Providence College Athletics
Providence College
Creighton
Women's Basketball Game Notes vs. Creighton
12/18/2021 10:47:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Friars resume BIG EAST play at Alumni Hall against the Bluejays on Dec. 19 at 1:00 p.m.
FRIARS RESUME BIG EAST CONFERENCE SCHEDULE AGAINST CREIGHTON... The Friars resume their 2021-22 BIG EAST Conference schedule against Creighton on Dec. 19 at 1:00 p.m. The game will be played at Alumni Hall in Providence, R.I. and will be broadcast live on the BIG EAST Digital Network via FloSports.
FRIARS AND BLUEJAYS ALL-TIME... Providence and Creighton have met 17 times during the history of the two women's basketball programs. The Bluejays lead the all-time series, 14-3. The Friars won the most recent meeting between the two teams (60-48) on Feb. 10, 2021, snapping a three-game winless streak to Creighton.
PROVIDENCE AND CREIGHTON AT ALUMNI HALL... Providence and Creighton have met at Alumni Hall seven times during the series. The 'Jays have compiled a 6-1 record on the Friars' home court.
FRIARS AND BLUEJAYS IN OVERTIME... Providence and Creighton have played one overtime game during the all-time series. The Bluejays claimed an 87-84 victory in double-overtime in Providence, R.I. on Feb. 10, 2018.
FIRST MEETING ALL-TIME... The first all-time meeting between Providence and Creighton was part of the National Invitation Tournament on March 21, 1987 in Amarillo, Texas. The Bluejays earned a 91-89 win. The two teams did not meet again until Creighton was added as a BIG EAST member during the 2013-14 season.
PROVIDENCE CLAIMS 60-48 WIN IN MOST RECENT MEETING... Providence and Creighton met just one time during the 2020-21 campaign due to multiple schedule changes as a result of COVID-19. The short-handed Friars suited up just seven players for the game and came away with a 60-48 victory at DJ Sokol Arena in Omaha. Chanell Williams paced the Friars with 17 points, while Mary Baskerville contributed a double-double on 14 points and 10 boards. Temi Carda was the only player on Creighton's roster to crack double figures (15).
FRIARS HAVE WON FIVE OF LAST SIX GAMES ON 2021-22 SCHEDULE... After starting the season 1-4, Providence has reeled off five wins in its last six games. It's only loss during the six-game stretch was to BIG EAST foe Georgetown (55-47). Among the five wins was a 66-47 victory over Villanova to start conference play.
FRIARS DEFENSE HAS BEEN STOUT... Providence enters Sunday's game against Creighton ranked third in the BIG EAST in scoring defense (58.7) and first in the league and 28th in the NCAA in field-goal percentage defense (.342). Creighton enters the match-up ranked third in the BIG EAST in scoring offense (70.4) and field-goal percentage (.450). Additionally, Creighton has the top three-point percentage in the BIG EAST, hitting 0.358 from the arc (76-212). The Friars will look to combat that with the third-ranked three-point field-goal defense, allowing their opponents to hit just 0.254 from deep.
JANAI CROOMS NAMED TO BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL FOR SECOND TIME... Janai Crooms earned BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll accolades for the second time this season on Dec. 13. The junior guard averaged 19.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists in wins over Brown and Quinnipiac. Crooms recorded 14 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and two blocked shots at Brown on Dec. 8. She closed the week with 24 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, one steal and one blocked shot against Quinnipiac (Dec. 11). For the week, she shot an impressive 59.2-percent from the floor (16-27). Her 24 points against the Bobcats marked the second 20+ point game this season and was one-point shy of her season high.
FRIARS START BIG EAST PLAY 1-1... Providence College opened BIG EAST Conference play with a 1-1 record. The Friars got a 66-47 victory over Villanova on Dec. 3, but closed the weekend with a 55-47 loss against Georgetown (Dec. 5). Senior Alyssa Geary paced the Friars during opening weekend with 16.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.Â
FRIARS GETTING ON THE BOARDS... Providence has recorded 40+ rebounds in seven of its 11 games to start the season, including two games with 50+ boards. Last year, Providence only eclipsed 40 rebounds in one game (49 vs. Butler, 3/5/21). As a team, the Friars are averaging 40.6 rebounds per game. The Friars hauled in a season-best 51 rebounds against Brown. Four players are averaging 5.0+ rebounds per game, led by Janai Crooms' 10.1 caroms per game.Â
FRIARS RANK 23rd IN THE NATION IN DEFENSIVE REBOUNDING... Providence ranks 23rd in the nation in defensive rebounds, averaging 30.4 per game. Through 11 games, Providence ranks 37th in the NCAA in total rebounds (447) and 80th (of 348 teams) in rebounds per game (40.6).
JANAI CROOMS LEADS THE BIG EAST WITH SIX DOUBLE-DIGIT REBOUNDING GAMES... Janai Crooms ranks second in the BIG EAST in rebounding (10.1 rpg). Additionally, she is tied for the league lead in double-digit rebounding games, with seven.Â
DOUBLE-TROUBLE... Janai Crooms leads the Friars and ranks second in the BIG EAST in double-doubles, with five. Alyssa Geary and Mary Baskerville are the only other Friars to record double-doubles this season, with one apiece. Baskerville has 18 double-doubles in her career, which ranks third in the BIG EAST among active players.
BLOCK PARTY... The Friars currently lead the BIG EAST and rank eighth in the nation in blocked shots (64). Providence also ranks first in the league blocks per game and ranks 16th in NCAA Division I (5.8 bpg). Mary Baskerville leads the Friars in blocked shots (13) and Janai Crooms also has collected 13 blocked shots. Olivia Olsen (11) also has reached double figures in blocks.
MARY BASKERVILLE RANKS AMONG NCAA DIVISION I ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS IN BLOCKED SHOTS PER GAME... Mary Baskerville ranks 21st among NCAA Division I active career leaders in blocks per game (1.76 bpg). In 87 career games, Baskerville has swatted 153 shots, including two seasons of 50+ blocked shots. During the 2021-22 season, Baskerville has played just four games, but leads the team with 13 blocks (3.25 bpg). Â
CROOMS ONE OF TWO PLAYERS IN BIG EAST AVERAGING A DOUBLE-DOUBLE... Janai Crooms is one of just two players in the BIG EAST who are currently averaging a double-double. Through 10 games, Crooms has put up 13.7 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. DePaul's Aneesah Morrow also is averaging a double-double with 17.8 points and 12.0 rebounds per contest.
FLIRTING WITH THE PROGRAM'S FIRST TRIPLE-DOUBLE... Janai Crooms has narrowly missed out on a bid for a triple-double in three games this season. On Nov. 20 against Boston College, she finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. Against Hartford on Dec. 1, she logged 25 points, 11 boards and eight assists. On Dec. 8 against Brown, Crooms put up 14 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. In the program's 48-year existence, a Friar has never recorded a triple-double.
STREAKING... In the season opener vs. Yale on Nov. 9, senior Alyssa Geary went 0-7 from the floor and was held scoreless. Since then, Geary has reached double figures in 10-straight games. She enters Sunday's game against Creighton ranked second on the team in scoring (13.5 ppg) and assists (2.7 apg), while also contributing 5.0 rebounds per game. She has converted 44.6-percent of her attempts from the field (54-121) and 78.0-percent of her attempts at the stripe (32-41).
GEARY PLAYS SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN THE FRIARS'Â RECENT 5-1 STRETCH... Providence is 5-1 in its last six games and Alyssa Geary has been a big influence on the court during that stretch. She has led the team in scoring (14.3 ppg) and has posted the second-highest rebounding (6.5 rpg) and assist (2.3 apg) totals on the team. Additionally, she has combined to shoot 48-percent from the field in the last six games (30-63), including a 44-percent clips from beyond the three-point arc (7-16). She also has converted 83-percent of her free throws (19-23).
OLIVIA OLSEN PROVIDES A SPARK... The Friars were trailing Brown, 12-7, in the first quarter before freshman Olivia Olsen came off the bench with 4:43 on the clock. Upon entering the game, she scored five points on 2-3 shooting and grabbed two rebounds, helping to turn a five-point deficit into a 21-17 advantage. Olsen went on to finish the game with a career-high 13 points and also matched her career high in rebounding (nine). Through 11 games this season, Olsen has shot an impressive 63-percent from the floor (27-43) and is averaging 6.0 points and 4.4 rebounds in just 16.7 minutes per game.
TWO-TIME MAINE GATORADE PLAYER OF THE YEAR EMILY ARCHIBALD RETURNS TO HER HOME STATE AND DROPS 20 ON THE BLACK BEARS... On Nov. 13, Kennebunk, Maine native Emily Archibald returned to her home State of Maine and dropped a team and career high 20 points on the Black Bears. She shot 57-percent from the field (8-14) and added six boards and two steals. Archibald is a two-time Maine Gatorade Player of the Year (2020, 2021) Miss Maine Basketball (2021).
ALYSSA GEARY NETS CAREER-BEST 24 POINTS AGAINST UMASS... Senior forward Alyssa Geary scored a career-high 24 points against UMass on Nov. 23. It marked the second 20-point game of Geary's career. She previously scored 22 points in a match up against BIG EAST foe Villanova during the 2020-21 campaign. Against the Minutewomen, she shot 8-20 from the field and was 7-8 from the charity stripe. Her seven made free throws tied her career high. In addition to her 24 points, she added seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
MARY BASKERVILLE NAMED TO ALL-BIG EAST SECOND TEAM AT THE CONCLUSION OF 2020-21 SEASON... Last season, Mary Baskerville led Providence College in scoring (12.7 ppg), rebounding (6.5 rpg), blocked shots (1.8 bpg), steals (1.4 spg) and field-goal percentage (.538, 112-208). For her efforts, she was named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team. It marked her first postseason honor since earning BIG EAST Freshman of the Year and BIG EAST All-Freshman Team accolades in 2019.Â
CLEARED FOR TAKE-OFF... The NCAA cleared Janai Crooms to play during the 2021-22 season on Nov. 4, prior to the Friars' exhibition game against Bentley. Crooms was a four-star recruit and ranked No. 36 in 2018 class by Prospect Nation coming out of St. Andrew's (Barrington, R.I.). She played two seasons at Ohio State (2018-20) before transferring to Michigan State for the 2020-21 campaign. Crooms has two years of eligibility remaining, including the current 2021-22 seasons.
MARY BASKERVILLE RANKS 20th ALL-TIME AT PROVIDENCE IN CAREER REBOUNDS... Senior Mary Baskerville ranks 20th all-time in career boards at Providence with 623. She hauled in a team-best nine rebounds in the Friars' season opener against Yale (Nov. 9) and passed former Friar Mi-Khida Hankins '11 (602) in the rankings.Â
1,000-POINT MILESTONE ON THE HORIZON... Mary Baskerville has scored 956 points with the Friars in 87 career games. She is on pace to become the 35th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone, needing just 44 points.
FRIARS SET TO MAKE THEIR RETURN TO THE DUNKIN' DONUTS CENTER... The Friars will host a game at the Dunkin' Donuts Center for the first time since 2010 when they welcome Connecticut on Sunday, Jan. 30. Tip-off is set for 11:00 a.m. It marks the first time Providence has played a game at the Dunkin' Donuts Center since Feb. 6, 2010 against West Virginia.
PROVIDENCE PICKED TO FINISH EIGHTH IN BIG EAST PRESEASON COACHES' POLL... The Friars were picked to finish eighth in the 2021-22 BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll, which was released at the league's annual media day at MSG in New York City. The Friars recorded 32 points in the poll and sit above Georgetown (27), Xavier (18) and Butler (17). Connecticut was a unanimous selection to win the league for a second-straight season.
ALYSSA GEARY NAMED TO BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL... Alyssa Geary earned BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll accolades on Dec. 6, following her performance against Villanova and Georgetown in conference play. She averaged 16.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. Geary also collected her first double-double of the season - and second of her career- against Villanova on Dec. 3 with 18 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. She combined to shoot 43-percent from the field (9-21) and 85-percent from the foul line (11-13).
JANAI CROOMS NAMED TO BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL... Janai Crooms was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, Nov. 15. In two games last week to start the 2021-22 season, she averaged 18.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.5 blocked shots per game. In the Friars' game against Maine (Nov. 13), Crooms exploded for 18 points, 19 rebounds, five assists, four blocked shots and two steals.
FRIARS IN THE POSTSEASON... The Friars' last appeared in the postseason during the 2018-19 campaign, when their current senior class came on to the scene as freshmen. Providence's 2019 WNIT selection marked the program's 15th post-season appearance overall and first since 2010. In 2019-20, NCAA and WNIT Championships were canceled to the COVID-19 pandemic, and Friars did not qualify for postseason during the abbreviated 2020-21 campaign. Complete post-season breakdown follows (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)
FRIARS DEFEAT CROSS-CITY RIVAL BROWN, 59-43... The Friars defeated cross-city rival Brown, 59-43, on Dec. 8. Janai Crooms recorded her team-best fourth double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds, while also chipping in eight assists. Alyssa Geary also scored 14 points and contributed eight rebounds and two assists. Freshman Olivia Olsen came off the bench to provide a big spark for the Friars with a career-high 13 points and nine rebounds. The Friars' defensive effort held the Bears to single digits in the second and third quarter to run away with the game. Providence dominated the glass with a season-best 51 rebounds (51-30).
FRIARS OVERCOME 17-POINT DEFICIT TO DEFEAT MAINE IN OVERTIME...The Friars started 1-13 from the field against Maine on Nov 13 and had to overcome a 17-point deficit to take the win in overtime (66-61). A strong second quarter got the momentum going for PC, outscoring the Black Bears, 21-11, and cutting the deficit to 28-24 at halftime. In the fourth quarter, Maine gained a 54-48 advantage on an 8-0 run with 5:45 remaining on the clock. Maine went scoreless for over two and a half minutes and the Friars managed to tie the game, 56-56, capped by a traditional three-point play from Mary Baskerville. In overtime, Providence outscored Maine 10-5. Freshman Emily Archibald (four) and junior Janai Crooms (three) combined to score seven of the Friars' 10 points in the extra session. Archibald paced the Friars with 20 points, while Crooms recorded a double-double on 18 points and 19 rebounds. Senior Alyssa Geary contributed 15 points.
FRIARS DROP SEASON OPENER TO YALE IN OVERTIME... The Friars dropped their season opener to Yale in overtime (63-57) on Nov. 9 in Providence, R.I. The Bulldogs used a +9 scoring advantage at the free throw line, which proved to be a critical factor in the game. Providence shot just 9-20 from the stripe (.450), while the Bulldogs shot 18-23 (.783). Janai Crooms led the Friars with 18 points in her debut with the program and also added seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Senior Mary Baskerville contributed 11 points, nine rebounds, six blocked shots and four steals before fouling out. Freshman Emily Archibald started at forward and played 36 minutes in her collegiate debut, recording 10 points, five rebounds and two assists.
WHAT'S NEXT... The Friars it the road for a pair of BIG EAST games against Xavier and Butler. Providence and Xavier will tip-off at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 31 at the Cintas Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Friars begin the New Year with 12:00 p.m. tip-off against Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Sunday, Jan. 2.
