WBB Plays at Providence Wednesday Evening

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — The Marquette women's basketball team (16-8, 9-6 BIG EAST) travels to the Ocean State this week as it takes on Providence (13-13, 4-11 BIG EAST) on Wednesday, Feb. 15. The Golden Eagles and the Friars will tip-off at 6 p.m. (CT) from Alumni Hall in Providence, Rhode Island. The game will be broadcast by BIG EAST Digital Network on FloHoops with Mike Mancuso (play-by-play) and Pam Roecker (analyst) on the call. A link to live stats and stream are available on GoMarquette.com.

In the team's most recent outing last Wednesday evening, Marquette earned a 59-52 victory over No. 4 UConn at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee. The Golden Eagles used suffocating defense to earn its first-ever win over the Huskies, holding UConn to a season-low 52 points while forcing 19 turnovers. Marquette led for over 33 minutes, led by the senior duo of Jordan King and Chloe Marotta, who combined for 37 points in the contest.

The Friars enter the week with a 13-13 overall record and sitting ninth in the BIG EAST standings with a 4-11 league mark. Providence has lost three-straight and five of its past six contests, and is 8-6 at home this season. Most recently, the Friars fell at home to Butler 63-62 on Saturday afternoon.

Providence is led statistically this year by guard Janai Crooms, a senior who is averaging team-best marks of 11.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. The Friars are coached by Jim Crowley, in his seventh season at the helm of the program.

Saturday's game will be the 30th all-time between Marquette and Providence, a series which dates back to 2006. The Golden Eagles have dominated the series 24-5, including wins in 12-straight. In the first meeting of the season, Marquette earned an 80-57 win on Jan. 14 in Milwaukee.

SCOUTING THE FRIARS

• Providence enters Wednesday's contest with a 13-13 overall record and sitting ninth in the BIG EAST standings with a 4-11 league mark.

• In 2021-22 the Friars had an 11-19 campaign including a 6-14 mark in league play to finish eighth in the BIG EAST.

• Providence is 8-6 at home this season.

• The team has been led statistically by guard Janai Crooms, a senior who is averaging team-best marks of 11.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Sophomore forward Olivia Olsen averages 11.0 points and 6.5 boards per outing.

• As a team, Providence ranks second in the league defensive rebounds per game with 27.3. It is averaging 61.7 points, while allowing 62.2 points per game.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST PROVIDENCE

• Saturday's meeting will be the 30th all-time between Marquette and Providence, a series which began in 2006.

• Marquette has dominated the all-time series 24-5 with wins in each of the past 12 games.

• Last season MU swept the series against the Friars, posting a 61-59 win in Milwaukee before winning 57-51 in Providence.

Last 5 Meetings

DATE LOCATION RESULT SCORE

1/14/23 H W 80-57

2/25/22 A W 57-51

2/4/22 H W 61-59

3/6/21 N W 68-43

2/13/21 A W 73-52

STARTING FIVE

• The Golden Eagles are 49-22 against BIG EAST opponents under Coach Duffy.

• Coach Duffy is off to the best coaching start through four seasons of any coach in program history. She boasts a 82-34 overall mark (.707) at Marquette.

• The Golden Eagles are 69-3 under Coach Duffy when leading at halftime and 53-8 when they turn the ball over the same or fewer times than their opponent.

• MU is 45-4 when scoring more than 70 points under Coach Duffy and 53-5 when shooting more free throws than its opponent.

• In the 116 games of the Coach Duffy era, the Golden Eagles have out-rebounded their opponent 92 times.

LAST TIME OUT

• Marquette earned its first-ever win over UConn and second win of the season over an AP Top-5 opponent of the season last Wednesday as it posted a 59-52 win over the 4th-ranked Huskies at the Al McGuire Center.

• The Golden Eagles used suffocating defense throughout to secure the win, holding UConn to a season-low 52 points while forcing 19 turnovers.

• Marquette led for over 33 minutes of the contest, led by the senior duo of Jordan King and Chloe Marotta who combined for 37 points. Liza Karlen also came up big on the glass, bringing down a game-high 10 boards.

• After surrendering the first six points of the game, MU bounced back with a 10-2 run to jump on top and never looked back, never trailing the rest of the way.

• On the defensive end, Rose Nkumu and Karlen locked things down, recording career-highs of five and four steals, respectively.

MAROTTA EARNS WEEKLY HONORS

• After posting a big performance in Marquette's 59-52 win over No. 4 UConn on Wednesday evening, Chloe Marotta was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.

• The senior went for a game-high 19 points to go along with nine boards in the outing. She also had three assists, two block and a steal while shooting an efficient 7-of-13 from the field and 1-of-1 from 3-point range.

• This was the fourth BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll appearance of the season for Marotta, and the fifth of her career.

EARLIER THIS SEASON

• Marquette took down Providence in convincing fashion in the teams' first meeting this season, posting an 80-57 home win on Jan. 14.

• In a game in which Marquette never trailed, the Golden Eagles got off to a strong start and never looked back. After a low-scoring first quarter from both sides, MU used a 26-18 second quarter to gain separation and take a 13-point lead into the half.

• After a Friars run which cut the Marquette lead to just six early in the fourth quarter, MU went on a 9-0 run then continued to pile on en route to a 23-point victory.

• Jordan King had another stellar performance, going for a career-high 31 points to go along with five boards and five steals. Emily La Chapell also came up big for the Golden Eagles with a career high, scoring 13 points in the outing.

• Janai Crooms led Providence with 15 points and seven rebounds.

A DOMINANT DUO

• Sharing the court for more than 115 games during their Marquette careers, the senior duo of forward Chloe Marotta and guard Jordan King has become one of the strongest pairings in MU's program history.

• This season, they have combined for 30.5 points, 13.2 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 3.2 steals per game. They've also combined for nine BIG EAST weekly honors, and were each named to the Battle 4 Atlantis All-Tournament Team.

• Either King or Marotta has been the leading scorer in 18 of Marquette's 24 games this year.

ENTERING THE HOMESTRETCH

• With just five games remaining in the regular season, Marquette remains largely in control of its BIG EAST Tournament and postseason possibilities.

• MU is currently projected as part of the NCAA Tournament field, with several opportunities for resume-building wins in the coming weeks including home games against the two teams directly ahead of them in the league standings (St. John's and Creighton).

• While the Golden Eagles currently sit fifth in the league standings, they could finish as high as first and no lower than seventh heading into the conference tournament.

UP NEXT FOR MU

• The Golden Eagles return home this weekend to face St. John's on Saturday, Feb. 18 at the Al McGuire Center. Tip-off is at 2 p.m. (CT).

• The game will be broadcast by BIG EAST Digital Network on FloHoops, with a link to live stats and stream available on GoMarquette.com.