EVANSTON, Ill. (November 4, 2026) – Fresh off a season-opening win, Northwestern (1-0) returns to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thursday evening to take on Xavier. The 7 p.m. CT tip-off will air live on B1G+, while Adam Beck (play-by-play) will have the call on the Northwestern Women’s Basketball Audio Network, which can be accessed through the official YouTube page of Northwestern Athletics.
LAST TIME OUT
Led by a trio of scorers in double figures, Northwestern kicked off the Carla Berube era with a hard-fought 64-60 win over Milwaukee this past Tuesday at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Making her Wildcat debut, Lily Carmody paced the attack, pouring in a game-high 21 points. Carmody, who finished 6-of-10 from the field and 9-of-12 from the free throw line, put up 16 points during the second half. She also dished out a team-best six assists and came down with five rebounds.
Coming off a junior campaign in which she averaged a career-best 10.0 points, Casey Harter didn't skip a beat, closing her night with 16 points, four assists, a block, and a steal.
Jasmyn Cooper-Derba
Jasmyn Cooper-Derba, who, like Carmody, also made her first Northwestern appearance, put up career-high marks in both points (12) and rebounds (12) en route to her first career double-double. Cooper-Derba also connected on a team-high three attempts from beyond the three-point arc.
SCOUTING XAVIER
Xavier (1-0) opened its 2026-27 slate with a 75-63 road win over Purdue Fort Wayne on Monday evening. Piloted by head coach Billi Chambers, Xavier, which closed last season at 11-19 (4-16 BIG EAST), landed in ninth in the BIG EAST Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.Â
In her first collegiate appearance, Lucile Jerome led all scorers in the Musketeers' season-opening triumph, finishing with 28 points. South Alabama transfer Diawna Carter-Hartley was a force on both ends of the floor against the Mastodons, posting 11 points and a game-high 10 rebounds to secure her ninth career double-double.
Preseason All-BIG EAST pick Meri Kanerva chipped in nine points, four rebounds, and a game-best five assists. Kanerva is coming off a strong sophomore campaign in which she scored in double figures 14 times en route to averaging 10.1 points. She scored a season-high 23 points in a matchup with Kent State on November 14, 2025.
SERIES STUFF
Northwestern and Xavier will meet for only the second time in Thursday's tilt. In the only previous encounter between the Wildcats and Musketeers, Northwestern rolled to a 79-59 win as part of the West Palm Invitational on December 21, 2019. Lindsey Pulliam paced the 'Cats in the win with a game-high 21 points, while Veronica Burton turned in a complete performance, finishing with 18 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and four steals.
Northwestern has evenly split its 74 all-time matchups against current BIG EAST Conference members to the tune of 37-37 (.500).
UP NEXT
Northwestern makes the short trip to Chicago’s West Side on Sunday, November 8, where it will take on local foe UIC in a 1 p.m. CT tip-off inside Credit Union 1 Arena.