The Bulldogs will spend Thanksgiving in Florida as one of eight teams competing in the 2024 Gulf Coast Showcase. Games being held in Bonita Springs will be played at Hertz Arena. All contests will steam on FloHoops.com.
 
Game Day
Date: Friday, November 29, 2024
Time: 5:00 PM EST
Location: Bonita Springs, Fla. - Hertz Arena
Live Stats: GulfCoastShowcase.com
Watch: FloHoops.com
 
Bulldog Bits
- At 5-1, the Bulldogs are off to their best start to a season since 2018-19 (Started 6-0).
- Caroline Strande tied her career-high point total on Sunday with 26 in the win over UMass Lowell.
- Strande has scored in double figures in five-straight games and has led BU in scoring in four-straight.
- Strande ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in points per game with her 17.0 scoring average.
- Strande shot 57 percent from the field last week and now ranks seventh in the conference in field goal percentage (50.7%).
- Kilyn McGuff recorded her second double-double of the season vs. UMass Lowell with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
- McGuff leads the team and ranks sixth in the BIG EAST in rebounds per game (6.8).
- McGuff came up with a career-high four steals in the win over UMass Lowell.
- Cristen Carter leads the league in blocked shots (12) and is second in blocks per game (2.0).
- Carter had eight points, five rebounds and three blocked shots in her last game.
- Lily Carmody ranks second in the conference in total steals (18) and third in steals per game (3.0).
- Riley Makalusky dished out a career-high five assists in her last game.
- Karsyn Norman ranks fifth in the BIG EAST in assist to turnover ratio and ninth in assists per game (3.3).
- The Bulldogs shot 72.7 percent from the field in the fourth quarter vs. the River Hawks (8-11) to win that quarter 23-11.
- Butler didn't allow more than 12 points in any quarter vs. UMass Lowell.
- Butler leads the BIG EAST in bench points per game (27.7).
- The Bulldogs lead the league in free throw attempts (20.3) and free throws made (13.8) per game.
 
BIG EAST Standings
St. John's 6-0
UConn 5-0
Butler 5-1
Seton Hall 4-1
Villanova 4-2
Creighton 3-2
Xavier 3-2
Providence 3-3
Marquette 2-2
Georgetown 2-3
DePaul 2-4
 
Scouting Santa Clara                                                                        
Santa Clara is 3-2 at the start of the season with victories over UC Riverside, Fresno State and Jessup. Their first loss came at USC and the second was in overtime to UC Davis. Head Coach Michael Floyd is in his ninth season at Santa Clara. He guided the Broncos to a WBIT appearance last year after posting a 25-9 overall record. Their top returning player is senior forward Olivia Pollerd. Standing at 6-3, Pollerd is a do-it-all talent that averages a team-best 22.6 points per game. She has made multiple 3-pointers in four of Santa Clara's five games and has made twice as many field goals as the next leading scorer on the team.
 
All-Time Series                                                                                                   
This is the first meeting between Butler and Santa Clara.
 
Bracket Breakdown                                                                            
Boise State, Illinois State, #13 West Virginia and High Point are the four teams on the top half of the bracket this weekend. They play the early slate of games on Friday with Boise State facing Illinois State and then West Virginia vs. High Point. Butler will play the third game of the opening day against Santa Clara and the nightcap will feature #4 Texas playing New Mexico State at 7:30 p.m. Winners advance to play at 5 and 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 30. The four teams that lose on Friday will go head-to-head at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. On the final day of the tournament, the seventh place game will start at 11 a.m., fifth place plays at 1:30 p.m., third place is at 5 p.m. and the championship tips at 7:30.
 
Gulf Coast Showcase History                                                                       
Previous Gulf Coast Showcase champions include Iowa (2023), Michigan (2022), Iowa State (2021), Gonzaga (2019) and Texas (2018). The first tournament was played in 2013 and the UConn Huskies won it all in 2014. The only Indiana-based team to win the tournament crown was Notre Dame (2017).
 
Return to the Sunshine State                                                         
Butler will return to Florida to play in a tournament for the first time since 2022-23. Two years ago, BU beat Sacred Heart (64-39) and Binghamton (78-51) in the Florida Atlantic Thanksgiving Tournament.
 
A Look At Last Week                                                                                         
Butler went 2-0 last week with wins over Indiana State and UMass Lowell. Caroline Strande made the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll by averaging 20.5 points over those two games. Strande shot 57 percent from the field (15-26) and was 5-for-12 from 3-point range (41%). Kilyn McGuff (12.0) and Riley Makalusky (11.5) also averaged double figures for the Bulldogs who averaged 74.5 points per game last week.
 
Defense Travels                                                                                                 
Butler's defense has been solid at the start of the 2024-25 season limiting the opposition to just 56.8 points per game. They have held three opponents under 50 points this year, including Indiana who managed just 46 against the Bulldogs on Nov. 13.
 
Winning Ways                                                                                      
Butler is 4-0 this year when they lead their opponent at halftime, when they shoot 40 percent or higher from the field, and when they attempt more free throws than their opponent.
 
Carter's Second Chance Points                                                                  
Cristen Carter leads the team with 20 offensive rebounds this season. She has more offensive rebounds than defensive in her career. Carter had 55 offensive rebounds last year to go along with 53 defensive. This year she has 20 offensive and 19 defensive.
 
Point Guard Play                                                                                                
Karsyn Norman and Ari Wiggins have combined for 33 assists and just 11 turnovers this year. Norman has had more assists than turnovers in every game but the setback at Vanderbilt. She tied her career-high with six assists in the season opener vs. Chicago State and matched that effort with six more vs. Indiana State. Wiggins didn't commit a single turnover over Butler's first three games of the season. She had a season-high four assists at Vanderbilt.
 
Strande Stretches the Floor                                                           
Caroline Strande ranks second in the BIG EAST in 3-point attempts (33) and 3-point makes (15). She averages 2.5 made 3-pointers per game and has hit at least one in every game this season. Strande heads into the Gulf Coast Showcase ranked second in 3-point field goal percentage, connecting on 45 percent of her shots from distance.
 
1,000 Point Watch List                                                                                     
Three Bulldogs are closing in on 1,000 career points this year. Caroline Strande is at 861 after her 26-point game vs. UMass Lowell. The graduate guard scored 484 points for BU last year just missing the program's top ten list for most points scored in a single-season. Belmont transfer Kilyn McGuff has 58 total points as a Bulldog moving her career total to 781 and Sydney Jaynes moved up to 722 points last week
 
Fight for 400                                                                                          
Caroline Strande needs three rebounds to reach 400 in her collegiate career. Strande's season-high rebound total (8) was recorded against Indiana. She recently had seven in the win over the River Hawks.
 
Cheers To 50                                                                                                       
The Butler women's basketball program is celebrating 50 years of Bulldog basketball in 2024-25. Over the previous 49 years, BU has recorded 689 wins under the direction of nine head coaches. The program record for most wins in a single-season was set in 1980-81 when the Bulldogs went 26-2 under the leadership of Linda Mason. Butler's only NCAA Tournament appearance came in 1995-96 when BU posted a 21-9 overall record.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                 
Butler will play either #4 Texas or New Mexico State on Saturday depending on Friday's outcomes. Sunday remains up in the air due to the true tournament format. Butler will return to Hinkle Fieldhouse on Thursday, Dec. 5. to host UT Martin at 7 p.m.