Dec. 8, 2003
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame sophomore guard Megan Duffy (Dayton, Ohio/Chaminade-Julienne HS) has been selected as the BIG EAST Co-Player of the Week, the conference office announced Monday. Duffy, who shared this week’s honor with Amber Jacobs of Boston College, wins the award for the first time in her career and she is the first Irish player to be chosen for this distinction since Alicia Ratay was tapped on Feb. 17, 2003.
Duffy turned in a pair of superb performances last week, averaging 21.0 points and 8.0 assists per game with a 3.2 assist/turnover ratio last week as Notre Dame defeated Wisconsin (82-64) and lost at Washington (85-74). In the win over Wisconsin last Thursday, Duffy scored a career-high 25 points and set new personal bests by making eight of 12 field goals and six of 10 three-pointers. She also had just one turnover and matched her career high with seven assists, a mark which would stand all of three days.
On Sunday at Washington, Duffy tallied 17 points and dished out a career-best nine assists, but the Huskies fought off a stern Irish challenge to claim the victory. For the week, Duffy shot 56.5 percent from the floor (13 of 23) and 60 percent from three-point range (9 of 15).
This season, Duffy ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in five categories, including three-point percentage, where she is tops in the conference with a .571 three-point ratio. She also is fifth in the league in assists (5.14 apg.), eighth in three-point field goals made (2.29 per game), tied for 10th in assist/turnover ratio (1.50) and 20th in scoring (13.3 ppg.). These figures are radical improvements from her freshman season, when she was recovering from knee surgery and averaged 3.0 points and 2.3 assists per game with an 0.94 assist/turnover ratio and a .242 field goal percentage (.200 from beyond the arc).
In an interesting twist, Duffy’s first game as the reigning BIG EAST Co-Player of the Week will come against her hometown team when the Irish play host to Dayton Saturday at 1 p.m. (ET) at the Joyce Center. Notre Dame (3-4) has played the nation’s second-toughest schedule to date this season, according to Monday’s Sagarin ratings, with all four Irish losses coming on the road to teams that were ranked or receiving votes in both national polls at tipoff.
— ND —