Creighton Women's Basketball Hosts Providence

Omaha, Neb. - In the midst of a season-long three-game winning streak the Creighton women's basketball team hosts travel partner, Providence, in the lone game of the week on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 1:00 pm in D.J. Sokol Arena.

1/17: - 1:01 pm: Providence (4-12, 0-6 BIG EAST) at Creighton (9-9, 3-3 BIG EAST)

Webstream - BIG EAST Digital Network: http://foxsportsgo.com
Brad Burwell (Play-by-Play)
and Rob Simms (Color Analyst)

Stats (Free): http://creighton.statbroadcast.com

Series History: Creighton leads 5-0
Creighton won last meeting 84-57 on February 15, 2015 in Omaha

Creighton Notes

Providence Notes

Bird Seeds

Creighton has won each of the four meetings with Providence since the Bluejays joined the BIG EAST Conference.
Overall Creighton owns a 5-0 series edge on the Friars.
Providence is one of the youngest teams in the BIG EAST with just one senior and two juniors.
The Friars, however, have played the third toughest schedule in the BIG EAST.
One stat that shows the differing styles of play between the Friars and Bluejays is turnovers per game. Creighton ranks second in the NCAA with 11.0 per
contest, Providence sits 307th with 19.3 per game.
Creighton has held the last two opponents under 50 points, the last time the Bluejays did that was in 2012-13.

Series with Providence: Creighton leads 5-0
Creighton has won all four matchups have come since the two teams became members of the BIG EAST. The Bluejays also claime a meeting in the WNIT in 1987. Creighton is 2-0 against the Friars in Omaha.

Creighton leads 5-0
Home: 2-0 Away: 2-0 Neutral: 1-0
Date   Result   Score/Site
3/21/87   W   91-89 in Amarillo @
1/11/14   W   97-65 at Providence
2/15/14   W   85-64 in Omaha
1/16/15   W   65-54 at Providence
2/15/15   W   84-57 in Omaha
@ - WNIT game

Scouting Providence (4-12, 0-6 BIG EAST)
With just three upperclasswomen on the roster it is safe to call Providence a young team. The Friars, however, have been improving as the BIG EAST season has continued. Providence played their closest conference contest on Jan. 10, falling 62-54 to Xavier.

Junior Sarah Beal runs the offense for the Friars, leadind the team with 11.9 ppg and 45 assists. Another impressive player is freshman Jovana "Yoyo" Nogic. Hailing from Portugal, Nogic is second on the squad with 11.5 ppg and is among the NCAA leaders from beyond the arc, shooting 48.2 % from long range this season.

Keys to the Game w/Providence

Which team controls the pace: Creighton is second in the NCAA with 11.0
turnovers per game, while Providence averages 19.3 per contest. While some of difference is ball security, it is also about pace of play. Providence plays at a chaotic pace, while the Bluejays prefer a slower tempo.
Three-point shooting: Sunday's contest features four of the top five three-point shooters in the BIG EAST Conference, two on each team (Faber & McGrory for Creighton, Nogic & Che for Providence). Which duo is more prolific could significantly impact the game.
Rebound: Providence is one of the few teams that Creighton holds a rebounding edge on. The Bluejays must exploit that advantage.

Defense! Defense!
Under head coach Jim Flanery the Bluejays have become known for three-point shooting, while that is still a hallmark of this team, the key to Creighton's three-game win streak has been defense.

Over the last two games Creighton has raised that portion of its game, holding Xavier and Butler under 50 points. Prior to the game with Xavier on Jan. 8, the last time the Bluejays held the opposition to 50 or less was Nov. 26, 2013 against South Dakota.

The last time the Bluejays held back-to-back opponents under 50 was during the 2012-13 season as Creighton limited Southern Illinois to 42 and 43 points in the regular-season finale and the opening game of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC).

The last time Creighton held the opposition under 50 in three straight game was the Bluejays magical MVC Tournament run in 2011-12.

Speaking of the 2011-12 MVC Tournament Run, Could 2015-16 Rival the Bluejays First NCAA Tournament Under Flanery?
After opening the BIG EAST season with three straight losses, one startling
comparison arose. The last time Creighton opened a conference season 0-3 was in 2011-12.

That year the Bluejays rallied with six of seven victories in MVC play and went on to run the table in the MVC Tournament.

Locked and Loaded: Faber vs. Nogic
Freshman Audrey Faber is the best player in the country from long range this season at 50.6% from three-point distance.Just a stone's throw away, however, is Providence's Jovana Nogic. Three of the top ten are freshmen (Faber, Nogic and Shayna Mehta).

#   Player    %
1.   Audrey Faber, Creighton   50.6
2.   Shayna Mehta, Brown   50.0
3.   Madison Cable, Notre Dame   49.4
4.   Meredith Shipman, Western Michigan   48.7
5.   Brooke Pahukoa, Boise State   48.7
6.   Tesha Buck, Green Bay   48.7
7.   Jovana Nogic, Providence   48.4
8.   Hannah Young, Virginia Tech   48.2
9.   Katie Kuklok, Utah   46.5
10.   AJ Alix, Texas Christian   46.4

Players Mentioned

Audrey Faber

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