St. John’s Hosts Villanova on Friday

Friday, February 4

Queens, N.Y. (Carnesecca Arena)

2 p.m.

St. John's University

Villanova

2/3/2022 3:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Live Stats Watch Game Notes (PDF)

The Johnnies get set for a rematch with the Wildcats

QUEENS, N.Y (Feb. 3, 2022) – The St. John's women's basketball will look to make it back-to-back BIG EAST wins when it welcomes Villanova for a conference showdown at Carnesecca Arena on Friday afternoon.

Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network with Pat O'Keefe and Ali Jaques on the call. Meghan Caffrey will serve as the sideline reporter.

During the team's last outing, St. John's Women's Basketball Head Coach Joe Tartamella took over sole possession of first place on the program's all-time wins with an 83-63 triumph over Xavier. With his 177th victory, the head coach passed his former mentor, Kim Barnes Arico, to set the program record. Tartamella spent nine seasons on Barnes Arico's staff, starting as a graduate assistant in 2002 before serving three years as an assistant coach and four seasons as the program's associate head coach. During his time at the helm, Tartamella has been to six postseasons, including a trio of NCAA Tournament appearances. In 2016, his Johnnies won the program's first BIG EAST title since 1988.

The Johnnies (7-14, 3-8 BIG EAST) scorched the nets against Xavier, shooting 50.8 percent from the floor and 12-for-25 from beyond the arc during the victory. All five starters scored in double figures with Leilani Correa posting a game-high 20 points and going 4-for-6 from three. Unique Drake followed closely behind with 15 points while Rayven Peeples tallied her third double-double with 12 rebounds and 11 points. Kadaja Bailey and Danielle Patterson rounded out the Johnnies' top scorers, chipping in 11 points apiece.

Villanova enters the weekend at 13-6 on the season with a 7-3 mark in conference play. The team is averaging 63.8 points on 39.1 percent shooting from the floor. Maddy Siegrist, who has played in only 13 games this season and therefore does not meet the minimum number of games played to be included in the BIG EAST and NCAA statistical rankings, paces the Wildcats with 24.5 points and 9.4 rebounds per game during her junior campaign. If she met the games-played minimum, the Poughkeepsie native would rank in the top three nationally in scoring average.

During the first meeting between the teams this season, St. John's fell to Villanova, 70-68, at Finneran Pavilion on Jan. 2. Correa paced the Red Storm in the scoring column with 20 points. The Manchester, N.J. native also grabbed 10 rebounds to record her first double-double of the season and the seventh of her career. Peeples, who was returned from a month-long absence, logged her first double-double of the campaign with 13 points and 11 rebounds during the contest. Siegrist, who made the game-winning play for Villanova, led all scorers with 28 points on 10-of-23 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds.

After taking on the Wildcats, the Red Storm will hit the road for a rematch with Xavier on Sunday afternoon. Tip-off from the Cintas Center is scheduled for 2 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network.