WBB Set For Contest vs Villanova Sunday

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MILWAUKEE — The Marquette women's basketball team (11-4, 4-2 BIG EAST) concludes a three-game homestand this weekend inside the Al McGuire Center, as it plays host to Villanova (8-6, 2-3 BIG EAST) on Sunday, Jan. 16. The game is set to tip at 1 p.m. (CT), and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network with Joel Godett (play-by-play) and Kelly Burke (analyst) on the call. Live stats are available at GoMarquette.com.

The Golden Eagles currently sit at fourth in the league standings with an 11-4 overall record and a 4-2 mark in conference play. Marquette has already posted two wins this week, defeating DePaul on Wednesday in an overtime thriller and taking down Georgetown on Friday. MU is a perfect 9-0 at home this season.

Villanova had won five-straight before dropping a Friday contest to DePaul, 75-63. The Wildcats enter Sunday's game 8-6 overall and sixth in the league standings with a 2-3 mark. Villanova has split its eight road matchups this season, 4-4.

The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series against Villanova, 18-10, including wins in 10 of the past 11 matchups. Last season, MU posted a 65-57 win over the Wildcats in Milwaukee, and a 95-77 win at Finneran Pavilion.

Villanova has been led this season by the stellar play of junior forward Maddy Siegrist, who averages team-best marks of 23.9 points and 10.0 boards per contest. After missing a handful of games in November, Siegrist has scored 20+ points in all six games since returning to the lineup. Junior guard Brooke Mullin leads the squad with 2.9 assists per contest. The Wildcats are coached by Denise Dillon, in her second season with the program.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS

• Villanova enters the contest with an 8-6 overall record including a 2-3 mark in BIG EAST matchups.

• The Wildcats had posted a five-game winning streak before falling at DePaul, 75-63, on Friday night. They have posted BIG EAST wins over Seton Hall (76-73) and St. John's (70-68).

• In 2020-21, Villanova finished the season 17-7 with a 9-5 record in league play. It was picked fifth in this year's BIG EAST preseason poll.

• The Wildcats are 4-4 on the road this season.

• Despite playing just eight games this season after missing time in November, junior guard Maddy Siegrist has led the team with a stellar 23.9 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. She enters Sunday having scored 20+ points in six-straight games.

• Graduate forward Brianna Herlihy ranks third in the BIG EAST with 8.6 rebounds per contest.

• Villanova ranks second in the league in turnover margin (+1.5), and third in fewest turnovers per game (14.0).

ALL-TIME SERIES VS VILLANOVA

• Sunday's game will mark the 29th all-time meeting between Marquette and Georgetown, a series which began in 2006.

• The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series, 18-10, including wins in 10 of the past 11 matchups.

• The teams faced off twice last season, Marquette earning a 65-57 win in Milwaukee and a 95-77 win at Villanova.

STARTING FIVE

• The Golden Eagles are 31-11 in conference action under Coach Duffy.

• Coach Duffy is off to the best coaching start through three seasons of any coach in program history. She boasts a 54-19 overall mark (.740) at Marquette.

• The Golden Eagles are 44-1 under Coach Duffy when leading at halftime and 30-3 when they turn the ball over fewer times than their opponent.

• MU is 29-3 when scoring more than 70 points under Coach Duffy and 36-4 when shooting more free throws than its opponent.

• In the 73 games of the Coach Duffy era, the Golden Eagles have out-rebounded their opponent in 61 of those games (48-14 record).

LAST TIME OUT

• Marquette took down Georgetown in dominant fashion on Friday, 68-32.

• The Golden Eagles never trailed in the contest as they held the Hoyas to just 32 points, the 15th fewest by a Marquette opponent in program history.

• Karissa McLaughlin came just one 3-pointer away from tying the program single game record, as she finished with seven triples, including six in the first half.

• In what was the second start of her career, Rose Nkumu dished out a career-best nine assists, tied for the most by any Marquette player this season.

• Marquette forced 20 turnovers while committing just 11, and won the rebounding battle 51-33.

LOCK DOWN DEFENSE

• Along with rebounding and strong fundamentals, defense has become one of Marquette's calling cards under Coach Duffy.

• The Golden Eagles are holding opponents to a league-best 55.5 points per game this season, while keeping six opponents under 50 points.

• Additionally, Marquette is second in the BIG EAST in turnovers forced (17.1) and 3-point field goal defense (25.3%), and third in field goal defense (36.4%).

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE

• MU has established one of the best home court advantages in the country, posting a 70-11 record inside the Al McGuire Center since the 2016-17 season.

• The Golden Eagles are a perfect 9-0 at home this year, winning eight of those games by double-figures and outscoring opponents 691-457 (76.8-50.8).

• Marquette has only trailed for 17:43 of 365 minutes played at home this season.

THE MCLAUGHLIN EFFECT

• Marquette brought in guard Karissa McLaughlin as a graduate transfer during the offseason with hopes that she could make an immediate impact, and that's exactly what she has done so far.

• McLaughlin, Purdue's all-time leading 3-point shooter, is having the best shooting season of her career, shooting an efficient 43.4 percent (42-of-93) from 3-point range, 14th in the nation.

• With 286 career triples, she currently ranks ninth among active Division I players.

• McLaughlin has a team-best six 20+ point games this season, including a season-high 26 points against Seton Hall, where she finished 6-of-10 from behind the arc.

• She hit the 1,500-point career plateau against Georgetown on Jan. 14, and currently sits with 1,514 career points.

Players Mentioned

Karissa McLaughlin

Rose Nkumu

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