Close                                                                                                                 
The Bulldogs have lost five games this season where they held at least a one-point lead over the opposition in the fourth quarter. BU led Marquette (51-50) with 9:20 left; they led St. John's (60-59) with 3:26 left; they led Illinois (51-50) with 7:40 left; they led DePaul (52-51) with 9:48 left, and they led IUPUI (55-54) with 2:51 left. The Bulldogs have lost their last two games by a combined four points.
 
Tournament Talk                                                                                                 
The 2023 BIG EAST women's basketball tournament is one month away! If the tournament started this weekend, Butler would play as the No. 10 seed and face No. 7 seed Georgetown. The winner of that contest would advance to the quarterfinals to play No. 2 seed Villanova. Other first round pairings would feature No. 6 seed Marquette playing No. 11 seed Xavier and No. 8 seed DePaul playing No. 9 seed Providence. The tournament will be held in Uncasville, Conn. at Mohegan Sun Arena. Action starts March 3 and the championship game will air March 6 on FS1.
 
Team Leaders                                                                                         
Rachel McLimore and Sydney Jaynes are the only Bulldogs to start in all 22 games this season. McLimore leads the team in minutes played, made 3-pointers, assists and points. Jaynes is the team leader in made field goals, offensive rebounds and blocked shots. Caroline Strande leads BU in made free throws, defensive rebounds and overall rebounds. The Bulldog team leader in steals is Jessica Carrothers.
 
Marquette Recap                                                                                                 
For the second straight game, Butler knocked on the door of upsetting a team higher in the BIG EAST standings but Marquette escaped Indianapolis with the win on Sunday afternoon in buzzer-beating fashion. Freshman Emily La Chapell made the go-ahead layup in the final second as the Golden Eagles (14-7, 7-5 BIG EAST) won their third straight game. The Bulldogs (7-15, 2-11), who fell by two at St. John's on Wednesday, led by as many as 11 in the first half before Marquette rallied for the win. MU shot 50-percent from the field in the second half to erase the deficit and committed just 10 turnovers on the afternoon. Chloe Marotta posted game highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds for the Golden Eagles, while Caroline Strande led Butler with 14 points and six boards.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                  
Butler will travel to Chicago next week to play DePaul on Wednesday night. Tip at Wintrust Arena is set for 8 PM Eastern, 7 PM Central.