Women's Basketball Game Notes vs. Butler

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FRIARS HOST BUTLER TO BEGIN THREE-GAME HOME STAND ... The Friars will host Butler in BIG EAST action on Saturday, Feb. 11. The game is set to tip-off at 1:00 p.m. and will be played at Alumni Hall. It marks the first of three-straight home games for Providence, which will continue on Feb. 15 vs. Marquette and Feb. 18 vs. DePaul.

BIG EAST PARTNERS WITH THE BLACK FIVES FOUNDATION... For the second-straight season, the BIG EAST Conference is celebrating Black History Month by partnering with the Black Fives Foundation, a non-profit public charity whose mission is to research, preserve, showcase, teach and honor the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball. To honor these pioneers, both teams will wear shirts with the names of the eleven historic Black Fives Teams, who played in some of the same cities as our BIG EAST member institutions. In the match-up between the Friars and Bulldogs on Saturday, Providence College will be representing the Philadelphia Quick Steppers and Butler will be representing the Spartan Girls. To learn more about the athletes, coaches and communities who played a critical part in America's basketball history, visit www.BIGEAST.com/BlackFives.

FRIARS VS. BULLDOGS ALL-TIME... The Friars and Bulldogs have met 21 times during the history of the two women's basketball programs. Butler leads the all-time series, 11-10.

RECENT HISTORY... Providence has earned victories in eight of the last 10 games against Butler, including each of the last six meetings heading into Saturday's match-up. Four of the last six games have been decided by double-digits. Additionally, the Friars have swept the season series in each of the last two seasons and will look to sweep the Bulldogs for a third-straight season in 2022-23.

FIRST GAME OF THE SEASON SERIES... The Friars led wire-to-wire in a 74-66 win over Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse on Jan. 18. Grace Efosa paced five players in double figures with 16 points and Janai Crooms notched a double-double on 12 points and 11 rebounds. Providence started the game on a 13-0 scoring run and never looked back. Caroline Strande came off the bench to score a game-high 18 points for Butler.

FRIARS FINISH NON-CONFERENCE PLAY 9-2... The Friars finished their non-conference slate with a 9-2 record. It marks the most victories for Providence in regular-season non-conference play since 2019-20 (9-3).

TWELVE GAMES DURING THE SERIES HAVE BEEN DECIDED BY SINGLE DIGITS... Twelve of the 21 games between Providence and Butler have been decided by single digits, including three overtime games. The Bulldogs have earned wins in seven of those meetings (5-7).

OVERTIME... The Friars have prevailed in two of the three overtime games played between Providence and Butler, including a triple-overtime thriller played in Providence on Jan. 18, 2019 (74-68, 3OT). The Friars also earned a 66-63 victory over Butler in the only overtime game between the two teams at Hinkle Fieldhouse (Feb. 17, 2019).

TRAILING AT HALFTIME... The Friars are 1-11 this season when trailing at halftime. Providence earned its lone victory of the season when trailing at halftime on Jan. 4 vs. No. 25/24 Creighton. Providence trailed 46-39 at the break and went on to claim a 79-75 victory.

IMPORTANCE OF A STRONG START... The Friars are 12-1 this season when leading at halftime. Providence's only loss when holding a halftime lead came against URI on Nov. 14. The Friars held a 50-40 advantage at the break and fell to the Rams, 74-72.

SINGLE DIGITS... Ten of the Friars' 25 games have been decided by nine points or less and the team has posted a 6-4 record in those games. Additionally, Providence has posted a 3-1 record in games decided by five points or less.

DEFENSE WINS GAMES... The Friars have held 14 of their 25 opponents below 40-percent shooting from the field this season and are 12-2 in those games. PC lost for the first time when holding an opponent below 40-percent on Dec. 28 at DePaul. The Friars held the Blue Demons to 37.7-percent shooting and dropped a 78-69 decision. On Jan. 24, Providence held Creighton to 39.7-percent shooting in a 64-46 loss.

BOARD IT... The Friars have out-rebounded 17 of their 25 opponents this season and have posted an 13-4 record in those games. Providence is 0-8 on the season when it secures fewer rebounds than its opponent.

HOME-SWEET-HOME... The Friars own an 13-12 record this season, with eight of those victories coming on their home court - Alumni Hall (8-5). Three of Providence's five losses at home were to opponents either ranked in the national polls or receiving votes at the time of the game. Providence is looking to get back on track at Alumni Hall, having lost three-straight and four of its last five overall. The Friars last victory at Alumni Hall dates back to Jan. 11 vs. Xavier (64-50).

FRIARS VS. RANKED OPPONENTS IN 2022-23... The Friars are 1-3 this season vs. nationally ranked opponents and 0-2 vs. opponents receiving votes in the national polls.

12/2/22 #3/3 Connecticut 53-98 (L) Storrs, Conn.

12/4/22 #25/RV Villanova 54-79 (L) Providence, R.I.

12/18/22 RV/RV St. John's 55-63 (L) Queens, N.Y.

1/4/23 #25/24 Creighton 79-75 (W) Omaha, Neb.

1/24/23 -/RV Creighton 46-64 (L) Providence, R.I.

2/1/23 #5/4 Connecticut 54-64 (L) Providence, R.I.

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER IN FRIARTOWN... On Jan. 4, the Providence men's and women's basketball teams knocked off nationally-ranked opponents on the same night. The men took down then-No. 4/5 Connecticut, 73-61, at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, R.I. The women defeated then-No. 25/24 Creighton at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha, Neb.

FRIARS EARN FIRST ROAD WIN OVER A TEAM RANKED IN THE AP POLL SINCE 1989... Providence earned its fourth road victory over a team ranked in the Associated Press Poll program history when it upset No. 25 Creighton in Omaha, Neb. (Jan. 4). It marked the first road win vs. a team ranked in the AP Poll since Dec. 29, 1989. On that day, the Friars defeated No. 25 DePaul, 106-92, during a neutral site game in Palo Alto, Calif. The Friars have two true road wins over teams ranked in the AP Poll vs. No. 17 Houston in Houston, Texas (W, 65-59 on 12/28/85) and vs. No. 15 St. John's in Queens, N.Y. (W, 66-61 on 1/28/84). In addition to the program's four road victories vs. teams ranked in the AP Poll, the Friars have posted 11 wins over teams ranked in the AP Poll at home.

NARIAH SCOTT SHOWS SCORING ABILITY... Nariah Scott reached double figures in the scoring column for the first time in her career on Jan. 28 against Xavier, with 10 points. Heading into Saturday's match-up against Butler, Scott has reached double digits in the scoring column and established a career-high in three-straight games. Following the Xavier game, Scott put up 11 points against No. 5/4 Connecticut on Feb. 1 and most recently scored 19 points against Seton Hall. Additionally, she is the only player on the roster to reach double digits in each of the last three games. Scott has played in 20 games overall this year and has averaged 5.6 points per game on 0.351 shooting from the field. Over the last three games, she has averaged 13.3 points per game on 0.424 shooting.

GRACE EFOSA LEADS THE OFFENSE IN BIG EAST PLAY... Grace Efosa has played 24 games this season and ranks third on the team in scoring, with 9.6 points per game. In BIG EAST play, she is the only Friar averaging double figures in the scoring column (11.4 ppg). She also improves her shooting percentage in BIG EAST play, from .419 to .445 (61-137). Efosa has reached double figures in the scoring column 11 times, including five BIG EAST games. She recorded a career-high 27 points in the Friars' win over then-No. 25/24 Creighton.

BLOCK PARTY... Olivia Olsen ranks second in the BIG EAST and 28th in the nation in blocked shots (43). She has recorded at least one blocked shot in 20 of the Friars' 25 games. She also has recorded 11 multi-block games. As a rookie, Olsen recorded 28 blocked shots and she owns 71 for her career.

JANAI CROOMS STANDS ALONE... Janai Crooms is only active player in the league with more than 1,200 points, 650 rebounds, 400 assists, 150 steals and 100 blocked shots in her career. Crooms ranks 18th in the BIG EAST in scoring (11.4 ppg), eighth in rebounding (7.3 rpg), fifth in assists (3.9 apg), 10th in field-goal percentage (.486), 10th in assist/turnover ratio (1.3), sixth in defensive rebounds (5.3 drpg), 12th in offensive rebounds (2.0 orpg) and 15th in steals (1.2 spg).

20 SOMETHING... Five different Friars have recorded at least one 20-point game this season. Janai Crooms has scored 20+ points in three games. Olivia Olsen recorded the first 20+ point game of her career against Brown (22) on Dec. 7. On Dec. 28, Brynn Farrell dropped a career-best 21 points and Grace Efosa tallied a career-best 27 points against No. 25/24 Creighton on Jan. 4. Kylee Sheppard scored a season-best 20 points against Seton Hall on Jan. 8. Six players on the Friars' roster have recorded at least one 20-point game during their careers: Crooms (eight), Kylee Sheppard (three), Olsen (one) Farrell (one) Efosa (one) and Emily Archibald (one).

1,000-POINT MILESTONE... Janai Crooms scored her 1,000th point in the Friars' season opener vs. Dayton on Nov. 7. She entered the game 14 points shy of the milestone and hit the mark with 7:41 left in the third quarter. Crooms heads into Saturday's game against Butler ranked 17th all-time in career scoring at Providence with 1,260 points.

CLIMBING THE LADDER... Janai Crooms ranks sixth on the Friars' all-time career assist list (431). Crooms dished 171 of her 431 assists during her two seasons at Ohio State (2018-20), added 65 at Michigan State (2020-21) and has registered 195 dimes with the Friars (2021-present). Through 136 career games, Crooms has averaged 3.2 assists per contest.

CROOMS CRACKS TOP-20 IN REBOUNDING... In addition to being ranked among Providence's all-time leaders in scoring and assists, Crooms also has cracked the top-20 in career rebounding at PC. She currently ranks 16th on the Friars' all-time list with 678 rebounds. She has recorded double-digit boards in six games this season, including a season-high 17 rebounds against Weber State on Nov. 26.

FRIARS PUT UP SEASON-BEST 85 POINTS AGAINST BRYANT... The Friars defeated Bryant, 85-60, on Nov. 27. It marks their highest single-game scoring total since Nov. 14, 2017, when they claimed a 98-95 overtime victory against Northeastern. It's the first time Providence scored 80+ points in a game since Feb. 8, 2019 when it defeated Seton Hall 82-75.

LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY SINCE 2018-19 SEASON... The Friars defeated Central Connecticut, 77-45, on Dec. 10. The 32-point win is the largest margin of victory since defeating Bryant by 44 (74-32) on Dec. 7, 2019. The Friars have won two games this season by 30-or-more points. Providence defeated Hartford, 60-30, on Nov. 25.

GRACE EFOSA NETS GAME WINNER IN CLOSING SECONDS TO DEFEAT XAVIER; EARNS SPOT ON BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL... Providence College junior guard Grace Efosa scored a game-high 16 points, including the game-winning bucket with 4.4-seconds left in regulation, to lift the Friars to a 50-48 victory over Xavier on Jan. 28 at the Cintas Center. She shot 8-16 from the floor vs. the Musketeers and also recorded a game-high eight rebounds and added two steals and one assist. For her efforts, Efosa was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Jan. 30. It marked the first conference recognition of her career.

JANAI CROOMS MAKES CONSECUTIVE APPEARANCES ON BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL... Janai Crooms earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll in back-to-back weeks (Nov. 21 & 28). To claim her most recent recognition, Crooms was named Most Outstanding Player of the Friar Thanksgiving Classic (Nov. 25-27) after averaging 11.0 points, 13.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game in a 3-0 week for Providence.

KYLEE SHEPPARD NAMED TO BIG EAST WEEKLY HONOR ROLL AS FRIARS CLOSE NON-CONFERENCE PLAY... Sophomore guard Kylee Sheppard was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on Monday, Dec. 26. She posted her first career double-double against Sacred Heart on Dec. 20, with 13 points and 10 rebounds. She also added four assists, two steals and a career-best two blocked shots.

JANAI CROOMS NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM... Senior guard Janai Crooms was among the list of 11 student-athletes named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team, released at the league's annual media day on Oct. 18 at Madison Square Garden in New York, N.Y. Crooms is entering her second season with the Friars and her final season of NCAA Division I basketball. In addition to her time at Providence (2021-present), she also played two seasons at Ohio State (2018-20) and one season at Michigan State (2020-21). A year ago, Crooms was named All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention after leading the Friars in scoring (13.8 ppg), rebounding (7.2 rpg) and assists (3.5 apg).

FRIARS IN THE POSTSEASON... The Friars' last appeared in the postseason during the 2018-19 campaign. 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)

WHAT'S NEXT... The Friars' three-game home stand continues on Wednesday, Feb. 15 against Marquette. The match-up serves as the program's annual Pinkout Friartown Game and is scheduled to tip-off at 7:00 p.m. in Alumni Hall.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Emily Archibald

Janai Crooms

Grace Efosa

Brynn Farrell

Olivia Olsen

Nariah Scott

Kylee Sheppard

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Howard on November 4, 2025 , Loss , 56, to, 68

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Central Connecticut State University on November 10, 2025 , Win , 65, to, 40

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Boston College on November 15, 2025 , Win , 70, to, 61

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Northeastern on November 18, 2025 , Win , 50, to, 45

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Yale University on November 21, 2025 , Win , 75, to, 64

Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Middle Tennessee on November 24, 2025 at 12:00 PM (ET)

Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Mississippi St. / Alcorn St. on November 25, 2025 at 12:00 or 2:30 PM (ET)

Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball versus Bryant on November 30, 2025 at 1:00 PM

Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball at Xavier on December 4, 2025 at 11:00 AM

Upcoming Event: Women's Basketball at St. John's on December 7, 2025 at 2:00 PM

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