Women's Basketball | December 20, 2022

VILLANOVA, Pa. – The La Salle women's basketball team takes a short trip to face Villanova for a morning Big 5 matchup at Finneran Pavilion at 11:30 a.m. The contest will stream live on FloSports and will be the last for the Explorers before a 10-day break for the holidays.
 
SCOUTING THE EXPLORERS:

• La Salle hits the road to face Big 5 rival Villanova for its last game before a 10-day break for the holidays. The Explorers look to jump back on the win train after most recently losing to South Florida, 75-50, on the road.
• The 25-point loss marked the largest margin of defeat for the Explorers this season.
• Mia Jacobs led La Salle's offensive efforts with a team-high 15 points from a 4-of-8 performance from the field and a 7-of-11 effort from the line. She has now recorded the last three-straight games in double-digits and her fifth game overall sinking at least four buckets from the free throw line. She is quickly approaching averaging double-digit scoring with 7.5 points per game. She ranks second on the team and 11th in the Atlantic 10 in free throw percentage shooting 81.4% this season.
• Claire Jacobs joined the double-digit club with 10 points in the game from 4-of -14 shooting including 1-of-5 from the 3-point range and 1-of-1 from the foul line. She has now recorded double-digits in eight games including the last three straight. The senior, leads La Salle and ranks second in the conference in free throw percentage shooting 87.9%.
• Kayla Spruill finished the game just shy of double-figure scoring with seven points. She leads the Explorers' offensive efforts this season averaging 13.8 points per game. The sharp-shooter has gone 26-of-58 from the long range shooting 44.8% to rank second in the league at 45th in the nation. Her 50% performance from the field ranks eighth on the conference leaderboard.
• The Explorers rank 57th nationally in three-pointers per game averaging 7.8 buckets from beyond the arc. La Salle holds the 24th spot in the nation for three-point attempts per game averaging 25.8 per game.

SCOUTING THE WILDCATS:

• A victory for the Wildcats will secure them the Philadelphia Big 5 Championships with a perfect 4-0 record. Villanova is currently 3-0 in series play securing wins over Penn, Temple and Saint Joseph's. The title would serve as the program's 19^th all-time.
• The contest will serve as the final non-conference game for the Wildcats who open up conference play on Dec. 28 at Marquette.
• Maddy Siegrist has averaged 32.0 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game in her three career games against the Explorers. She leads the overall offensive efforts for Villanova this season averaging 9.6 points per game shooting 52.5% from the field, 42.6% from the three-point range and 82.7% from the foul line.
• Villanova has protected the ball well this season. In 12 games, the Wildcats have committed just 118 turnovers for an average of 9.8 per game to rank second in the nation.
• The Wildcats enter the game following a loss to Iowa State where the team recorded seven turnovers. The loss snapped a three-game streak for Villanova.
• The Wildcats defeated the Explorers' most recent opponent, South Florida, in a 72-50 victory on Nov. 27.

SERIES HISTORY:

• This will be the 52nd overall meeting between the two teams. La Salle trails in the overall series 9-42.
• The Explorers trail 4-18 in the overall series when visiting the Wildcats at their home gym.
• La Salle looks for their first victory over Villanova on the road since its 67-62 overtime victory on Nov. 14, 2008.
• The Explorers have yet to defeat the Wildcats under the tenure of head coach Mountain MacGillivray.
• The game takes place exactly one year since the teams last met.