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Women's Basketball
#11/10 Irish Visit Eastern Michigan Tuesday Night
Dec. 1, 2008
Full Notes Package in PDF Format
#11/10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-0 / 0-0 BIG EAST) vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles (2-4 / 0-0 Mid-American) DATE: December 2, 2008 Storylines No. 11/10 Irish Visit Eastern Michigan Tuesday Night Notre Dame (5-0) knocked off its second ranked opponent in five games this season with a hard-fought 78-72 win over No. 24 Michigan State last Saturday at the Joyce Center. The Irish led by as many as 15 points in the second half, but needed some timely free throws down the stretch to keep the pesky Spartans at bay. Freshman forward Kellie Watson played a major role in Notre Dame's victory over her homestate team, scoring a season-high 18 points and going 6-of-9 from three-point range. Watson hit her first five treys, all in the first half, and added six rebounds on the way to being named the BIG EAST Freshman of the Week. Rankings A Quick Look At The Fighting Irish Notre Dame has three starters and seven monogram winners returning this season from a squad that ranked among the top 10 in the country in scoring offense (8th - 76.2 ppg) and scoring margin (10th - +14.6 ppg) a year ago. The Irish also have many of the pieces back from the '07-08 club that led the BIG EAST in steals for the second consecutive year (school-record 397, 11.68 per game) and forced an opponent-record 737 turnovers. Perhaps it's no surprise that Notre Dame's present upward mobility has coincided with the arrival of its current junior class, including guards and co-captains Ashley Barlow and Melissa Lechlitner. Barlow earned honorable mention all-BIG EAST status last year and is the team's top returning scorer (12.1 ppg), while also setting the defensive tone with a team-high 68 steals last season. Meanwhile, Lechlitner (5.5 ppg, 2.6 apg) assumes the mantle of leadership from the point guard position after two consistent years as a reliable understudy to Tulyah Gaines. The Irish also should benefit from the veteran experience and guidance of senior guard and co-captain Lindsay Schrader, who joined Barlow on last year's BIG EAST honorable mention squad after logging 10.3 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game. She earned similar status this fall in preseason voting by the conference coaches and gives Notre Dame a unique blend of toughness and determination that has become the common thread running through the team's recent resurgence. The Irish sophomore class proved to be an exceptional complement to their predecessors last season, led by forward Devereaux Peters (9.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 2.0 bpg), who was a BIG EAST All-Freshman Team choice despite missing the final 11 games of the year with a knee injury. Guard Brittany Mallory (6.3 ppg, 34 3FG) joined Peters on the conference's all-rookie squad, while forward Becca Bruszewski (5.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg) may be the team's most improved player heading into this season after a scintillating three-game NCAA Tournament performance that included a season-high 16 points against both SMU and Tennessee. Potent Notables About The Irish A Quick Look At Eastern Michigan EMU (2-4) recently returned from a Thanksgiving trip to Cancun, Mexico, where it dropped a pair of games in the Caribbean Challenge to James Madison (80-76) and No. 22/24 TCU (71-55). Despite the losses, the Eagles displayed strong balance on offense, fielding four double-figure scorers and an 11-player rotation in both games. Sophomore guard Cassie Schrock has set the tone for Eastern Michigan early on, averaging a team-high 16.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. Freshman guard Tavelyn James is second on the team in scoring (15.5 ppg.) and tops in steals (2.7 spg.), while redshirt junior guard/forward Mary Lawson (sister of former Tennessee guard and current WNBA All-Star Kara Lawson) adds 10.5 ppg., with a team-high .367 three-point percentage and 18 triples. AnnMarie Gilbert is in her second season as the head coach at EMU, sporting a 19-16 (.543) record. She is in her 10th year overall (including eight seasons at her alma mater, Division III Oberlin) and has a 77-122 (.387) career record, although Tuesday will mark her first-ever matchup with the Irish. The Notre Dame-Eastern Michigan Series The Last Time Notre Dame and Eastern Michigan Met Carrie Bates added 14 points, Lavetta Willis grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds and Denise Basford distributed a game-best eight assists for the Irish, who shot an even 50 percent (29-for-58) in the victory. Notre Dame jumped out to an early 17-6 lead, but EMU clawed its way back and eventually nudged in front, 36-35 just before halftime on a mid-range jumper by Bobbi Morse (part of her team-high 15 points). The Hurons (as the school was then known) pushed their lead out to 46-40 five minutes into the second half before the Irish rallied to take the lead for good with a 14-4 run, fueled by eight points from Keys. EMU got back within four points on a pair of occasions, but Willis converted an old-fashioned three-point play with 3:13 remaining to put the hosts away for good. Other ND-Eastern Michigan Series Tidbits Notre Dame vs. The Mid-American Conference What's more, Notre Dame has won its last 16 games against current MAC schools since an 87-64 loss to Northern Illinois on March 10, 1995, in the semifinals of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now Horizon League) Tournament. After the Irish went 3-0 against the MAC last year (home win over Miami-Ohio, and road wins at Central Michigan and Bowling Green), Eastern Michigan is the lone MAC opponent on Notre Dame's schedule this season. North Of The Border The Irish are 51-19 (.729) all-time against Michigan schools, with a 30-6 (.833) record away from home. Notre Dame also is 31-7 (.816) against the Great Lakes State in the Muffet McGraw era (1987-88 to present). Notre Dame has won its last eight games against Michigan schools, since an 82-73 overtime loss to Michigan State on Dec. 2, 2004 at the Joyce Center. Thirty Deeds Within the past two weeks, the Irish posted two of the larger winning margins in the program's record books, rolling to a 48-point victory at Boston College (102-54), followed by a 49-point win at home over Georgia Southern (85-36). In fact, the only time Notre Dame logged a larger combined margin of victory in consecutive games than this year's 97-point spread was Nov. 24-25, 1989, at the UCF Rotary Classic in Orlando, Fla., when the Irish downed Liberty (113-35) and host Central Florida (81-61) by a combined 98 points. Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough Piping Hot Turnovers The majority of those turnovers have come via Irish steals, with Notre Dame registering 64 thefts (12.8 per game) after leading the BIG EAST Conference in that category each of the past two seasons. The Upper Hand On Nov. 19, Evansville scored the opening points of the game on an old-fashioned three-point play, but sophomore forward Becca Bruszewski erased that deficit 45 seconds later with a three-pointer. On Nov. 23 at Boston College, the Irish and Eagles traded buckets over the first three-plus minutes before junior guard Ashley Barlow drained a three-pointer at 16:17 to give Notre Dame the lead for good at 10-8. On Nov. 25, Notre Dame trailed for combined total of one minute against Georgia Southern after the teams alternated baskets for the first two minutes and prior to Barlow's fastbreak layup at 17:01 that wound up putting the Irish ahead to stay. Most recently, Notre Dame and Michigan State battled through five ties and five lead changes in the first 16 minutes of play before the Irish seized control late in the first half behind a 5-for-5 three-point shooting from freshman forward Kellie Watson (with the last three triples coming in a span of 1:32). Deep Thoughts The nine three-pointers and 25 attempts against MSU were the most for Notre Dame in a single game since March 3, 2002, when the Irish went 10-for-26 from beyond the arc in an 84-79 loss to Syracuse in the BIG EAST Championship quarterfinals at Piscataway, N.J. One also has to go back seven years to find the last time Notre Dame made more than 29 combined three-pointers in a four-game span. From Nov. 21-Dec. 2, 2001, Notre Dame was lights-out from the arc at Colorado State (7), at Arizona (7), home vs. Army (10) and at a neutral site vs. Michigan (8). Watson Named BIG EAST Freshman Of The Week Last week, Watson averaged 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game with a .529 field goal percentage (9-of-17) and a .636 three-point percentage (7-of-11) after helping Notre Dame post wins over Georgia Southern (85-36) and No. 24 Michigan State (78-72). After registering a (then) season-high seven points against GSU, Watson exploded against MSU for a season-best 18 points, canning 6-of-9 three-point attempts to tie the Notre Dame Joyce Center record for treys in a single game (last set by Megan Duffy on Dec. 4, 2003, against Wisconsin). Watson connected on her first five three-point attempts of the day, including three in a stretch of 1:32 late in the first half, before adding her record-tying sixth triple early in the second half. She also grabbed a season-best (and team-high) six rebounds in only 20 minutes of action. Becca's A Bruiser That improvement has carried over into this season, as the Valparaiso, Ind., native has earned her way into the Irish starting lineup and has not disappointed. On Nov. 19 against Evansville, she poured in a career-best 18 points, knocking down 7-of-9 shots from the field, including both of her three-point attempts. The latter statistic was particularly noteworthy, considering she was just 1-of-2 from beyond the arc during her entire freshman season. Not to be outdone, Bruszewski matched her career high four days later on Nov. 23 at Boston College, connecting for a game-high 18 points on 9-of-13 shooting. In her last eight games (dating back to the start of last year's NCAA Tournament), Bruszewski is averaging 10.6 points per game with a .586 field goal percentage (34-of-58), including a .700 clip from the floor (21-of-30) in the past four games. The Final Countdown Last year, Notre Dame sold out its games against Tennessee and Connecticut, and nearly did the same for the Michigan contest, drawing 10,825 fans for that game. Polling Station Notre Dame also has been ranked in the AP poll for 163 weeks during the program's 32-year history, with every one of those appearances coming in the Muffet McGraw era (since 1987-88). McGraw ranks 13th among all active NCAA Division I head coaches for weeks in the AP poll, and also stands 25th all-time in that category. In addition, the Irish earned their 23rd consecutive ranking in last week's ESPN/USA Today/WBCA coaches' poll, moving up to 10th (rising four spots from last week's balloting). It was the highest ranking for Notre Dame in the coaches poll since Dec. 6, 2005, when also checked in at No. 10. The Irish have appeared in the coaches' poll for 154 weeks during its history (all coming during McGraw's tenure). The newest edition of the coaches' poll is expected to be released late Tuesday afternoon, just prior to Notre Dame's game at Eastern Michigan. More Polling Data Besides her 163 AP poll appearances while coaching at Notre Dame, McGraw was the starting point guard at Saint Joseph's (Pa.) as a senior in 1977, helping the Hawks rise to No. 3 in the nation. Of the 23 people on this list, 11 currently are NCAA Division I head coaches (see accompanying chart). Game #5 Recap: Michigan State Watson made five consecutive 3-pointers in the first half and finished with six from long range, igniting a sluggish Notre Dame offense in a 78-72 victory last Saturday at the Joyce Center. The freshman attempted six 3-pointers in the Irish's first four games of the season. Watson, who had 18 points, helped the Irish overcome a 34-point effort by Jefferson, who scored 22 in the first half. That surpassed her previous career best of 20 points set three years ago against Iowa. She also had 11 boards as the 24th-ranked Spartans outrebounded the Irish 48-32. The Irish (5-0) are off to their best start since opening the 2005-06 season with six straight wins. The Spartans (6-1) fell a win shy of matching their best start in school history. The last two of Watson's consecutive three-pointers were part of a 13-6 run that gave the Irish a 39-34 halftime lead. The Irish then opened the second half with a 7-0 run, highlighted by a three-point play by junior guard/co-captain Ashley Barlow, who finished with 14 points and six assists. They went ahead 46-34 on a 15-foot jumper by senior guard/co-captain Lindsay Schrader, who scored 10 of her 15 points in the second half. The Irish stretched the lead to 55-40 when Barlow hit three of four free throws after MSU head coach Suzy Merchant and forward Kalisha Keane were called for technical fouls seven seconds apart with 13 minutes left. The Spartans played better after the technicals and closed to 75-72 on a layup by Keane with 27 seconds left but couldn't get any closer. The Irish held Michigan State's 6-foot-9 center Allyssa DeHaan to 2-of-10 shooting. The only other player in double figures for the Spartans was Keane with 10. Noting The Michigan State Game Peters Out For Season With Knee Injury At the time of her current injury, Peters had played in only three games this season, well within the NCAA guidelines for medical redshirt status (appearing in less than 30 percent of a team's regular-season games). The second-year Irish forward is expected to petition for that status, and if granted, Peters would retain three years of athletic eligibility. In her abbreviated 2008-09 season, Peters averaged 7.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game with a .688 field goal percentage (11-of-16). She made an impressive return to action on Nov. 16 in the State Farm Tip-Off Classic at No. 24/22 LSU, coming off the bench to tally 12 points (on 6-of-7 shooting), six rebounds, three blocks and three steals in 28 minutes of a 62-53 Irish win. She then added six points in a starting role on Nov. 19 against Evansville, and scored four points in the Nov. 23 game against Boston College when she was injured. Half And Half This season, Notre Dame is 4-0 when up at the break, doing so in its last four games. Last year, the Irish went 22-2 when they led at the break, failing only to do so in their two postseason losses (BIG EAST quarterfinal vs. Pittsburgh, NCAA Oklahoma City Regional semifinal vs. Tennessee), although the UT lead marked the first time Notre Dame was up on the Lady Vols at the half in 20 series games. The Best Offense Is A Good Defense... Notre Dame has added three more wins to the ledger this season with its victories at LSU and Boston College, as well as its home win over Georgia Southern. ...But Sometimes You Have To Score If You Want To Win Notre Dame has scored at least 80 points in its last three outings, winning each time. Last season, the Irish won 14 of 15 games when reaching the 80-point mark. Now That's A Home Court Advantage The Irish have been particularly strong when it comes to non-conference games at home, winning 74 of their last 80 non-BIG EAST contests (.925) at the Joyce Center, dating back to the 1994-95 season. Four of the losses in that span came at the hands of Big Ten Conference opponents -- Wisconsin in 1996 (81-69), Purdue in 2003 (71-54), Michigan State in 2004 (82-73 OT) and Indiana in 2006 (54-51) -- with the other two defeats coming to Tennessee in 2005 (62-51) and 2008 (87-63). The Purdue loss also snapped a 33-game non-conference home winning streak which began after the UW setback. Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center, posting a 315-82 (.793) record at the venerable facility. Three times (1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2003-04), the Irish went a perfect 15-0 at home, setting a school record for home wins in a season. Irish Have New Home On The Dial LeSEA now originates all Notre Dame women's basketball games, with those events carried on Pulse FM (96.9/92.1), marking the first time since the 1998-99 season that the Irish are heard on an FM station. Combined, these two stations blanket the nation's No. 89 media market (South Bend-Elkhart), covering a 21-county area in northern Indiana and southwest Michigan that contains more than 1.35 million listeners (better than 800,000 in the greater South Bend area alone). All told, Notre Dame's new women's basketball network stretches from Kalamazoo, Mich., to the north, North Judson, Ind., to the west, Macy, Ind., (home of former Irish All-America center Ruth Riley) to the south, and LaGrange, Ind., to the east. Women's basketball game broadcasts also continue to be streamed live and free of charge on Notre Dame's official athletics Web site (UND.com) through the Fighting Irish All-Access multimedia package. The new agreement includes extensive Notre Dame athletics promotion aired on a combination of the LeSEA stations. Bob Nagle, the voice of Notre Dame women's basketball from 1996-97 through 1998-99 (including the program's first NCAA Final Four berth in 1997), returns as the play-by-play voice of the Irish this season. Notre Dame On The Small Screen In addition, Notre Dame continues to expand its broadcast reach globally on the Internet. All 11 Irish regular-season home games that have not been selected for commercial TV coverage will air live on the official Notre Dame athletics web site, UND.com, via the site's free multimedia package, Fighting Irish All-Access. This year's TV slate continues a recent trend that has seen the Irish become a regular fixture on television. Beginning with the NCAA championship season of 2000-01 and continuing through this year, Notre Dame has played in 119 televised games, including 69 that were broadcast nationally. Oh Captain, My Captain Irish In The Pink (Zone) All Season Long Throughout the 2008-09 season, the Irish will take part in several activities centered around the Pink Zone initiative, including: Proceeds from all of Notre Dame's Pink Zone events this season will go to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund, as well as three local charities -- Women's Task Force, Young Survivors Group and Secret Sisters Society. For more information on the WBCA's Pink Zone initiative, log on to the WBCA's official web site at www.wbca.org. ND To Host NCAA Tourney Games in 2009 All-session tickets for this year's NCAA Championship games at the Joyce Center are available by contacting the Notre Dame athletics ticket office (574-631-7356). Notre Dame has played in the NCAA Championship on its home floor five times before, most recently defeating Southwest Missouri State (now Missouri State) and Middle Tennessee in 2004 to make the program's sixth NCAA Sweet 16 appearance. All told, the Irish are 6-1 in NCAA tourney play at the Joyce Center, winning six in a row since an 81-76 first-round loss to Minnesota in 1994. Irish Fans Crave Another Big Mac Attack It hasn't take long for the burger watch to fire back up again this year, as Notre Dame topped the 88-point mark in both its lone exhibition game (96-30 win over Gannon on Nov. 5) and its regular-season opener (96-61 win over Evansville on Nov. 19). Last year, the Irish reached the magic number eight times, doing so in both exhibition wins, along with regular-season victories over Miami (Ohio), Boston College, Canisius, Valparaiso, Marquette and South Florida. It should come as no surprise that in the short history of the promotion, the Notre Dame player with the most "Big Mac" baskets shares the same initials with the tasty burger -- sophomore guard Brittany Mallory, who was sent the crowd home happy (and presumably with full bellies) four times. This season, it's been the Irish freshmen who have taken on the "Big Mac" mantle of responsibility, with guard Natalie Novosel doing the honors in the Gannon exhibition win and forward Erica Solomon putting Notre Dame over the top against Evansville. Joyce Center Arena Renovation Underway The first phase of the project, that began in September 2008, involves construction of a new three-story structure at the south end of the arena. That structure will include a new three-story lobby, the Notre Dame ticket operations (approximately 4,500 square feet) and a varsity shop to sell apparel and souvenirs (approximately 3,000 square feet), in addition to a new club seating and hospitality area. Replacement of the existing Joyce Center arena seating, including installation of chair-back seating throughout the arena, is expected to take place after the University's Commencement Exercises in May 2009. The entire project is scheduled for completion in January 2010. The arena is expected to re-open by mid-October 2009, in time for the start of the basketball season and the end of the volleyball season. The University announced in October 2007 that this $26.3 million project had received a $12.5 million leadership gift from Notre Dame alumnus and Trustee Philip J. Purcell III, the retired chairman and chief executive officer of Morgan Stanley. Exterior changes to the Joyce Center that began taking shape in September include a new, three-story addition on the south end of the current structure. The third floor area will include the stadium club/hospitality area. The first-floor addition will include almost 4,500 square feet for ticket offices (including four exterior and 10 interior tickets windows), 3,000 square feet for the varsity shop, as well as a completely new main entrance and lobby situated between Gates 8 and 10. The new entrance will feature graphics and theming that highlight Notre Dame's competing athletic programs. Changes to the interior of the Joyce Center arena include: Next Game: Purdue The Boilermakers (5-1) are coming off a weekend trip to Hawaii and will stop over at home Thursday to face No. 8/14 Maryland before heading to South Bend on Sunday.
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