Game Notes
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INDIANAPOLIS – Butler and Xavier will meet in the first round of the 2016 BIG EAST Women's Basketball Tournament on Saturday night. The Bulldogs enter the contest as the No. 9 seed with a 4-14 conference record (9-20 overall) and the Musketeers landed the No. 8 seed with an 8-10 mark against conference foes (17-12 overall).
Gameday Information
Date: Saturday, March 5, 2016 - 5:30 PM EST
Location: Chicago, Ill. – McGrath-Phillips Arena
Live Stats / Video: ButlerSports.com / FoxSports.com (FoxSportsGo)
Series History: Butler leads the all-time series 19-16
Last Meeting: Xavier defeated Butler 55-47 on Jan. 29
About Butler (No. 9 Seed)
In order for the Bulldogs to advance in the 2016 BIG EAST Women's Basketball Tournament, the team will have to knock off the No. 8 seed Xavier Musketeers. The 2015-16 season as a whole for BU was derailed from the very beginning with a series of injuries. Only Brittany Ward and Sydney Buck were able to lace them up and start in all 29 regular season games. Tori Schickel missed extended time with an illness and Michelle Weaver was sidelined for a large majority of the conference season with a foot injury. Belle Obert, Taylor Buford and Nicole Orr were also out with injuries throughout the season.
It will be interesting to see which team shows up on Saturday. The group that beat Central Florida, TCU, Arkansas and St. John's or the team that was limited to a season-low 35 points at Georgetown last weekend. The Bulldogs will need to shoot well from distance in order to stay in the game. BU averages 6.4 made 3-point field goals per game compared to just 3.5 from Xavier. The Bulldogs also have the chance to control the paint with Schickel, Ward and Obert all rebounding at a high level. In the end, Butler will need to stay focused for all four quarters and limit their turnovers. BU averages 17.6 turnovers a game, but they do hold the upper hand in terms of depth. The Butler bench outscored Xavier in each meeting this season.
Scouting Xavier (No. 8 Seed)
The Musketeers finished the regular season with a 17-12 record that included an 8-10 mark against conference opponents. Those results landed Xavier in the tournament as the No. 8 seed. Head Coach Brian Neal has multiple weapons on the offensive end that are all capable of stepping up on a given night. Aliyah Zantt led the team to victory over Butler in the most recent meeting by scoring a game-high 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting. Zantt is third on the team with a 10.2 scoring average, but she hit double figures in each game vs. Butler this season. Maddison Blackwell is another talented player on the roster that hurt BU in the regular season. Blackwell pulled down a team-high 13 rebounds at the Cintas Center and really hurt BU at Hinkle by recording a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. The team's top scoring option is Raeshaun Gaffney who pours in 11.3 ppg. Gaffney struggles from distance, but is willing to attack the rim to meet her scoring total. Briana Glover is yet another player that can help the team offensively. Glover shoots 49 percent from the field and is also an exceptional free throw shooter (88-105).
All-Time Series
The Musketeers swept Butler during the 2015-16 regular season, yet the Bulldogs still hold the edge in the all-time series 19-16. In recent matchups, Butler defeated Xavier 71-67 during the 2012-13 season with each team playing as members of the A-10 Conference. Each program then jumped to the BIG EAST Conference the following season with Butler winning 68-54 at Xavier and 57-52 at home. Last year, Butler posted a 58-54 win at the Cintas Center and a 71-53 victory at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Last Time Out
The Wildcats secured the No. 2 seed in the upcoming conference tournament by defeating Butler 66-46 on Sunday. The Bulldogs only trailed by four points at the half, but Villanova's offense would spark in the second allowing the Wildcats to record the 20-point win.
Tori Schickel was Butler's top scoring option at The Pavilion. The freshman scored a team-high 17 points and pulled down 11 rebounds for a double-double. Joining Schickel in double figures was Sydney Buck. The guard scored nine of her 14 points in the fourth quarter.
Butler shot 36 percent from the field for the game (18-49), but just 25 percent from 3-point range (3-12). Nova's shooting percentages were not much better however they hit nine 3-pointers compared to just three from BU. Free throw shooting also played a large role in today's outcome. Nova hit 15 of their 16 attempts (93.8%) while the 'Dawgs were limited to just 7-of-9 shooting from the line.
Bulldog Bits
- Butler will play as the away team Saturday as the No. 9 seed in the tournament
- The Bulldogs are 0-2 all-time in the BIG EAST Tournament
- Belle Obert missed the Villanova game with an injury... She is listed as day-to-day
- Obert moved to 2nd all-time at Butler for most blocks in a single-season (89)
- Obert has more blocked shots this season than the entire Xavier roster
- Butler leads the BIG EAST Conference in blocked shots per game (5.7)
- Blaire Langlois has made more 3-point FG's than any other BIG EAST player (75)
- Langlois ranks 3rd all-time at BU for most made 3-point FG's in a single-season
- Langlois struggled vs. Xavier this year shooting 3-21 combined in the two meetings
Deja Vu
Butler opened up a 29-26 lead at the half against Xavier in the first meeting of the season at Hinkle Fieldhouse and oddly enough that same score appeared on the scoreboard after 20 minutes at the Cintas Center. What makes this coincidence extremely unique is the fact that the Musketeers scored exactly 14 points in each first quarter followed by exactly 12 in the second. Butler wasn't too far off as they scored 17 points in the first quarter followed by 12 in the second. Those totals switched places at Xavier with BU scoring 12 in the first and 17 in the second.
Second Half Struggles
Xavier exploded for 47 points in the second half during the first meeting to earn a 10-point win at Hinkle Fieldhouse. The second meeting would feature the exact opposite as the Musketeers limited BU to just 18 second half points. Butler looked to be on their way to victory at the Cintas Center back on Jan. 29, but a one-point fourth quarter allowed Xavier to hold on for the 55-47 win.
Slow Tempo
Butler and Xavier are two of the lowest scoring teams in the BIG EAST Conference. The Musketeers average 60 points per game while allowing 64 points to opponents and the Bulldogs ended the regular season averaging 58 points per game while allowing 68. BU will need to ignite their offense on Saturday in order to advance as the team is 1-12 on the year when scoring less than 60 points.
Inside Out
Butler may choose to run their offense from the inside to find success. The top three leading scorers for BU in the two regular season games vs. Xavier were Tori Schickel (18.0 ppg), Belle Obert (13.0 ppg) and Brittany Ward (9.0 ppg). If Butler can beat up Xavier on the inside and force the double team then that could open up the 3-point line for Blaire Langlois and Sydney Buck, two of the best 3-point shooters in the conference.
Neutral Floor
Both Butler and Xavier have struggled on the road this year. The Musketeers are 2-8 away from the Cintas Center and didn't play a single game this year on a neutral court. Butler is 2-13 in road jerseys, however they did knock off Clemson 54-50 early in the year at a neutral site. Both teams have struggled of late with Xavier in the midst of a six-game losing streak and Butler dropping their final two games of the regular season after upsetting St. John's the previous weekend.
Belle with the Block
Belle Obert has recorded 157 blocks in just two seasons with the women's basketball team. She came up with 68 rejections as a junior and upped her production as a senior with 89 rejections. Obert currently ranks second at Butler for most blocks recorded in a single-season. She has more blocked shots than the entire Xavier roster.
Langlois Eyes Single-Season 3-Point Record
Blaire Langlois leads the team and the BIG EAST Conference with 75 made 3-point field goals. She currently sits in third place all-time, after finishing her junior year in fifth with 66 makes from behind the arc. The school record is held by Jackie Closser, an exceptional player that reached the top ten list in three of her four seasons as a Bulldog. Closser's best season came in 2006-07 when she made 85 3-pointers.
Steady as She Goes
Sophomore Sydney Buck has started in every game during her Butler career. The shooting guard is projected to be part of the starting five once again on Saturday, which will move her consecutive starting streak to 60 games. The sharpshooter not only starts, but she logs heavy minutes on the court as well. Heading into Sunday, Buck has logged 1,841 minutes during her two-year career. Looking ahead, if you double that total it would put her at 3,682, the second-highest total in Butler women's basketball history. The all-time career record holder for minutes played at Butler is Jackie Closser (3,751).
March Madness
Butler is still searching for their first-ever win in the BIG EAST Tournament. The Bulldogs played as the No. 6 seed in 2013-14, but were defeated 61-52 by the No. 3 seed Creighton Bluejays. In 2014-15, Butler returned to the tournament as a No. 6 seed this time to face No. 3 Villanova. The Wildcats came out on top 70-49.
Freshmen Firepower
Butler has five true freshmen and a redshirt freshman on the roster. That group has combined to score 872 points. The trio of Langlois, Obert and Buck has totaled 839.
Career Record Book Watch List
Blaire Langlois and Belle Obert have etched their names into the Butler women's basketball career record book. Langlois has made 174 3-point field goals in her career moving her to 3rd place all-time. Her name can also be found in 4th place in 3-point field goal attempts (546). Obert reaching the top ten list in career blocked shots in amazing when you take into consideration that she has only played in 53 games during her two-year career. The defensive specialist has 157 blocked shots to her credit, a total that places her 3rd all-time.
NCAA Rankings
As a team, BU ranks 9th in the NCAA in blocked shots (165). Individually, Belle Obert ranks 10th in blocked shots (89) and Blaire Langlois ranks 25th with 75 made 3-point field goals.
Triple Double
Belle Obert recorded a triple-double in the win over TCU with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocked shots. She became just the second player in BIG EAST history to pick up a triple-double in points, rebounds and blocks and also the second player in Butler women's basketball history joining Kelly Kuhn (00-01) who recorded 20 points, 18 rebounds and 10 blocked shots vs. Brown on Dec. 3, 2000.
Follow the Bulldogs on Twitter
Bulldog fans can follow the team throughout the season on Twitter @ButlerWBB. Additional information can be found by visiting the website at ButlerSports.com
Up Next
If Butler defeats Xavier on Saturday, they will return to action with a matchup against No. 1 seed DePaul. Tip will be set for 7 PM on Sunday, March 6.
2016 BIG EAST Tournament
Presented by the Jeep Brand
All games played at McGrath-Phillips Arena - Chicago, Ill.
All times local – Central Standard
First Round – March 5
G1: No. 7 Creighton vs. No. 10 Providence, 2 p.m. (BEDN)
G2: No. 8 Xavier vs. No. 9 Butler, 4:30 p.m. (BEDN)
Quarterfinals – March 6
G3: No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 7/10 winner, Noon (FS2)
G4: No. 3 Seton Hall vs. No. 6 Marquette, 2:30 p.m. (FS2)
G5: No. 1 DePaul vs. No. 8/9 winner, 6 p.m. (FS2)
G6: No. 4 St. John's vs. No. 5 Georgetown, 8:30 p.m. (FS2)
Semifinals – March 7
G7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner, 3 p.m. (FS1)
G8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 5:30 p.m. (FS1)
Final – March 8
G9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 7 p.m. (FS1)
