Nov. 11, 2007
Watch the game LIVE tonight at 7:15 p.m. ET
MEDIA INFORMATION
Television: None
Radio: Jack Nolan (play-by-play analyst)
LaPhonso Ellis (color analyst)
Notre Dame Sports Properties originates the Notre Dame Radio Network
which includes:
WLS 890 AM in Chicago, Ill (Chicagoland area and
Midwest);
WNDV FM/U93 92,3 in South Bend, Ind.;
ESPN 950 AM in
Indianapolis, Ind.;
WLYV 1450 AM in Fort Wayne, Ind. and Northeast,
Ind.;
WLUV 96.7 AM in Rockford and DeKalb, Ill., and Beloit and
Janesville, Wis.;
WLUV 1520 AM in Rockford and DeKalb, Ill., and
Beloit and Janesville, Wis.;
WEFM 95.9 FM in Michigan City and Gary,
Ind.;
ESPN (WRSW) 1480 AM in Warsaw, Ind.;
WAMW 107.9 FM and 1580 AM
in Washington, Ind.,
and www.und.com.
Real-Time Stats: Live in-game statistics are available for all home
games, via the Notre Dame athletic website (www.und.com).
Notre Dame vs. Long Island
* Notre Dame opens up the 103rd season of basketball this
evening when the Irish play host to the Blackbirds of Long Island in
the season opener for both teams. The Irish won both of their
exhibition contests, posting a 109-53 win over St. Ambrose and a
71-56 victory over St. Edward's.
Recap Of St. Ambrose Win
* Six players scored in double figures as Notre Dame rolled
to a 109-53 win in its exhibition opener. Senior Rob Kurz led the
Irish with 23 points and 11 rebounds, while junior Zach Hillesland
finished with 12 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Sophomore Tory
Jackson added 12 points, dished off five assists and made four
steals, while three players - juniors Kyle McAlarney, Luke Zeller and
sophomore Jonathan Peoples - each added 11 points.
* Notre Dame shot 51.2 percent (44-86) from the field
overall, but just 28.6 percent (8-28) from three-point range and
outrebounded the Fighting Bees 54-47. The Irish limited St. Ambrose
to just 28.9 percent shooting from the field and 20.0 percent from
three-point range and forced 24 turnovers.
* Notre Dame made 19 steals in the game and and turned the
ball over just nine times. The Irish also had 24 assists on 44
baskets.
Recap Of St. Edward's Victory
* Senior Rob Kurz and sophomore Luke Harangody each scored 15
points and combined for 17 rebounds (nine by Kurz and eight by
Harangody) to lead lead the Irish to the 15-point victory. Harangody
came off the bench and played 26 minutes after missing the first
exhibition game due to thumb injury suffered in practice in October.
Junior Kyle McAlarney and sophomore Tory Jackson fiished with 12 and
11 points, respectively, but turned the ball 10 times as each played
34 minutes in the contest.
* Notre Dame held a 35-28 advantage on the boards and dished
off 18 assists on 23 baskets. The Irish also turned the ball over an
uncharacteristic 19 times in the contest.
* The Irish shot 47.9 percent (23-48) from the field and 37.5
percent (6-16) from three-point range, while connecting on 19-25
(76.0%) from the charity stripe. St. Edward's hit 21-51 from the
field (41.2%) and just 22.7 percent (5-22) from three-point range.
2006-07 Rewind
* Notre Dame is coming off of a 24-8 campaign in which the
Irish returned to the NCAA for the first time since the 2003 season
and fourth time under Irish head Mike Brey. The Irish also finished
11-5 in BIG EAST play and fourth in the final BIG EAST regular-season
standings. The 11-5 record matched the best by a Notre Dame team
since joining the BIG EAST in 1995-96. After receiving a first-round
bye in the BIG EAST Championship, the Irish advanced to the
semifinals before losing to eventual tournament and regular-season
champion Georgetown (the Hoyas also would go on to reach the Final
Four of the NCAA Tournament). The Irish lost in the first round of
the NCAA Tournament, marking the first time under Brey that Notre
Dame was beaten in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The 24
wins by the Irish marked the most during the Brey era, while the
eight losses were the fewest since the 1986-87 campaign when that
squad finished with an identical 24-8 record. It also was the first
since 1988-89 that an Irish team recorded single-digit losses (21-9).
Who's Back
* Notre Dame lost its top two scorers from a year ago Russell
Carter (17.1 ppg.) and Colin Falls (15.3 ppg.) as both were first
team all-BIG EAST selections. The Irish do return three starters in
senior forward Rob Kurz, and sophomores Luke Harangody and Tory
Jackson. Kurz is the top returning scorer (12.6 ppg.) and led Notre
Dame in rebounding a year ago with 8.0 rpg. Harangody and Jackson
were named to the BIG EAST all-rookie team after earning a combined
36 starts a year ago. Harangody, a forward, averaged 11.2 ppg. and
was the team's second-leading rebounder with 6.2 rpg. Jackson started
the final 20 games of the season at point guard and finished with a
7.8 scoring average while leading the team in assists (4.3) and
steals (1.8). He also led the BIG EAST with 6.0 assists per game in
conference play. Junior guard Kyle McAlarney also returns after
starting the first 12 games of the 2006-07 campaign and averaging
10.3 points and 5.4 assists. Junior forward Zach Hillesland is coming
off of his best season as he averaged 5.8 points and 4.8 rebounds,
while teammate Luke Zeller finished the year averaging 3.8 points and
2.2 rebounds. Junior guard Ryan Ayers will be heavily in the mix
after averaging 2.9 points, while sophomore Jonathan Peoples will
look for more minutes off the bench after averaging 1.8 points per
game.
* Notre Dame welcomes four freshmen in 2007-08: forwards Tim
Abromaitis and Carleton Scott and guards Tyrone Nash and Ty Proffitt.
* The Irish averaged 81.0 points per game, the most ever for
an Irish team under head coach Mike Brey, while allowing just 68.0
points per game. It also marked the firs time since the 1977-78
campaign that Notre Dame averaged better than 80 points per game.
During that campaign, Notre Dame averaged 80.7 points after netting
85.4 points per game the previous season (1976-77).
Another Early Start
* Tonight's season opener against Long Island will mark the
second earliest start for a Notre Dame basketball team in the
103-year history of its program. Last season, the Irish opened up
the year with a 92-49 victory over IPFW on November 10. Prior to
last year's contest, the earliest start date for a Notre Dame team
was November 13, 1998 when the Irish opened the 1998-99 campaign with
a 76-65 loss to Miami of Ohio.
Getting It Going Early
* Tonight's season opener against Long Island will mark the
second earliest start for a Notre Dame basketball team in the
103-year history of its program. Last season, the Irish opened up
the year with a 92-49 victory over IPFW on November 10. Prior to
last year's contest, the earliest start date for a Notre Dame team
was November 13, 1998 when the Irish opened the 1998-99 campaign with
a 76-65 loss to Miami of Ohio.
Series Record vs. Long Island
* The Irish and Blackbirds will be meeting for the third time
ever all-time as Long Island makes its second visit to the Joyce
Center. Notre Dame leads the all-time series 2-0. The last meeing
saw the Irish earn a 97-49 victory on December 29, 2000.
Irish In Season Openers
* Notre Dame owns an all-time record of 84-18 (.823) all-time
in season openers and have won all even openers under head coach Mike
Brey. Since the opening of the Joyce Center in 1968-69, Irish teams
are 33-6 (.846) in home openers. The last time Notre Dame lost a
season opener at home was to Miami of Ohio on November 13, 1998.
One Is A Lonely Number
* Rob Kurz is the lone senior among the 14 players on this
year's Irish roster. The last time Notre Dame had only one senior on
the roster was during the 1983-84 when Cecil Rucker was the only
senior member of that team that consisted of four juniors, five
sophomores and three freshmen. The 1988-89 Irish squad featured no
seniors on that team and was comprised of five juniors, two
sophomores and five freshmen.
Elite Company
* Notre Dame joined an elite group last year when it
registered its 1,600th win against Providence on February 15, 2007.
Entering its 103rd season, Notre Dame has 1,605 victories. Only 12
other schools have reached the mark: Kentucky, North Carolina,
Kansas, Duke, Syracuse, Temple, St. John's, Pennsylvania, Indiana,
Utah and UCLA.
Eight Straight Postseason Appearances
* Notre Dame's appearance in last year's NCAA tournament
field marks the fourth NCAA berth for the Irish in seven years.
Since 2000, Notre Dame has appeared in either the NCAA or NIT
tournaments each of the last eight years. The Irish played in the
2000 NIT and then earned consecutive NCAA tournament berths - 2001,
'02, '03 - followed by NIT appearances in '04, '05 and '06. This
current postseason streak matches the longest stretch since making
eight straight from 1983-90 (NIT in 1983 and '84 and NCAA from
1985-90).
Four 20-Win Seasons Under His Belt
* Notre Dame's 24-8 campaign a year ago marked the fourth
time in seven seasons under head coach Mike Brey that the Irish won
20-plus games. The 24 wins also equaled the most for Notre Dame
during the Brey era. Notre Dame's 20-win campaigns under Brey have
been in 2000-01 (20-10), 2001-02 (22-11) and 2002-03 (24-10). In the
102-year history of the program, Notre Dame teams have won 20 or more
games on 31 occasions.
Home Cookin'
* Notre Dame's 18-0 record at home last season marked just
the third time since the opening of the Joyce Center in 1968-69 that
an Irish team finished undefeated at home during the regular season
and the most wins ever in a single season. Only two other Notre Dame
squads ever completed a season undefeated at home - the 1973-74 and
1985-86 squads both finished their campaigns with identical 15-0
records. The Irish were the only BIG EAST team to finish the season
undefeated at home. Dating back to 2005-06 campaign, Notre Dame has
won 20 consecutive games at home - a streak which is tied for sixth
among all Division I teams and is the third longest in school history
as well as the longest during Mike Brey's tenure. The record for
consecutive wins at the Joyce Center is 24 (1973-74).
Current NCAA Division I Home Court Win Streaks:
1. Memphis 32
2. BYU 31
3. Ohio State 25
4. Winthrop 23
5. Wisconsin 22
UNLV 17
6. NOTRE DAME 20
UCLA 20
8. Florida 19
9. Holy Cross 19
10. Indiana 17
Joyce Center Streakin'
* Notre Dame will start the season in pursuit of breaking the
Joyce Center home win streak. Currently at 20 games, it's the
longest win streak at the Joyce Center and longest during the Mike
Brey era. Here's a look at the Joyce Center streaks ...
24 - Began with a 94-68 win over Xavier on 2/3/73 and ended
with a 94-84 loss to Indiana on 12/11/74
22 - Began with an 88-68 win over Pittsburgh on 1/26/77 and
ended with a 69-68 overtime loss to DePaul on 2/12/78
20 - Began with a 66-61 win over DePaul on 3/4/06
16 - Began with a 92-70 win over Fairfield on 12/9/82 and
ended with a 51-47 loss to UCLA on 12/3/83
16 - Began with an 89-76 win over West Virginia on 2/20/02
and ended with an 87-79 loss to Connecticut on 2/24/03
What A Difference A Year Makes
* With its 11-5 record in BIG EAST play last season, Notre
Dame's win total was five more than the 2005-06 team which finished
with a 6-10 conference mark after beginning league play 1-8. Notre
Dame's 24 wins also were eight more its total of 16 the previous
season.
Irish Roll Under Brey In November
* Notre Dame completed the month of November in 2006 with a
5-1 record. Under head coach Mike Brey, the Irish are 26-3 (.897)
all-time in games played during the month of November. The three
November losses have been to Creighton 80-75 in the championship game
of the Guardians Classic on Nov. 26, 2002; to North Carolina State
(61-48) at the John R. Wooden Tradition at Conseco Fieldhouse in
Indianapolis on Nov. 26, 2005; and to Butler (71-69) on Nov. 13, 2006
in the first round of the NIT Season Tip-Off.
The Irish All-Time
* The 2007-08 men's basketball campaign marks the 103rd
season of basketball and 12th as a member of the BIG EAST Conference.
In 102 seasons, Irish teams have posted a 1605-885 record for a .646
winning percentage. In BIG EAST play, Notre Dame owns a 101-99
(.505) record all-time in conference regular-season play.
Always In It
* Since the 2005-06 campaign, Notre Dame's 22 losses have
been by a combined 116 points for an average of 5.3 points per game.
The 14 setbacks in'05-'06 were by a total of 59 points (4.2 points).
The only double-digit loss was to North Carolina State (61-47). The
Irish suffered 10 BIG EAST losses during the regular season and those
were by a combined 35 points (3.5).
Keeping It Close
* In the 78 losses suffered by Irish teams in Mike Brey's
seven seasons, only 19 have been by 10 or more points and have been
by a combined 515 for an average of 6.6 points per game. Notre
Dame's 18-point loss (66-48) to Georgetown in 2006-07 was the largest
ever for an Irish team under Brey.
18-Game BIG EAST Slate
* Notre Dame will play Connecticut, DePaul and Marquette
twice as part of its 2007-08 18-game BIG EAST men's basketball
conference slate. The league is employing an 18-game schedule this
year with all teams playing each other at least once and three
opponents twice (home and away). The BIG EAST utilized the 16-game
slate since the 1999-00 campaign and has not played an 180-game
conference schedule since 1998-99 when the league had 13 members.
The format was used for eight years from 1991-99.
BIG EAST Formula For Success Under Brey
* Since his arrival at Notre Dame, Mike Brey has led Notre
Dame to a 66-46 (.589) record in BIG EAST regular-season games and a
3-7 mark in tournament play for an overall record of 69-53 (.566)
against league foes. In Brey's first season, the Irish posted their
first-ever winning record in BIG EAST play and won the BIG EAST West
Division title with an 11-5 mark. Prior to Brey's arrival at Notre
Dame, Irish teams had a 35-53 (.398) regular-season record since
joining the league in 1995-96.
270 And Counting
* Heading into the 2007-08 season, Notre Dame has hit at
least one three-pointer in 270 straight games, a mark that dates back
to the 1998-99 campaign. The last time an Irish team failed to hit a
three-pointer was a 101-70 loss to Connecticut at the Hartford Civic
Center on Jan. 12, 1999 as Notre Dame finished 0-7 from beyond the
arc in the game. The 2005-06 Irish squad set the single-season
record with 288 three-pointers and fell just one field goal short of
that mark (287) in 2006-07.
Home Sweet Home
* Since the inaugural season in 1968-69 at the Joyce Center,
Notre Dame owns a 474-141 record all-time for a .770 winning
percentage. The Irish are 88-27 (.765) at the Joyce Center during
Mike Brey's six-plus seasons, and since the 1996-97 campaign, they
own a 136-43 mark for a .760 winning percentage. Notre Dame's 17 wins
at home this season marks the ninth time in 10 years that the Irish
won 10 or more home games. The Irish played their 600th game at the
Joyce Center on Nov. 27, 2006 versus Lehigh.
Over The Century Mark
* Notre Dame topped the 100-point mark twice during the
2006-07 campaign and eight times under Irish head coach Mike Brey.
Road Warriors
* In Mike Brey's seven seasons, his Irish teams have compiled
a road record of 53-51 (.510) that includes a 35-36 (.492) in true
road games and a 18-15 mark (.545) in neutral site contests.
Irish On The Road Under Brey
Away Neutral Overall
2006-07 3-5 3-3 6-8
2005-06 4-7 0-2 4-9
2004-05 4-6 0-1 4-7
2003-04 6-5 2-1 8-6
2002-03 4-5 6-3 10-8
2001-02 8-4 5-3 13-7
2000-01 6-4 2-2 8-6
Totals 35-36 18-15 53-51
(.492) (.545) (.510)
Zeller Down Under
* For the second straight summer in 2007, forward Luke Zeller
played with Athletes In Action, joining them this year for an
eight-game Australian tour. During the exhibition tour, he averaged
11.3 points and 6.6 rebounds and scored in double figures in five of
those contests. The previous year, he traveled to Taipei City,
Taiwan and was a member of the AIA squad that captured the gold medal
at the 2006 William Jones Cup.
