#4 Irish Done With Exams, Set To Host Charlotte Sunday

Dec. 19, 2009

Full Notes Package in PDF Format

2009-10 ND Women’s Basketball: Game 10

#4/4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9-0 / 0-0 BIG EAST) vs. Charlotte 49ers (5-5 / 0-0 Atlantic 10)

DATE: December 20, 2009
TIME: 1:00 p.m. ET
AT: Notre Dame, Ind. – Purcell Pavilion (9,149)
SERIES: ND leads 1-0
LAST MTG: ND 68-61 (12/28/08)
WEBCAST: UND.com (live)
RADIO: Pulse FM (96.9/92.1) (Bob Nagle, p-b-p / Ruth Riley, color)
TEXT ALERT: UND.com
TWITTER: @ndwbbsid
TICKETS: (574) 631-7356

Storylines

• Notre Dame wraps up a four-game homestand, its longest regularly-scheduled stretch at home since 1999-2000.
• The Irish have won 21 consecutive games coming out of the final exam break, beginning with the 1986-87 season.

#4 Irish Done With Exams, Set To Host Charlotte Sunday
For the only time in a 17-day period, No. 4 Notre Dame will swing into action Sunday with a 1 p.m. (ET) matinee against defending Atlantic 10 Conference tournament champion Charlotte at Purcell Pavilion. The game will be webcast live and free of charge on the official Irish athletics web site, www.UND.com.

Notre Dame went into its final exam break on a high note with a 88-47 win over in-state rival Valparaiso on Dec. 12 at Purcell Pavilion. The Irish raced out to a 29-8 lead less than 10 minutes into the game and never looked back on the way to their school record-tying fourth 35-point win of the season.

Junior guard Brittany Mallory came off the bench with an explosive effort, scoring a career-high 22 points in only 20 minutes. Sophomore guard Natalie Novosel added a season-best 12 points, while senior guard/tri-captain Ashley Barlow and junior forward Becca Bruszewski each chipped in with 11 points for Notre Dame.

Rankings

• Notre Dame is fourth in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls this week.
• Charlotte is not ranked.

Quick Hitters

• The Irish have appeared in the top five of the AP poll all six weeks this season, matching the second-longest string of consecutive AP Top 5 rankings in program history (first set from Jan. 17-Feb. 21, 2000) and behind only the final 17 weeks in 2000-01.
• Notre Dame’s current nine-game winning streak is its longest since a 10-game run from Nov. 20, 2007-Jan. 2, 2008.
• The Irish are in the midst of the second-best start in program history, topped only by a 23-0 debut in 2000-01 (the season in which Notre Dame won its first NCAA title).
• Notre Dame defeated three AP Top 25 opponents (all away from home) in its first six games this season, matching the feat first set by the 1998-99 Irish club (although that team won all three games at home).
• The Irish won the 2009 Paradise Jam Island Division title (their first regular-season tourney crown since the 2005 Duel in the Desert in Las Vegas), with freshman guard Skylar Diggins capturing MVP honors and senior guard/tri-captain Melissa Lechlitner making the all-tournament team.
• Six different players have led the Irish in scoring this season, while five different players have earned team-high honors in rebounds and assists. In the past five games alone, Notre Dame has had a different player lead them in points, rebounds and assists.
• Notre Dame is the only team in the BIG EAST Conference with four players among the top 30 in the league in scoring (through Dec. 17) — Skylar Diggins (tied-18th/13.2 ppg.), Becca Bruszewski (tied-27th/11.8 ppg.), Ashley Barlow and Lindsay Schrader (both tied-29th/11.3 ppg.).
• In Monday’s latest NCAA statistical rankings, Notre Dame appears among the top 25 in eight categories, including five top-10 rankings. Besides sharing top honors in won-loss percentage, the Irish are fourth in steals (14.7 spg.), sixth in assists (19.7 apg.), seventh in scoring offense (82.9 ppg.) and 10th in scoring margin (+22.9 ppg.).
• Conversely, Notre Dame has no player ranking among the top 50 in any NCAA statistical category (as of Monday). Senior guard/tri-captain Ashley Barlow is the closest to breaking into the top 50, ranking 52nd in the land in steals at 2.8 per game.
• Notre Dame is forcing 25.8 turnovers per game this season, including 29.4 at home. The Irish also have registered at least 20 takeaways in all nine games to date, with no fewer than 29 opponent turnovers in four of five home games this year.
• Notre Dame is averaging 8,343 fans per game this season, unofficially ranking fifth in the nation and showing an increase of 16.4 percent from last year (7,168). The Irish also are one of two schools from the top 25 of the final 2008-09 NCAA attendance rankings to see an increase in attendance this year (Iowa State is up 6.9 percent).

Other Notre Dame Notables

• Notre Dame is among the nation’s winningest programs during the past 14 seasons (1996-97 to present), ranking seventh with 323 victories.
• Notre Dame has ranked among the top 20 in the nation in attendance each of the past nine seasons. Last year, the program finished ninth in the country for the second year in a row with an average of 7,168 fans for its 13 home games (the second-highest single-season attendance average in school history). The Irish also have drawn 5,000-or-more fans to 129 of their last 131 home games, including six Purcell Pavilion sellouts (most recently on Dec. 7, 2008 vs. Purdue).
• The Irish have become a regular fixture in the WNBA Draft in recent years, as seven Notre Dame players have been selected in the past nine seasons. Charel Allen was the most recent Irish player to be chosen, going to the Sacramento Monarchs in the third round (43rd overall pick) of the 2008 WNBA Draft. Ruth Riley (San Antonio) was active in the league during the ’09 season, helping the Silver Stars return to the playoffs for the third consecutive season. Three of Notre Dame’s eight WNBA alums have won a total of four league championships — Riley won a pair of crowns with the Detroit Shock (2003 Finals MVP, 2006), Coquese Washington toiled for the 2000 Houston Comets, while Jacqueline Batteast was Riley’s teammate on the ’06 title-winning squad in Detroit.
• For the fourth year in a row, the Irish posted a perfect 100-percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR), according to figures released by the NCAA in October 2009. What’s more, since Muffet McGraw became the Irish head coach in 1987, every Notre Dame women’s basketball player that has completed her athletic and academic eligibility at the University has graduated (a 58-for-58 success rate), with all five members of this year’s senior class on target to graduate by May 2010 (Erica Williamson completed work on her undergraduate degree one semester early in December 2009).

A Quick Look At Charlotte
Charlotte returns three starters and nine letterwinners from last year’s club that won the Atlantic 10 tournament title and a berth in the NCAA Championship. After a slow start this season, the 49ers (5-5) have come alive, sweeping through a recent four-game homestand.

Charlotte has been off for the past eight days, following a 72-53 win over Southern Mississippi on Dec. 12. Senior forwards Erin Floyd and Ashley Spriggs paced four players in double figures with 16 points apiece, while junior guard Shannon McCallum added 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

McCallum leads the 49ers in scoring (12.1 ppg.), rebounding (6.6 rpg.) and steals (2.3 spg.), while Floyd is second in scoring (10.5 ppg.) and third in rebounding (5.0 rpg.).

Karen Aston is in her third season as the head coach at Charlotte with a 46-28 (.622) record. She is 0-1 all-time against Notre Dame.

The Notre Dame-Charlotte Series
Sunday’s matinee will be just the second all-time matchup between Notre Dame and Charlotte, following last year’s 68-61 Irish win down in the Queen City. This weekend’s game also completes a two-year home-and-home series arrangement with the 49ers.

The Last Time Notre Dame and Charlotte Met
Lindsay Schrader scored 19 points and No. 12/6 Notre Dame pulled away in the second half to beat Charlotte 68-61 on Dec. 28, 2008 at Halton Arena in Charlotte, N.C.

Melissa Lechlitner added 13 points, and Natalie Novosel and Becca Bruszewski had 12 each for the Fighting Irish (10-1), who led by as many as nine points midway through the second half in winning their third straight.

Aysha Jones scored 15 points, Danielle Burgin 13 and Erin Floyd 11 for the 49ers (8-4), who committed 24 turnovers in losing their second straight game.

Down two points with less that 14 minutes left in the second half, Notre Dame went on a 13-2 run. Bruszewski’s short jumper with 13:28 left tied the score at 39, and Schrader’s layup with 9:36 to go put the Fighting Irish ahead 50-41.

Charlotte managed to pull within five points five times in the final minutes, but Ashley Barlow hit a pair of free throws with four seconds left to seal the win.

Other Notre Dame-Charlotte Series Tidbits

• Notre Dame is 11-2 (.846) all-time against teams from the state of North Carolina, including a 3-0 record at Purcell Pavilion. The last time the Irish played host to a team from the Tar Heel State was on Nov. 17, 2004, when Notre Dame downed sixth-ranked Duke, 76-65 in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT.
• Charlotte junior guard Kendria Holmes began her college career at BIG EAST member Providence (2006-08), facing Notre Dame twice with the Friars (both Irish wins). Holmes averaged 7.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in those two contests.
• Notre Dame senior center Erica Williamson is a Charlotte resident, having moved to the city with her family from Rochester, N.Y., in the summer of 2005 when her father, Robert, took a job with one of the city’s primary employers, Bank of America. Williamson went on to graduate from South Mecklenburg High School in 2006, and in her one year at the school, she helped the Lady Sabres post a 27-3 record and win the North Carolina Class 4A title (the school’s first crown in 20 years); Williamson scored 13 points in the championship game and was named the Western Regional Most Valuable Player.

Notre Dame vs. The Atlantic 10 Conference
Notre Dame is 65-18 (.783) all-time against the current members of the Atlantic 10 Conference, including a 29-8 (.784) record at home.

The Irish also have an active 12-game winning streak against that league’s present alignment, including victories in five of the past six seasons (Dayton in 2003-04 and 2004-05; Richmond in 2006-07 and 2007-08; Charlotte in 2008-09). The last time Notre Dame lost to a current A-10 school was on Feb. 18, 1995, when La Salle defeated Notre Dame, 84-68, in Philadelphia, when both schools were then part of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now known as the Horizon League).

Charlotte is the first A-10 school to play at Notre Dame since the Irish defeated Richmond, 87-66 on Nov. 28, 2006 at Purcell Pavilion.

Going Out On A High Note
Notre Dame has made a habit of heading into the Christmas holiday with a victory, having won 13 consecutive pre-Yuletide games and going 23-9 (.719) all-time in such contests. The last time the Irish lost their final game before Christmas was Dec. 21, 1995 (their first season in the BIG EAST Conference), when Michigan State pulled out an 87-83 overtime win in East Lansing, Mich.

No More Teachers, No More Books
Notre Dame has won 21 consecutive games coming off the final exam break (in 1994 and 1997, no games were played between the end of exams and Christmas). However, because of the extended layoff due to finals and associated sluggishness, many of these post-exam break games have been exceptionally close.

Recent examples of this came in 1999 (a 68-62 win at Florida International, closing the game on an 11-5 run in the final 2:43) and 2004 (a 50-47 win at Marquette on Jacqueline Batteast’s three-pointer at the horn). Last season, the Irish defeated Loyola-Chicago, 89-45 at Purcell Pavilion in a game most noteworthy for being the debut for then-junior walk-on guard Alena Christiansen, who was added to the roster less than 24 hours earlier.

The last time Notre Dame lost a game when coming out of its final exam break was Dec. 21, 1985, when Mary DiStanislao’s Irish dropped a 73-67 decision to UCLA at the Joyce Center.

Getting The Jump
At 9-0, Notre Dame is off to the second-best start in the program’s 33-year history. The only time the Irish opened with a better record that this season was in 2000-01, when they reeled off a school-record 23 consecutive wins en route to a 34-2 final record and the program’s first national championship.

Spread The Wealth
Notre Dame has seen six different players led the team in scoring this season, while five Irish players have each taken the lead in rebounding and assists at some point this year.

That trend has been particularly evident in Notre Dame’s last five games, with a different player setting the pace in points, rebounds and assists each time out.

Holiday Stuffing
Another sign of Notre Dame’s versatility is seen in the number of “5-5-5” games (5 or more in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and/or steals) posted by its players this year.

Junior guard Brittany Mallory has two 5-5-5 outings (Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Oklahoma), while senior guard Ashley Barlow (Iona) and sophomore guard Natalie Novosel (Eastern Michigan) each have one.

The Season For Taking
Although the Christmas holiday is traditionally a time for giving gifts, Notre Dame has been in the taking mood this season, forcing its opponents into at least 20 turnovers in all nine games thus far, with Irish foes averaging 25.8 giveaways per game this year — Notre Dame also logs 14.7 steals per game, which ranks second in the BIG EAST and fourth in the nation in Monday’s most recent NCAA statistical rankings.

The Irish have been particularly hard on opponents in five home games this season, forcing 29.4 turnovers per game while holding visitors to 53.6 points a night and a .325 field goal percentage (93-of-286).

Pomp And Circumstance
This past week, senior center Erica Williamson completed work on her bachelor’s degree in film, television & theater from Notre Dame’s College of Arts and Letters. Williamson, who also serves as the president of the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), graduated a full semester early and will begin graduate studies in the spring.

With Williamson collecting her diploma this weekend, all 58 Notre Dame women’s basketball student-athletes who have completed their athletic and academic eligibility under head coach Muffet McGraw (1987-present) have earned their degrees.

Road Warriors
Notre Dame is 21-9 (.700) in true road games since the start of the 2007-08 season, including a 68-67 win at No. 21 Michigan State to begin this year.

In addition, the past seven road losses for the Irish have been decided by an average of 8.4 points per game (all by 12 points or fewer), including all five road setbacks last season (average margin of 8.6 ppg.).

Notre Dame posted 10 wins on the road in each of the past two years, marking just the second time in school history the Irish have logged double-digit win totals away from home in consecutive seasons (11 wins in 1989-90; 10 wins in 1990-91).

Polling Station
Notre Dame is ranked fourth in this week’s Associated Press poll (Tennessee edged out the Irish for third by a single point), appearing in the top five for the sixth consecutive week — it’s the longest run in the AP Top 5 for the Irish since the 2000-01 season, when Notre Dame was a top-five fixture for the final 17 weeks.

This week’s ranking also marks the 44th consecutive AP poll appearance for the Irish, with last week’s No. 3 ranking being Notre Dame’s highest since the week of Nov. 29, 2004, when the Irish also were ranked third.

What’s more, Notre Dame’s No. 4 preseason ranking on Oct. 30 was its the highest ever, topping its No. 6 debut in the 2000-01 poll.

With their current poll position, the Irish now have appeared in the top 10 of the AP poll during 10 of the past 14 seasons (1996-97 through 2009-10).

Notre Dame has been ranked in the AP poll for 184 weeks during the program’s 33-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 is 23rd all-time in that category.

In addition, the Irish remain a season-high No. 4 for the second consecutive week in the latest ESPN/USA Today/WBCA coaches’ poll. It’s the second time in the current calendar year that Notre Dame has risen to fourth in that survey, having also done so for two weeks in January 2009 (Jan. 6 & 13).

This marks the second consecutive season Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 10 of the coaches’ poll, as well as eight of the past 12 campaigns (1998-99 to present).

Notre Dame was ranked in the coaches’ survey for 38 consective weeks before falling just outside the Top 25 in the final poll of last season. their current No. 4 ranking, the Irish have appeared in the coaches’ poll for 176 weeks during their history (all coming during McGraw’s tenure).

More Polling Data
Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw is one of 24 people in NCAA Division I women’s basketball history who have both played for and coached a team that has appeared in the Associated Press Top 25 poll.

Besides her 184 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 24 people on this list, 12 currently are NCAA Division I head coaches (see accompanying chart).

Game #9 Recap: Valparaiso
Notre Dame got off to a fast start. Brittany Mallory made sure the third-ranked Fighting Irish didn’t let up.

The Irish were ahead 13-2 when Mallory came off the bench five minutes into the game. She made her first five baskets, scoring 13 points in just over four minutes to help the Irish extend the lead to 31-10 with a three-pointer midway through the first half. She finished with a career-high 22 points in 20 minutes of play to lead the Irish to an 88-47 win over Valparaiso on Dec. 12 at Purcell Pavilion.

“Brittany’s been playing her role extremely well,” Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. “She’s playing great basketball. She has such great poise when she’s on the floor. She’s working hard defensively. She’s doing a lot of little things. I’m really pleased with the way she’s playing.”

Mallory, whose previous career high was 19 points against Georgia Southern last season, said she focuses on making sure there is no letdown when she enters the game.

“I’ve just got to come in and do what I can,” she said. “It’s just a matter of keeping the intensity that my team’s already started.”

The Crusaders (3-5), who lost their fifth straight, went on a 10-2 run to close to 33-20 on a three-point play by Raegan Moore with 6:12 left before intermission. But Valparaiso missed its last nine shots of the half and trailed 45-22 at halftime.

The Irish pulled away throughout the second half. Valparaiso coach Keith Freeman was disappointed in his team’s passive play. Betsy Adams, Valparaiso’s leading scorer at 17.1 points a game, was held scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting.

“I think it just points to the fact that they’re bigger, stronger, faster,” Freeman said. “They overpowered her. They overpowered us in pretty much every position. How many times did we get knocked to the floor and how many times did they get knocked to the floor? That’s the difference in the game.”

Valparaiso shot 29 percent and had 29 turnovers and just six assists.

Moore led the Crusaders with 16 points and Lauren Kenney had 12 points. Becca Bruszewski had 11 points and seven rebounds in 22 minutes of play for the Irish, Ashley Barlow had 11 points and Natalie Novosel added 12 points off the bench.

McGraw said she’s just happy the Irish head into finals week undefeated, especially after seeing some upsets the past week.

“We really wanted to make sure we took care of business,” she said.

Noting The Valparaiso Game

• The Fighting Irish improve to 23-0 all-time against Valparaiso (11-0 at home), with the 41-point margin being its largest in South Bend since Dec. 17, 1995 (90-44 ND win) in a series that dates back to the inaugural Notre Dame women’s basketball game (a 48-41 Fighting Irish win on Dec. 3, 1977 at Purcell Pavilion).
• The Fighting Irish also have held the Crusaders to fewer than 60 points in 21 of 23 series meetings, while topping that 60-point mark themselves in 16 of 23 series contests.
• Notre Dame now is 116-21 (.784) all-time against in-state opponents, with a 57-11 (.838) home record and active 11-game winning streak (seven in a row at home).
• The Fighting Irish are 104-14 (.881) all-time against current Horizon League members, with a 53-5 (.914) mark at Purcell Pavilion.
• Notre Dame has held six of its nine opponents to 60 points or fewer, with its 47 points allowed coming two points shy of its season-best defensive effort (45 by Iona on Nov. 22).
• The Fighting Irish have tied a school record with their fourth 35-point win of the season, matching last year’s mark.
• After allowing IPFW to make 11-of-22 three-pointers four days earlier, Notre Dame clamped down at the three-point line against Valparaiso, holding the Crusaders to 2-of-10 from beyond the arc.
• The Fighting Irish also held the Horizon League’s top scorer, Valparaiso’s Betsy Adams (17.1 ppg. at tipoff), scoreless in 30 minutes of action (0-8 FG, 0-3 3FG).
• Notre Dame limited the Crusaders to an opponent season-low 22 points in the first half, and an opponent season-low .293 field goal percentage for the game.
• Notre Dame tied its season high with eight three-pointers, while setting new season bests for free throws made and attempted.
• Junior guard Brittany Mallory becomes the sixth different player to lead the Fighting Irish in scoring this season, and the second to do so off the bench; freshman guard Skylar Diggins scored a season-high 21 points (then the most by a Notre Dame player this year) as a reserve in an 84-79 win over #23/24 San Diego State on Nov. 26 at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• Mallory not only set a new career high in scoring, but she also tied a personal best for field goals made, set a new career high for field goal attempts, and logged her first career “point-a-minute” game.
• Mallory is the second Irish player this year with a “point-a-minute” effort, following junior forward Becca Bruszewski’s 11 points in 11 minutes vs. South Carolina.
• Sophomore guard Natalie Novosel scored a season-high 12 points.
• Sophomore guard Fraderica Miller nabbed a career-high five steals.
• For the third time this year, senior guard/tri-captain Melissa Lechlitner dished out a season-high six assists.
• Senior guard/tri-captain Ashley Barlow moved up another rung on the Notre Dame all-time scoring ladder into 17th place with 1,207 points, passing Heidi Bunek (1,202 from 1985-89).
• Barlow is now tied for fifth place on the Fighting Irish career steals chart with 226 thefts, matching Krissi Davis’ total from 1987-91.
• Fifth-year senior guard/tri-captain Lindsay Schrader took over sole possession of 20th place on the school’s career scoring list with 1,159 points, easing by former teammate Courtney LaVere (1,150 from 2002-06).
• Schrader made her 100th career start, becoming the 12th player in school history to reach that milestone (and the first since Jacqueline Batteast in 2004-05).

Tournament Tested
Notre Dame has felt right at home in tournament situations during the past 14 years. Starting with the 1996-97 season, the Irish have won 21 of their last 24 regular-season tournament games (multi-game events only), most recently capping a three-game run to the 2009 Paradise Jam Island Division championship over the Thanksgiving weekend in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The only Notre Dame losses during this current stretch were a pair of defeats to third-ranked teams in the Preseason WNIT semifinals (72-59 vs. Tennessee at Ruston, La., in 1996; 75-59 at Maryland in 2007) and a 67-63 overtime setback at No. 20 Colorado on Nov. 15, 2003 in the finals of the WBCA Classic — a game that saw the Buffaloes sink a desperation 30-footer at the end of regulation to force the extra session.

High Value Freshman
Freshman guard Skylar Diggins was named the most valuable player in the Island Division of the 2009 Paradise Jam after averaging 16.3 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game with a .538 field goal percentage (21-of-39) and a .545 three-point ratio (6-of-11) at the tournament.

Diggins, who also earned a spot on the BIG EAST Conference Weekly Honor Roll for her efforts, was the first Notre Dame rookie in a decade to collect all-tournament team honors in a regular-season event. Alicia Ratay was the last to do so, garnering a place on the 1999 Wachovia Women’s Basketball Invitational all-tournament team after helping Notre Dame to wins over No. 9/12 North Carolina (99-86) and Liberty (85-68) in Richmond, Va.

Experience Matters
For the first time in Notre Dame women’s basketball history, four players have hit the 100 games played mark in the same season. Senior guards/tri-captains Ashley Barlow, Melissa Lechlitner and Lindsay Schrader, along with senior center Erica Williamson, all reached the century mark during the Thanksgiving weekend at the Paradise Jam (Lechlitner and Williamson on Nov. 26 vs. San Diego State, Barlow and Schrader on Nov. 27 vs. South Carolina).

Current Irish assistant coach Niele Ivey holds the school record with 132 games played from 1996-2001.

Schrader reached another endurance milestone on Dec. 12 against Valparaiso, becoming the 12th player in school history with 100 starting assignments in her career.

McGraw Joins Elite Notre Dame Club
With a 84-79 win over No. 23/24 San Diego State on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 26) at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Irish head coach Muffet McGraw reached a personal milestone, becoming the fourth coach in school history (in any sport) to register 500 victories while coaching under the Golden Dome. McGraw now has a record of 505-197 (.719) in 23 seasons at Notre Dame (1987-88 to present) and a 593-238 (.714) record in 28 seasons overall — including a five-year stint at Lehigh from 1982-87.

Fencing’s Michael DeCicco (680-45 from 1962-86) and Yves Auriol (525-33 from 1986-2002), and baseball’s Jake Kline (558-449-5 from 1934-75) are the only other members of the “Fighting Irish Five Hundred Club,” with one able to connect 75 years of Notre Dame athletics history and success via just four degrees of separation (Kline to DeCicco to Auriol to McGraw).

McGraw reached two other mileposts on Dec. 2 vs. Eastern Michigan, as she coached her 700th game at Notre Dame, as well as her 300th at Purcell Pavilion.

Upwardly Mobile
Two of Notre Dame’s senior guards and tri-captains — Ashley Barlow and Lindsay Schrader — are already members of the program’s 1,000-Point Club, and will spend this season trying to work their way up the Irish all-time scoring ladder.

Barlow currently ranks 17th in school history with 1,209 career points, while Schrader is 20th with 1,159 points. They could be joined by their fellow senior guard and tri-captain, Melissa Lechlitner, who has 766 points to date.

Only one other time in program history has Notre Dame fielded three 1,000-point scorers on its roster at the same time — and it literally happened for less than one game. Ruth Riley, Niele Ivey and Kelley Siemon all reached the millennium mark and played on the 2000-01 Irish national championship squad, with Siemon reaching the milestone after scoring 10 points in her final collegiate contest — Notre Dame’s 68-66 title-game victory over Purdue in St. Louis.

Century City
With its 102-57 season-opening win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 15 at Purcell Pavilion, Notre Dame topped the 100-point mark for the 13th time in school history, and the third time in less than two years (104-86 at Georgetown on Jan. 19, 2008; 102-54 at Boston College on Nov. 23, 2008).

Notre Dame also hit the century mark at home for the first time since Nov. 26, 2002, when the Irish toppled Cleveland State, 107-65 in the 2002-03 season opener.

Eight Is Enough (For Now)
Notre Dame had a school-record eight players score in double figures in its 102-57 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 15 at Purcell Pavilion. That eclipsed the old standard of seven double-digit scorers that was first set on Feb. 6, 1997 vs. Syracuse (90-73 win at the Joyce Center) and matched on Jan. 19, 2008, in a 104-86 win at Georgetown.

Dishing Thirty-One Flavors
Notre Dame’s 31 assists against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 15 were the most for the Irish in a single game since Nov. 20, 2000, when they also recorded 31 assists in a 95-65 win over Arizona at the Joyce Center.

Leading the way for Notre Dame on that night was current Irish assistant coach Niele Ivey, who had a double-double with 14 points and 11 assists.

First Impressions
Freshman guard Skylar Diggins had 14 points in the Nov. 15 season opener vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, the fifth-most by an Irish rookie in her debut game during the 23-year Muffet McGraw era (1987-88 to present), and the most since Courtney LaVere began her career with 18 points in a 2002 win over Cleveland State.

Irish Enjoy Successful ’09 European Tour
In May, the Notre Dame women’s basketball program embarked on a memorable 11-day adventure to France, Monaco and Italy, visiting some of the world’s most historic landmarks, including the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Prince’s Palace in Monaco, picturesque Lake Como in the foothills of the Italian Alps, the famed El Duomo cathedral in Milan, the Colosseum and Forum in Rome, as well as St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel located at The Vatican.

The Irish also had the chance to play three exhibition games against international opponents on the tour, winning all three contests against the French Junior National Team (77-44) and Italian professional teams GEAS Sesto San Giovanni (78-68) and Roma Athena Basket (94-39). The win over the French side was particularly noteworthy, as it came only weeks before France won the gold medal at the European U20 Championships with much of the same team that faced the Irish in May.

Senior guard/tri-captain Ashley Barlow led Notre Dame in scoring (13.0 ppg.) and three-point percentage (.727, 8-11) on the trip, while junior forward Becca Bruszewski was second in scoring (12.0 ppg.) and fourth in rebounding (5.7 rpg.). Other statistical leaders included: fifth-year senior guard Lindsay Schrader and sophomore forward Kellie Watson (6.3 rpg.), sophomore guard Natalie Novosel (3.3 spg.), senior guard Melissa Lechlitner (3.3 apg.) and sophomore forward Erica Solomon (2.5 bpg.).

Half And Half
During the past decade, Notre Dame has been nearly unbeatable when it has the lead at halftime. The Irish are 172-17 (.910) since the start of the 2000-01 campaign when they go into the dressing room with the lead, including wins in 100 of their last 111 such contests.

Notre Dame has led at the break in all nine games this season, and has gone on to earn victories each time.

The Best Offense Is A Good Defense…
During the past 15 seasons, Notre Dame has discovered that a solid defensive effort can almost certainly guarantee a victory. In fact, since the beginning of the 1995-96 season (Notre Dame’s first in the BIG EAST Conference), the Irish have an amazing 200-14 (.935) record when they hold their opponents below 60 points in a game.

Notre Dame has added five more wins to the ledger this season with victories over Arkansas-Pine Bluff (102-57), Iona (80-45), South Carolina (78-55), Eastern Michigan (69-59) and Valparaiso (88-47).

…But Sometimes You Have To Score If You Want To Win
Not resting solely on its defensive laurels, Notre Dame also seemingly has found the magic mark when it comes to outscoring its opponents. During the past 15 seasons (since 1995-96), the Irish are 129-4 (.970) when they score at least 80 points in a game. The only blemishes on that record are a pair of overtime losses to Texas A&M (88-84) and Michigan State (87-83) in 1995, a 106-81 loss to Connecticut in 1998, and an 81-80 loss to DePaul in 2008.

Notre Dame already has added six more wins to this ongoing record with its conquests of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (102-57), Iona (80-45), No. 23/24 San Diego State (84-79), No. 20/17 Oklahoma (81-71), IPFW (96-60) and Valparaiso (88-47).

Now That’s A Home Court Advantage
One of the hallmarks of Notre Dame’s success has been its stellar play at home. In fact, the Irish have been virtually untouchable at home in recent years, winning 178 of their last 202 games (.881) at the 9,149-seat Purcell Pavilion, including winning streaks of 51 and 25 games in that span. Notre Dame also has a 99-17 (.853) record in BIG EAST Conference play at the former Joyce Center, sporting a 31-game league winning streak at home before it ended with a 48-45 loss to Villanova in the ’02 home finale.

The Irish have been particularly strong when it comes to non-conference games at home, winning 81 of their last 88 non-BIG EAST contests (.920) at Purcell Pavilion, dating back to the 1994-95 season. Five of the seven losses in that span came at the hands of Big Ten Conference opponents (four by 12 points or less) — Wisconsin in 1996 (81-69), Purdue in 2003 (71-54), Michigan State in 2004 (82-73 OT), Indiana in 2006 (54-51) and Minnesota in 2009 (79-71) — 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 former Joyce Center, posting a 328-85 (.794) 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.

It’s Fan-Demonium At Notre Dame
If the preseason was any indication, Notre Dame women’s basketball is easily the hottest ticket in South Bend. For the first time in school history, all Irish women’s basketball season ticket packages (close to 7,500) have been sold, including more than 1,000 packages to first-time season ticket purchasers when they went on sale Aug. 14. Furthermore, fans were waiting in line at the Purcell Pavilion ticket office as early as 4:30 that morning, more than four hours before the ticket windows opened. Those early birds were rewarded with a visit from Irish head coach Muffet McGraw, who delivered coffee and bagels, courtesy of McGraw and athletics director Jack Swarbrick.

While it’s likely that some tickets will be made available for individual games during the weeks and days prior to the contests, there’s a very real possibility that Notre Dame could approach a sell out for every one of its regular-season home games at the newly-refurbished 9,149-seat Purcell Pavilion. In fact, the crowd of 9,080 for the Nov. 15 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff was the largest season-opening audience in program history, more than 1,100 higher than the old mark set in 2001-02 (7,960 vs. Valparaiso).

Through five home games this season, Notre Dame is averaging 8,343 fans per game, putting the Irish more than 500 fans above their school-record attendance average of 7,825 fans per game, also set in 2001-02.

Notre Dame has posted six sellouts in program history, the most recent coming on Dec. 7, 2008, for a 62-51 win over in-state rival Purdue. That capacity crowd not only was the first on-campus sellout in the 22-game series with the Boilermakers, but it also helped the Irish win the NCAA/BIG EAST Conference Pack The House Challenge for 2008-09.

Irish On Your Radio Dial
Beginning with the 2008-09 athletics year, the Notre Dame athletics department announced it had partnered with the LeSEA Broadcasting Network, making Pulse FM (96.9/92.1) the new radio home of Notre Dame women’s basketball in the South Bend market.

LeSEA originates all Notre Dame women’s basketball games, with those events carried on Pulse FM (96.9/92.1), marking a return to the FM side of the dial for the first time since the 1998-99 season. 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 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 (www.UND.com) through the Fighting Irish All-Access multimedia package.

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 for his second season in his second stint as the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the Irish.

Notre Dame On The Small Screen
Notre Dame will have at least 18 games televised during the 2009-10 season. Highlighting this year’s broadcast schedule are 11 nationally-televised Irish women’s basketball contests, including at least six games on the ESPN family of networks and four others on CBS College Sports (check schedule on page 1 of these notes for exact broadcast coverage).

In addition, Notre Dame continues to expand its broadcast reach globally on the Internet. All Irish regular-season home games not selected for commercial TV coverage (with the exception of the Nov. 15 game vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff) will be webcast live on the official Notre Dame athletics web site, www.UND.com, via the site’s free multimedia package, Fighting Irish All-Access. And, the Thanksgiving weekend Paradise Jam was webcast in its entirety through Fox College Sports Broadband on a pay-per-view basis.

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 146 televised games, including 93 that were broadcast nationally.

Oh Captain, My Captain
Fifth-year senior guard Lindsay Schrader and senior guards Ashley Barlow and Melissa Lechlitner all return for their second year as team captains for the 2009-10 season. All three players received the captain’s honor following a vote of their teammates prior to the season.

This marks the first time in program history that the same players are serving as captains in consecutive seasons.

Purcell Pavilion Opens Its Doors
Following an intensive five-month, $26.3 million interior renovation, the arena for the newly-christened Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center made its regular season women’s basketball debut on Nov. 15 when Notre Dame defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 102-57.

The UAPB game was part of the culmination of a two-year project to upgrade the home for Notre Dame basketball and volleyball.

The first (exterior) 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, which will house 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 arena seating footprint, including installation of single-color chair-back seating throughout the arena, began following the University’s Commencement Exercises in May 2009 and was completed in time for the Irish volleyball team to play the first athletic event in the facility on Oct. 30 (a 3-1 win over Seton Hall). The entire project is scheduled for completion in January 2010.

The University announced in October 2007 that this ambitious arena renovation 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.

Additional cornerstone donations were made by: Vincent J. Naimoli (’59), whose $5 million contribution will lead to the creation of the new Naimoli Family Club Room, and South Bend-area auto dealership owner Mike Leep Sr., whose generous gift will be recognized with the naming of the Mike Leep Sr. Varsity Shop.

Irish Sign Three For 2010-11 Season
Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw announced Nov. 13 that three of the country’s top high school student-athletes have chosen to continue their academic and athletic careers with the Fighting Irish, each signing a National Letter of Intent to attend Notre Dame beginning in the fall of 2010.

Natalie Achonwa (last name pronounced uh-CHAWN-wuh), a 6-3 forward from Guelph, Ontario (St. Mary’s Catholic Secondary School/National Elite Development Academy), Ariel Braker, a 6-1 forward from Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. (Grosse Pointe North High School) and Kayla McBride, a 5-11 guard from Erie, Pa. (Villa Maria Academy) all made their official commitments to the Fighting Irish during the early signing period, which ended Nov. 18.

All three student-athletes are rated among the top 50 players in the country by various national recruiting services. As a group, this trio is ranked as the No. 10 recruiting class in the country by All-Star Girls Report (and a consensus top-16 class by other recruiting services), giving Notre Dame a Top 25 recruiting class for the 14th consecutive year, a streak only two other schools in the country (Connecticut and Tennessee) can match. It’s also the third consecutive top-10 recruiting class for the Fighting Irish.

“I’m very excited about the class that we’re signing this year,” McGraw said. “I think we really addressed our needs, with three very good players coming in. They’re going to change the way we do some things at both ends of the floor next year. We’re going to be able to be more aggressive on defense because we’re adding athleticism, length and speed, and on offense, we’ll look at ways that we can take advantage of the size that we’re going to have. It will probably be a whole new look, going from the more guard-oriented team that we have now, to next year when we’ll have some depth in the post as well.”

“Notre Dame emphasized strengthening their perimeter game and did so with size, athleticism and versatility,” said Dan Olson, director of the Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.

The full press release, with a complete look at the newest members of the Notre Dame women’s basketball program, is available on-line at http://www.und.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/111309aab.html.

Irish Fans Crave Another Big Mac Attack
It’s year three of Notre Dame’s wildly-successful “Big Mac” promotion, offering fans a coupon for a free Big Mac from South Bend-area McDonald’s restaurants if the Irish score at least 88 points in a home game.

In the three-year history of the promotion (and counting exhibition games), Notre Dame has hit the 88-point mark 16 times, including wins this season over Indianapolis (exhibition), Arkansas-Pine Bluff, IPFW and Valparaiso.

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 — junior guard Brittany Mallory, who sent the crowd home happy (and presumably with full bellies) four times during the promotion’s inaugural run in 2007-08.

And for those tracking such things (or perhaps falling under the heading of “SID has way too much time on his hands”), nine different players have converted the “burger ball”, including eight current members of the Irish roster.

What’s more, of the 16 Big Mac games to date, nine have been reached on two-point baskets, five on free throws, and two on three-pointers.

Next Game: Central Florida
Following a nine-day layoff for the Christmas holiday, Notre Dame gets back on the hardwood Dec. 29 with a noon (ET) game against Central Florida at UCF Arena in Orlando. The game — which will tip off one hour earlier than listed on most previously-printed schedules — will be televised live to a national cable audience by CBS College Sports.

UCF (2-5), the defending Conference USA tournament champion, has dropped four in a row, including three by three points or less, and most recently a 70-58 loss to No. 10/6 Florida State at home on Thursday night. The Knights will play host to Jackson State Sunday afternoon for breaking for the holidays.

— ND —