Thursday, January 21
Indianapolis, Ind.
6:00 P.M. CT
DePaul University
9-3,6-1Big East
80
at
66
Butler
1-10,1-9Big East
1
2
3
4
F
DePaul
17
24
24
15
80
Butler
12
15
19
20
66
Church Reaches 1,000 Career Points in 80-66 Win at Butler
1/21/2021 7:57:00 PM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
No. 18/21 DePaul has won four in a row and eight of nine
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – History has a way of unfolding at just the right moment, and it happened Thursday night at the time-honored Hinkle Fieldhouse.
In the old-school arena known as "Indiana's Basketball Cathedral" where the final scenes of the iconic movie "Hoosiers" were shot, Deja Church made a little history scoring her 1,000th career point in No. 18/21 DePaul's 80-66 victory over Butler.
Church's magic moment came with 4:36 left in the game when she drove the lane and converted a layup. The career total included her first two years at Michigan.
It was quite a night for the senior guard as she recorded her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds which tied a career high.
Lexi Held led DePaul with 17 points and four steals while Sonya Morris finished with 15 points and five assists. Darrione Rogers turned in a complete effort with nine points, eight rebounds and four steals. Dee Bekelja added nine points.
The Blue Demons' fourth win in a row improved their overall record to 9-3 including 6-1 in the BIG EAST Conference. Butler fell to 1-10, 1-9.
DePaul came out cold from the opening tip, making just one of its first 10 shots and falling behind 6-2 at the first quarter media timeout. Held had the lone basket in the first five minutes.
The Blue Demons woke up after the media break connecting on seven of their next eight shots and a 15-4 run to close out the first quarter produced a 17-12 lead.
Bekelja opened the second quarter with a three-pointer and Morris followed with a basket in giving DePaul its first double-digit lead at 22-12. Butler had narrowed the margin to 26-21 until a Church layup made it 28-21 at the media timeout.
Back-to-back baskets from Jorie Allen and Held restored a double-digit advantage. The Bulldogs crept back within seven when DePaul coach Doug Bruno unleashed his vaunted full-court press. A Church three-pointer followed by scores from Bekelja and Held sent DePaul into halftime with a 41-27 lead.
Held had 10 points in the first 20 minutes and Church was on the verge of a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. The Blue Demons forced 14 turnovers in the first two quarters.
DePaul led by 16 early in the third quarter. After Butler trimmed its deficit to nine, Morris converted a free throw, Held hit a three and Rogers scored off a steal for a 53-38 lead at the media timeout.
A Morris connection from behind the arc culminated a 9-0 burst. Butler scored just before the second media timeout as the Blue Demons led 56-40. They closed out the quarter with a 6-0 burst and led 65-46 heading into the final 10 minutes.
A Morris three lengthened the lead to 74-51 early in the fourth quarter. Church scored just before the media timeout with DePaul ahead 76-57. At that point, Church needed one more basket for the magic number.
On the first possession out of the break, Church drove the lane and scored on a layup for the 1,000th point of her collegiate career that included her first two years at Michigan.
The Blue Demons are back on the road Monday with a 6 p.m. game at Xavier that will be shown on the BIG EAST Digital Network/FloSports.
Postgame Notes
In the old-school arena known as "Indiana's Basketball Cathedral" where the final scenes of the iconic movie "Hoosiers" were shot, Deja Church made a little history scoring her 1,000th career point in No. 18/21 DePaul's 80-66 victory over Butler.
Church's magic moment came with 4:36 left in the game when she drove the lane and converted a layup. The career total included her first two years at Michigan.
It was quite a night for the senior guard as she recorded her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds which tied a career high.
Lexi Held led DePaul with 17 points and four steals while Sonya Morris finished with 15 points and five assists. Darrione Rogers turned in a complete effort with nine points, eight rebounds and four steals. Dee Bekelja added nine points.
The Blue Demons' fourth win in a row improved their overall record to 9-3 including 6-1 in the BIG EAST Conference. Butler fell to 1-10, 1-9.
DePaul came out cold from the opening tip, making just one of its first 10 shots and falling behind 6-2 at the first quarter media timeout. Held had the lone basket in the first five minutes.
The Blue Demons woke up after the media break connecting on seven of their next eight shots and a 15-4 run to close out the first quarter produced a 17-12 lead.
Bekelja opened the second quarter with a three-pointer and Morris followed with a basket in giving DePaul its first double-digit lead at 22-12. Butler had narrowed the margin to 26-21 until a Church layup made it 28-21 at the media timeout.
Back-to-back baskets from Jorie Allen and Held restored a double-digit advantage. The Bulldogs crept back within seven when DePaul coach Doug Bruno unleashed his vaunted full-court press. A Church three-pointer followed by scores from Bekelja and Held sent DePaul into halftime with a 41-27 lead.
Held had 10 points in the first 20 minutes and Church was on the verge of a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. The Blue Demons forced 14 turnovers in the first two quarters.
DePaul led by 16 early in the third quarter. After Butler trimmed its deficit to nine, Morris converted a free throw, Held hit a three and Rogers scored off a steal for a 53-38 lead at the media timeout.
A Morris connection from behind the arc culminated a 9-0 burst. Butler scored just before the second media timeout as the Blue Demons led 56-40. They closed out the quarter with a 6-0 burst and led 65-46 heading into the final 10 minutes.
A Morris three lengthened the lead to 74-51 early in the fourth quarter. Church scored just before the media timeout with DePaul ahead 76-57. At that point, Church needed one more basket for the magic number.
On the first possession out of the break, Church drove the lane and scored on a layup for the 1,000th point of her collegiate career that included her first two years at Michigan.
The Blue Demons are back on the road Monday with a 6 p.m. game at Xavier that will be shown on the BIG EAST Digital Network/FloSports.
Postgame Notes
- DePaul is now 9-3 and needs one more game to meet the minimum 13 for NCAA tournament play.
- DePaul leads the all-time series against Butler 18-0 including 9-0 on the Bulldogs' home court.
- The Blue Demons have won four in a row and eight of their last nine.
- Deja Church notched her first double-double of the season with 13 points and 12 rebounds which tied a career high.
- Sonya Morris leads the team having scored 20-or-more points seven times in 12 games. Her 26 points on Jan. 16 at Georgetown tied her season and team high---scoring 26 Dec. 13 against Loyola.
- Lexi Held is a double-figure scorer in every game except one.
- DePaul checked in at No. 18 in the Associated Press Top 25 and is No. 21 in the USA Today/Coaches poll.
- Bruno's full-court pressure tactics and his players' ball-hawking aggression have forced 20 or more turnovers in every game except three this season including 27 against No. 10/10 Texas A&M and 23 against both No. 2/2 Louisville and No. 9/9 Kentucky. Georgetown's 33 miscues on Jan. 16 were a season high, and Butler had 26 turnovers Thursday night. It's no wonder the Blue Demons are No. 5 in the nation in forcing turnovers at 24 a game.
- Deja Church reached the 1,000-point mark in her career with her 13 points. That includes two seasons at Michigan. Lexi Held is 54 away from accomplishing the feat in just three seasons while classmate Sonya Morris is 101 shy.
Team Stats
DePaul
Butler
FG%
.434
.418
3FG%
.233
.316
FT%
.875
.737
RB
41
37
TO
15
26
STL
16
11
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
G
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALLG
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALLG
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALLG
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALLDemon Docs: Welcome Head Coach Jill M. Pizzotti
Tuesday, April 29
Episode 19: Jill M. Pizzotti, Women's Basketball Head Coach
Wednesday, April 16
Jill M. Pizzotti Introductory Press Conference
Tuesday, April 15
DePaul Women's Basketball: Jill Pizzotti Introductory Press Conference
Thursday, April 10