Women's Basketball Game Notes vs. Boston College

FRIARS HEAD TO CHESTNUT HILL TO TAKE ON BOSTON COLLEGE... The Providence College women's basketball team travel to Chestnut Hill, Mass. to take on ACC foe Boston College on Wednesday, Dec. 2. The game will tip-off at 5:00 p.m. in Conte Forum.

FRIARS AND EAGLES ALL-TIME... Providence College leads the all-time series against Boston College, 33-23, including victories in each of the last three meetings. Prior to the Friars' most recent three-game win streak, the Eagles had won 14-straight contests in the series.

MORE ON THE STREAK... The Friars defeated Boston College, 76-60, in their most recent meeting on Nov. 17, 2019 in Providence, R.I. It marked the third straight over the Eagles in the all-time series. The last time Providence won three-straight games against Boston College dates back to the 1991-92 through 1992-93 seasons.

FRIARS AND EAGLES AT CONTE FORUM... Providence and Boston College have met 25 times at Conte Forum, with the Friars holding a 15-10 record vs. the Eagles on their home court. The last time the two teams met in Chestnut Hill was on Nov. 27, 2018. Providence claimed a 61-57 victory on that day. It marked Providence's first win at Conte Forum since Feb. 17, 1996, snapping a seven-game winless streak at the venue.

PROVIDENCE COMING OFF 2-0 WEEKEND... The Friars are coming off of a 2-0 weekend with a pair of victories against intrastate rivals, Rhode Island (Nov. 28) and Bryant (Nov. 29). The margin of victory exceeded 25 points in each game as the Friars took down the Rams, 76-50, and the Bulldogs, 67-40. The Friars led wire-to-wire in each game.

FRIARS FALL TO QUINNIPIAC IN SEASON-OPENER... Providence fell to Quinnipiac, 71-65, in its season opener on Nov. 25 in Hamden, Conn. Providence trailed by as many as 15 in the second quarter, but rallied in the second half to take a 63-62 lead with 2:32 left in regulation. Chanell Williams hit a jumper for Providence to tie the score, 65-65, with 1:55 to play. Quinnipiac closed the game out on a 6-0 run, hitting 6-6 opportunities at the free throw line to claim the six point win.

MARY BASKERVILLE NAMED TO BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL... Junior forward Mary Baskerville was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Nov. 30. She guided the Friars to a 2-1 record to open the season, averaging 16.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.3 blocked shots, 1.3 assists and 1.0 steals per game. She shot an impressive .649 from the field, hitting 24-37 attempts from the floor. In the season opener at Quinnipiac, Baskerville recorded 15 points, a season-high nine rebounds and two assists in just 16 minutes of action. Over the weekend, she posted 16 points and seven boards against Rhode Island and a season-high 18 points and five rebounds against Bryant. Baskerville recorded a career-best five blocked shots against the Bulldogs on Sunday.

CHANELL WILLIAMS SHINES IN START OF SENIOR SEASON... Senior point guard Chanell Williams is playing the best basketball of her career in the midst of her senior year. Through three games, Williams is averaging 12.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.0 steal per game. She's shooting an impressive 52-percent from the field (13-25), including 83.3-percent from beyond the arc (5-6).

WILLIAMS FROM DEEP... Not known for her outside shooting ability, Chanell Williams has shown marked improvement in that area of her game in 2020-21. Through three games, she has hit 5-6 attempts from beyond the arc (.833). Prior to this season, Williams converted just 8-41 three-point attempts (.195).

ALYSSA GEARY PICKING UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF... Junior Alyssa Geary's improvement throughout the 2019-20 season was evident as she reached double figures in the scoring column in seven of the Friars' final 13 games. She has taken that improvement to another level in 2020-21, and is among the team leaders in nearly every statistical category. She currently ranks second on the team in scoring (12.7 ppg), rebounding (5.7 rpg) and blocked shots (1.7 bpg) and leads the Friars in assists (3.7 apg) and steals (1.0 spg). She has scored in double figures in each of the Friars' first three games, tying her career-best streak of games in double digits. She scored a career-high 17 points in the season-opener against Quinnipiac.

OLIVIA ORLANDO MAKES HER RETURN... In the Friars' season opener against Quinnipiac, Olivia Orlando returned to the court for the first time since Jan. 17 - when she sustained a season-ending injury against St. John's and missed Providence's final 14 games of the 2019-20 campaign. She has started all three games for Providence this season and is tied for first among her teammates in rebounding (7.0 rpg) and also contributes 3.7 points, 2.3 assists and 1.0 steal per game.

BASKERVILLE APPROACHING 500 CAREER REBOUNDS... Mary Baskerville enters Wednesday's game against Boston College with 488 career rebounds. In 66 games as a Friar, Baskerville has averaged 7.4 rebounds per game. She has recorded double-digit rebounds in 17 career games, including a career-best 17 boards against La Salle on Dec. 21, 2018.

ASSIST/TURNOVER RATIO... Through the first three games, the Friars have posted a +1.18 assist/turnover ratio as a team. In each game, thus far, the Friars have recorded more assists than turnovers. Providence is averaging 15.0 handouts per game, while turning ball over 12.7 times per contest.

SCHEDULE CHANGE... Providence College was scheduled to face Northeastern it its season opener on Nov. 25, but that game was canceled, as Northeastern pushed the start of its non-conference schedule to Dec. 16. Quinnipiac also endured a season-opening cancellation, allowing for the Friars and Bobcats to reach an agreement to face one another in Hamden, Conn. on the 25th.

A LOOK BACK AT THE 2019-20 SEASON... Providence completed the 2019-20 season with a 13-19 overall record and a 3-15 mark in the BIG EAST Conference (eighth place).

VETERAN PRESENCE... Seven of the 10 players on the Friars' 2020-21 roster are upperclassmen, including four seniors and three juniors. Each of those upperclassmen have some degree of experience in the starting line-up, with five of the seven starting 15 games or more a year ago.

HOW THE FRIARS FARED IN NON-CONFERENCE PLAY... The Friars finished the 2019-20 non-conference slate with a 9-3 record. Jim Crowley has led the Friars to at least eight wins in regular-season non-conference play during each of his four seasons at the helm.

COMING UP SHORT IN LEAGUE PLAY... Eight of the Friars' 15 losses in BIG EAST regular-season play last year were decided by 10 points or less, including seven losses within single digits.

ROAD WARRIORS... Providence College played 21 of its 32 games on the road during the 2019-20 campaign.

PROVIDENCE WINS A BIG EAST TOURNAMENT GAME IN BACK-TO-BACK SEASONS FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1994 AND 1995... The Friars won a BIG EAST Tournament game in each of the last two seasons. In 2019, Providence defeated Xavier, 70-62, in the First Round. This year, the Friars posted a 49-46 win over Georgetown in the First Round. It marks the first time since 1994 and 1995 that the Friars have won a game in the BIG EAST Tournament in back-to-back seasons.

BLOCK PARTY... Mary Baskerville (51) and Alyssa Geary (49) each recorded 45+ blocked shots in 2019-20. The duo is ranked in the top-three at Providence for blocked shots by a sophomore. Mary Ann McCoy leads the way in that category with 68 blocked shots, Baskerville is second (51) and Geary ranks third.

BASKERVILLE AND GEARY AMONG BIG EAST'S TOP SHOT BLOCKERS... Mary Baskerville finished first in the BIG EAST in blocked shots (1.8 bpg), while Alyssa Geary finished tied for fourth (1.5 bpg).

BASKERVILLE RECORDS 50+ BLOCKS IN BACK-TO-BACK SEASONS... Mary Baskerville is the first player in program history to record 50+ blocked shots in back-to-back seasons. She finished the 2019-20 campaign with 51 rejections. In 2018-19, she recorded a program record for a freshman with 53 blocked shots.

GEARY SETS PROVIDENCE COLLEGE RECORD FOR BLOCKS IN A BIG EAST TOURNAMENT GAME... Alyssa Geary set the Providence College record for blocked shots in a BIG EAST Tournament game (6) vs. Georgetown on March 6 in the first round. The previous record was set by Monika Roberts (4 vs. Seton Hall in 2001).

THREE-POINT THREATS... As a team, the Friars hit 188 three-point field goals in 2019-20, marking the seventh-highest total for a single season in program history. Under the direction of Head Coach Jim Crowley, the Friars have been one of the most prolific three-point shooting teams in program history. In 2018-19, the Friars finished with 218 three pointers (second), 192 in 2017-18 (t-fourth) and 192 in 2016-17 (t-fourth).

HOW THE FRIARS STACKED UP... Providence finished first in the BIG EAST in three-point field goal percentage and 36th in the nation, having converted 188-534 attempts from beyond the arc (.352) in 2019-20.

DEFENSE... The Friars finished second in the BIG EAST and 58th in the nation (among 348 team) in field-goal percentage defense (.373). Providence held 17 of its 32 opponents below 40-percent shooting from the field during the season and posted an 11-6 record when doing so.

FRIARS TWO YEARS REMOVED FROM FIRST POST-SEASON APPEARANCE SINCE 2010... The Friars' 2019 WNIT selection marked the program's 15th post-season appearance overall and first since 2010. Last season, NCAA and WNIT Championships were canceled to the Covid-19 pandemic. Complete post-season breakdown below (records in parentheses).

2018-19 WNIT Round of 16 - (2-1)

2009-10 WNIT Quarterfinal Round (3-1)

1991-92 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)

1990-91 NCAA Tournament Second Round (1-1)

1989-90 NCAA Tournament East Regional (1-1)

1988-89 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)

1986-87 National Women's Invitational Tournament (1-2)

1985-86 NCAA Tournament First Round (0-1)

1981-82 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)

1980-81 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)

1979-80 EAIAW National Tournament (3-1)

1978-79 EAIAW Regional Tournament (0-1)

1977-78 EAIAW Regional Tournament (1-1)

1976-77 EAIAW Regional Tournament (2-2)

1975-76 EAIAW Regional Tournament (1-2)

WHAT'S NEXT... The Friars will open BIG EAST Conference play with a pair of road games at Marquette and Butler. Providence will face the Golden Eagles on Friday, Dec. 4 at the Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee, Wis. at 3:00 p.m. (ET). The Friars will head directly to Indianapolis, Ind. to face the Bulldogs at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday, Dec. 5 at 4:00 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

Mary Baskerville

Alyssa Geary

Olivia Orlando

Chanell Williams