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UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Butler and Providence will play in the first game of the 2024 BIG EAST Tournament on Friday. The 11 AM tip is a BEDN production that will stream on FloHoops.com. The two teams split the regular season series and ended the year tied in the conference standings.
 
GameDay
Date: Friday, March 8, 2024
Time: 11:00 AM ET
Location: Uncasville, Conn. - Mohegan Sun Arena
Live Stats: BIGEAST.com - StatBroadcast
Watch: BEDN on FloHoops.com
 
Bulldog Bits
- Caroline Strande landed on the All-BIG EAST Second Team.
- Strande ranks 10th in the BIG EAST in scoring (14.9) and ninth in rebounding (7.2).
- Strande made a career-high five 3-point field goals in Butler's setback to Providence on Jan. 21.
- Strande averaged 22 points and 8.5 rebounds vs. Providence this season, shooting 58 percent from 3.
- Riley Makalusky made the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team.
- Makalusky has scored in double figures seven times (11 games) since becoming a starter on Jan. 24.
- Butler leads the BIG EAST and ranks 4th in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (39.2%).
- The Bulldogs rank second in the BIG EAST and 24th in the nation in made 3-pointers per game (8.4).
- Rachel Kent will make the 140th start of her career on Friday against the Friars. She is 13 points shy of 1,600.
- Kent has made a 3-pointer in 20-straight games. She ranks third in the BIG EAST in made 3-pointers with 69.
- Cristen Carter recorded three blocked shots in each game vs. Providence this season.
- Carter needs two rebounds Friday to get to 100 on the season.
- Butler's last BIG EAST Tournament win came on March 3, 2018 against Providence.
 
Scouting No. 9 Seed Providence                                                                       
The Friars went 2-8 over their last 10 games to end the conference season at 6-12. Defense has been the teams calling card as Providence ranks third in the league in field goal percentage defense (36%) and are the league leaders in defending the 3-point line (27%). The top player on the Friar roster is forward Olivia Olsen. She ranks 13th in the BIG EAST in scoring (14 ppg) and is the third-best rebounder in the conference (8.7). Grace Efosa and Brynn Farrell are two others for BU to keep an eye on. Each player averages double figures and scored 12 points in the win over BU. In the loss, Efosa had eight on 2-of-6 shooting and Farrell was limited to three on 1-of-9 shooting.
 
All-Time Series                                                                                       
Butler leads Providence in the all-time series 13-11. The two teams split a pair of games this season with each program winning on the road. Providence defeated Butler 63-53 at Hinkle Fieldhouse and the Bulldogs got revenge with a 55-48 victory at Alumni Hall nearly one month later. Butler also won at Providence last year to break up six-straight Friar wins. The Bulldogs won the first six meetings of the series before being swept by PC in 2016-17. The two clubs have met in the BIG EAST Tournament two times with BU winning in 2018 (73-67 OT) and PC winning in 2021 (63-61).
 
Last Meeting vs. Providence                                                               
Butler won at Providence on Valentine's Day by the final score of 55-48. Caroline Strande scored a game-high 22 points and BU didn't allow more than 15 points to Providence in any quarter. The game started to take shape in the second quarter with Butler outscoring Providence 16-6 to take a 28-19 halftime lead. Providence opened the second half on a 7-2 run to get back within four points of Butler, but the Bulldogs recovered by hitting three, 3-pointers in the third to regain their cushion. Olivia Olsen was the only Friar to score in double figures (11 points). Butler's defense limited PC to just 33 percent shooting.
 
BIG EAST Honors                                                                                                  
Caroline Strande was voted onto the All-BIG EAST Second Team by the conference head coaches and Riley Makalusky earned a spot on the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team. Strande is the first Bulldog to earn Second Team accolades since Tori Schickel in 2019. She joins Schickel (2x) and Daress McClung (2x) as the only Bulldogs to appear on the Second Team. Makalusky is the fifth BU rookie to be named to the All-Freshman Team.
 
Tournament Talk                                                                                                 
The BIG EAST Tournament will be played at Mohegan Sun Arena for the fourth-straight year. All 11 teams qualify for the postseason with the top five teams receiving first-round byes. The winner receives the league's automatic bid into the 2024 NCAA Tournament. First round games include No. 8 seed Butler vs. No. 9 seed Providence; No. 7 seed Seton Hall vs. No. 10 seed DePaul and No. 6 seed Georgetown vs. No. 11 seed Xavier. All First Round games will stream on the BIG EAST Digital Network on FloSports.
 
Inside The Tournament Info                                                               
- The No. 1 seed is 41-0 all-time against the Nos. 8 and 9 seeds in the Quarterfinals
- Since moving to 11-teams, there have been at least two upsets every year
- The No. 5 seed has beaten the No. 4 seed in each of the last three tournaments
- First time since 2020 that the season ended with multiple ties in the conference standings
 
Tournament History                                                                             
The Bulldogs have won three BIG EAST Tournament games. All three victories have been recorded in the first round of the tournament. They defeated Xavier in both 2016 and 2017 before being eliminated in the quarterfinals by DePaul and Creighton. BU made it three-in-a-row with an overtime win over Providence in 2018. They lost to Marquette the next day in a close game 73-61. Butler played as the No. 3 seed in the 2019 tournament but fell to Creighton. The Bulldogs have never played higher than a 3-seed.
 
Magic Number                                                                                       
60 is the magic number for the Bulldogs this season. The team is 10-4 when scoring 60 points or more and just 4-11 when scoring under 60 points. The same can be stated defensively as BU is 12-2 on the year when they hold opponents under 60 points. They are 2-13 when they allow 60 or more.
 
Winning Ways                                                                                        
Butler has won three more games this year than they did last while matching last year's conference win total at six games. They were 1-9 in league action after the month of January but were able to win five of their seven games in February (3 on the road) to pass DePaul and Providence in the conference standings.
 
Five February Wins                                                                                              
Butler recorded five wins during the month of February for the first time since 2010 with their 73-70 victory at DePaul.
 
Sharpshooters                                                                                       
The top three, 3-point shooters in the BIG EAST Conference are all Butler Bulldogs. Riley Makalusky leads the league in 3-point field goal percentage (46.3), Jordan Meulemans ranks second (45.2) and Caroline Strande is close behind at third (45.1). Rachel Kent gives BU four players in the top six with her 42.1 percentage from behind the arc. These four players account for 198 of Butler's 243 made 3-pointers this year (81%). Makalusky (3rd), Meulemans (6th), and Strande (7th) will all etch their names into the BU record book with these percentages.
 
Tied a Team Record                                                                                             
Jordan Meulemans made eight 3-pointers in Butler's win over St. Thomas. She was just one 3-pointer shy of tying the single-game BU individual record and the 'Dawgs tied their team record with 16 made 3-pointers in that victory.
 
Grab the Board                                                                                      
Caroline Strande is the top rebounding guard in the BIG EAST. She has led Butler in rebounding 20 times this season (28 games) and in 13 of Butler's 17 BIG EAST games.
 
Up Next                                                                                                                  
If Butler defeats Providence on Friday they will advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament and face No. 1 seed UConn on Saturday at 12 PM. That contest will air on FS1.