Villanova will close out a four-game homestand on Sunday, Jan. 30, when the Xavier Musketeers visit the Finneran Pavilion. The Wildcats enter play 12-6 overall and 6-3 in BIG EAST play, while Xavier is 7-11 and 2-7. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
 
Sunday's game versus Xavier will be the 17th all-time meeting between the two schools. Villanova leads the all-time series against the Musketeers by a 15-1 count. The first meeting came on March 21, 2006, when the Wildcats defeated the Musketeers by a score of 59-47 in the second round of the WNIT. The other 15 match-ups have taken place when the Wildcats and Musketeers became members of the Big East Conference. Xavier's lone win in the series came in a 75-67 overtime victory on Dec. 31, 2015.
 
Despite both being BIG EAST Conference members, Sunday's game will be the first meeting between the teams since the 2019-20 season. Both games scheduled for the 2020-21 campaign were postponed due to COVID related reasons. During the 2019-20 season, Villanova and Xavier met three times with the Wildcats winning on all three occasions (66-54 at Villanova; 55-54 at Xavier; 64-56 in overtime in the Big East Tournament).  
 
After starting the season 3-5, Villanova has won nine of its last 10 to improve to 12-6 on the year. A big reason for the Wildcats 3-5 start was due in large part to the absence of junior forward Maddy Siegrist who missed six games with an injury. In those six contests, Villanova registered a 3-3 mark.  The Wildcats are 9-3 with Siegrist in the line-up this year.
 
For the third time this year and 11th time in her career, Siegrist registered a 30-point game in last Sunday's win over Creighton. In 38 minutes of action, she had 31 points and 12 rebounds. The 31 points came on 8-of-15 shooting (3-of-4 from three) and a 12-of-14 effort from the foul line.
 
For the third time in her young career, freshman guard Lucy Olsen reached double figures with 10 points in Friday's win over Butler. The 10 points came on 4-of-8 shooting, including a 1-of-1 effort from three and a 1-of-2 performance from the foul line. Olsen is currently averaging 6.4 points per game and she leads the team in assists with 48. 
 
Villanova will return to action on Friday, Feb. 4, when the Wildcats travel to New York to take on the St. John's Red Storm. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.