Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

Men's Basketball Prepares For St. Peter's

Dec. 30, 1999

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-5) vs.
ST. PETER’S Peacocks (3-7)
Date: Fri., December 31, 1999
Place: Joyce Center, Notre Dame, IN (11,418)
Time: 12:00 p.m. EST
Television: None
Radio: Host Communications Inc. (Jack Lorri, Jack Nolan) originates the Notre Dame Radio Network (includes WNDV-1490 AM and WNDV-92.9 FM in South Bend, WEFM-95.9 FM in Michigan City and selected games on WMAQ-670 AM or WAUR-930 AM in Chicago).

NOTRE DAME/ST. PETER’S SERIES
Series: ND, 3-0
Current Streak: ND, 3
At Notre Dame: 2-0, ND
At St. Peter’s: 0-0
Last Meeting: 1969-70, at ND, 135-88 ND

TODAY’S GAME: The University of Notre Dame basketball team brings a three-game winning streak into today’s game against St. Peter’s of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

The Irish enter the game with a 7-5 record and have won four of their last five games with three-straight wins over VMI (79-66 on Dec. 18), Rider (75-62 on Dec. 22) and Elon (97-71 on Dec. 28).

In the win over Elon, sophomore forward David Graves (Lexington, Kent.) scored a game-high 24 points to go along with 6 rebounds. Sophomore forward Troy Murphy (Morristown, N.J.) added 22 points and six rebounds while freshman guard Matt Carroll (Horsham, Pa.) had 10 points along with three assists.

After today’s game, the Irish wrap up their regular season non-conference schedule vs. Loyola Marymount on Jan. 2 at 4 p.m. EST.

Notre Dame begins its fifth season of BIG EAST play at 7:30 p.m. EST on Wed., January 5, against defending national champion Connecticut at the Hartford Civic Center. The BIG EAST home opener is at 7:30 p.m. EST on Wed., January 12, against Boston College.

St. Peter’s enter the game with a 3-7 record and is coming off a 74-55 loss to James Madison on Tuesday.

THE NOTRE DAME-ST. PETER’S SERIES: Today’s game is the fourth meeting between Notre Dame and St. Peter’s and the Irish lead the series by a 3-0 count. Notre Dame defeated St. Peter’s by an 81-78 count on March 23, 1968, in the consolation game of the National Invitation Tournament in New York City and then posted two regular-season wins in the Joyce Center — Jan. 4, 1969 by an 85-71 score and Feb. 4, 1970 by a 135-88 count.

Notre Dame has a 2-0 record against teams from the MAAC this season with a 107-96 win over Siena in the second round of the Preseason NIT on Nov. 18 and a 75-62 win over Rider on Dec. 22.

WHAT A SCHEDULE: Matt Doherty is starting his collegiate head coaching career with a very rugged schedule as seven of his first 12 games have been against teams that played in last year’s NCAA tournament.

The Irish have posted wins over:

  • Ohio State, 59-57 on Nov. 16 in the first round of the Preseason NIT in Columbus. The Buckeyes finished last season with a 27-9 record and advanced to the NCAA Final Four.
  • Siena, 107-96 on Nov. 18 in the second round of the Preseason NIT at Notre Dame. The Saints had a 25-6 record last year and played in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
  • Valparaiso, 65-42 on Wednesday at Notre Dame. The Crusaders had a 23-9 record last year and played in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Notre Dame’s losses include: Arizona (22-7 last year and played in first round of the NCAA tournament), Maryland (28-6 last year and advanced to NCAA regional semifinal), Indiana (23-11 last year and advanced to NCAA tournament second round last year) and Miami of Ohio (24-8 last year and advanced to NCAA tournament regional semifinals).

Here’s a look at the records of the Irish opponents this season (as of Dec. 28):

Ohio State  7-2Siena   7-3St. Francis (Pa.)   3-6Arizona 10-2Maryland    9-2Indiana 10-1Vanderbilt  8-1Valparaiso  4-6Miami (Ohio)    4-3VMI 5-7Rider   5-5Elon    4-6TOTAL   76-44TOTAL RECORD OF TEAMS THAT NOTRE DAME HAS LOST TO: 41-10

THE OHIO STATE WIN: Notre Dame’s win over Ohio State (ranked fourth at the time in Associated Press poll and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today poll) in the first round of the Preseason NIT marked a number of milestones for the Irish,

  • The first win over a ranked team since defeating No. 15/15 Syracuse on Jan. 21, 1998, by an 83-63 score
  • The first win over a ranked team on the road since defeating No. 20/21 West Virginia on Jan. 15, 1998, by a 74-72 score
  • The first win over a top-10 team since defeating No. 4/T2 UCLA on Feb. 5, 1994, by a 79-63 score
  • The first win over a top-10 team on the road since defeating No. 4/3 Syracuse on Feb. 17, 1990, by a 66-65 score
  • The first Notre Dame road win over a Big Ten team since defeating Northwestern on Dec. 5, 1979, by a 73-56 score

3-0 START: Notre Dame started the season with a 3-0 record for the first time since the 1988-89 season when the Irish won their first four games of the season (wins over St. Bonaventure, Kentucky, Indiana and Creighton). That team wound up with a 21-9 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

ONLY 42 POINTS: The 42 points that the Irish gave up in their 65-42 win over Valpariaso on Dec. 8 marked the least amount of points that Notre Dame has given up since Jan. 30, 1985, when Notre Dame also gave up 42 points in a 48-42 win over St. Louis at the Joyce Center. The last time Notre Dame gave up less than 42 points was Jan. 16, 1984, a 65-39 win over Rice at the Joyce Center.

ALSO RECEIVING VOTES: Notre Dame received 18 points in the ESPN/USA Today college basketball poll, which was released on Nov. 21, to place sixth in the also receiving votes category, and received one point in the poll released on Nov. 28 and Dec. 5.

The Irish were second in the Associated Press ranking of Nov. 22 in the also receiving votes category with 160 points, eight in back of Miami (168). Notre Dame received four points in the AP voting of Dec 6. The last time Notre Dame appeared in the national poll rankings was a No. 19 spot in the first Associated Press poll of the 1989 season.

PRESEASON NIT: Notre Dame’s trip to the Preseason NIT in ’99 marked the third appearance for the Irish in the event. In 1986, Notre Dame lost at home in the first round to Western Kentucky by an 80-63 score. In 1990, Notre Dame defeated Fordham (56-46) and Iowa (77-68) at home to advance to the finals in New York and lost to Arizona (91-61) in the semifinals and Duke (85-77) in the consolation game.

As an assistant at Kansas, Notre Dame head coach Matt Doherty participated in the event twice. The Jayhawks won both the 1993 and 1997 events.

HEAD COACH MATT DOHERTY: Notre Dame head basketball coach Matt Doherty is in his first year in charge of the Fighting Irish program and his first season as a collegiate head coach.

Doherty previously served as an assistant coach at Kansas for seven seasons from 1992-99 as the Jayhawks advanced to the NCAA tournament in each year, including a trip to the 1993 Final Four.

Doherty previously served as an assistant coach at Davidson for three seasons from 1989-92.

Doherty is a 1984 graduate of North Carolina and helped lead the Tar Heels to the 1982 NCAA title. Doherty became just the second player in Atlantic Coast Conference history, joining North Carolina’s Walter Davis, to accumulate 1,000 points, 400 rebounds and 400 assists in a career.

HITTING THE CENTURY MARK: Notre Dame’s win over Siena on Nov. 18 in the second round of the Preseason NIT marked the first time Notre Dame scored over 100 points in a game since a 101-98 win at Syracuse on Feb. 15, 1992. The 107 points scored by the Irish were the most since they also scored 107 vs. Miami (Fla.) on Jan. 27, 1990. The 48-point differential for Notre Dame from Ohio State (59 points) to Siena was the most in back-to-back games since a 50-point differential in the ’74 NCAA tournament with a 77-68 loss to Michigan and a 118-88 win over Vanderbilt in a regional consolation game.

GRAVES IS SUPER SOPH: Graves enjoyed an outstanding game against Vanderbilt on Dec. 4 with career highs for points (33), rebounds (12), field goals made (11), three-point field goals (five) and minutes played (44). The game was the first double-double of Graves’ collegiate career.

On Tuesday against Elon, Graves led the Irish in scoring for the second time this season as he registered 24 poitns and also added six rebounds.

Graves scored the winning basket against Ohio State and started the season with one of the top games of his Irish career as he scored 18 points (now tied for career fourth-best) on a seven of 12 effort from the field along with eight rebounds, to tie a career high. Graves added 16 points in the win over Siena on Nov. 18 and had 12 against St. Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 21.

Graves has started 40 of the 42 collegiate games he has played in and has scored in double figures in 31 of those contests. He has scored in double figures in all but two games this season.

Graves scored 370 points as a freshman last year — the fourth-highest in school history behind Murphy (519 last year), Adrian Dantley (511 in 1973-74) and David Rivers (474 in 1984-85). He now has 556 career points.

Graves has added the three-point field goal shot to his repertoire this year as he is 27-of-55 (49.1%) from that range this year to lead the Irish. Last year, Graves was 35-of-86 from trey range.

Graves also leads Irish regulars in field goal percentage this season at 57.9% (70-of-121).

MURPHY GETS EIGHTH DOUBLE-DOUBLE: Murphy had his eighth double-double of the season on Dec. 18 with a 30 point-10 rebound effort vs. VMI.

The sophomore forward has led the Irish in scoring in 10 games this season and has been the leading rebounder or tied on 10 occasions. He scored 35 points against St. Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 20 along with 13 rebounds. The 35 points was a career-high topping his previous mark of 32 set against West Virginia last year.

Murphy has now played in 40 games as a collegiate performer and has scored in double figures in all but one of them. He has posted double-doubles in 20 games and has scored 20 or more points in 20 games and 30 or more points in seven games.

MURPHY NAMED BIG EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK AGAIN: Murphy was named the BIG EAST player of the week for his game against Rider on Dec. 22 as he scored 32 points with nine rebounds.

Murphy has now been named the BIG EAST player of the week three times this year and for two weeks in a row.

Murphy won the award last week, sharing the honor with Marcus Goree of West Virginia, as he scored 30 points and had 10 rebounds vs. VMI.

Murphy was also named the BIG EAST player of the week Nov. 22 for his performance in the first two rounds of the Preseason NIT and the Irish win over St. Francis (Pa.) on Nov. 22. The announcement was the first weekly BIG EAST award of the season.

Murphy was named the BIG EAST rookie of the year in 1999 and won the BIG EAST rookie of the week award eight times — the second-highest in league history. The awards this year mark the first time Murphy has won player of the week honors.

PRESEASON BIG EAST HONORS FOR MURPHY: Murphy was picked first team preseason all-BIG EAST for the 1999-2000 season by the league coaches. The honor was announced at BIG EAST Conference Media Day on Wed., October 25, 1999, and was held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City.

Also named to the first team was: Khalid El-Amin of Connecticut, Johnny Hemsley of Miami, Erick Barkley of St. John’s and Etan Thomas of Syracuse.

The second team was Kevin Freeman of Connecticut, Isaac Hawkins of Pittsburgh, Bootsy Thornton of St. John’s, Jason Hart of Syracuse and Marcus Goree of West Virginia.

The preseason player of the year was El-Amin and the preseason rookie of the year was Ajou Deng of Connecticut.

MORE PRESEASON HONORS FOR MURPHY: In addition to the BIG EAST honors, Murphy garnered a number of preseason accolades heading into the 1999-2000 campaign, including:

    * Second Team All-America, Dick Vitale's College Basketball    * Second Team All-America, Basketball News    * Honorable Mention All-America, Athlon    * Ranked second in country among centers, Dick Vitale's College Basketball    * Ranked fourth in country among power forwards, Lindy's    * Ranked 11th in country among power forwards, The Sporting News    * First Team All-BIG EAST, Dick Vitale's College Basketball    * First Team All-BIG EAST, The Sporting News    * First Team All-BIG EAST, Lindy's    * Best NBA Prospect in BIG EAST, Lindy's    * Best Rebounder in BIG EAST, The Sporting News    * All-Windex Team (The kids can really clean the glass), Dick Vitale's College Basketball

CARROLL GETS CAREER HIGH: Notre Dame freshman guard Matt Carroll (Horsham, Pa.) registered a career-high 22 points against VMI on Dec. 18. Carroll was three-for-six from three-point field goal range and was seven-for-11 from the field. He also added five assists.

Carroll had come off the bench in the first six games of the season before being moved into the starting lineup against Vanderbilt on Dec. 11. In his first start, he had 18 points — then a career-high.

Carroll has now scored in double figures in six games — 16 points vs. Siena and 11 vs. Maryland in addition to the Vanderbilt, VMI, Valparaiso (13 points) and Elon (10 points) games.

Carroll is 20-of-53 from three-point field goal range this season.

He spent the summer as a member of the USA Basketball Junior National Team that played in the FIBA World Championships, which were held in Portugal in August. The United States won the silver medal in the event.

Carroll played in seven of the eight games the United States played and scored a combined 16 points to go along with three rebounds and four steals. He scored eight points in the United States’ opening round win over China.

Carroll is the only player in the history of Pennsylvania high school basketball to win the Associated Press player of the year twice.

SWANAGAN GETS DOUBLE-DOUBLE: Sophomore Harold Swanagan (Hopkinsville, Kent.) scored 11 points and had 12 rebounds vs. Rider on Dec. 22 for his first double-double of the season and third of his career.

Swanagan scored in double figures for the first time this season when he had 10 points and added four rebounds against Valparaiso on Dec. 8. Swanagan’s previous season high was eight points against St. Francis (Pa.). Swanagan has started 11 of 12 games for the Irish this year at the center position.

Swanagan played in 29 games last season, scoring in double figures in eight of them and starting two games.

DILLON DISHES OUT: Senior point guard Jimmy Dillon (Philadelphia, Pa.) has started all 12 games for the Irish this season and has recorded a team-leading 74 assists to go with 43 turnovers.

Dillon’s 74 assists is just six short of his personal career-high for a season as he had 80 last year.

Entering the season, Dillon had started just two games in his career and had averaged 11.6 minutes per game — as opposed to 29.0 minutes per game this year.

Dillon is the most experienced player on the Irish team this year in terms of career games with 97.

MACURA GETS FIRST CAREER START: Freshman forward Jere Macura (Split, Croatia) started the first game of his collegiate career vs. VMI (Dec. 18) and had two points and three rebounds in 15 minutes of action.

Macura registered a career-high 13 points, including two three-point field goals, vs. Indiana (Nov. 30). Macura played a career-high 33 minutes off the bench and also added eight rebounds.

Macura scored nine points coming off the bench in 18 minutes of play against Maryland (Nov. 26). Macura scored all his points on three-point field goals as he was three for four from that range for the game. He came off the bench to score eight points against Elon on Tuesday.

MONSEREZ, KARTELO GET CAREER HIGHS: Freshman guard Mike Monserez (Cincinnati, Ohio) and freshman center Ivan Kartelo (Split, Croatia) both registered scoring career highs Tuesday vs. Elon.

Kartelo scored six points off the bench in 22 minutes of action (another career high) and was two-of-three from the field. Monserez scored five points with one field goal and a three-of-five performance from the free throw line.

EVERYONE GETS IN THE ACT: The end of the Elon game allowed Doherty to use all the walk-ons that make up his bench. Sophomore John Hiltz (Ft. Mitchell, Kent.) played three minutes and scored six points in his second career appearance. Freshman Tony Carney (Rockford, Ill.) played three minutes and scored two points in his first-ever appearance while sophomore Charles Thomas (Flint, Mich.) played three minutes in his third game of the year.

BACK TO THE FUTURE: Ever since Matt Doherty was named the coach at Notre Dame, he has stressed the tradition of winning that the program has. He has worked hard to include former players in the program:

  • Bruce Flowers, a member of the ’78 Irish Final Four team, served as a counselor at the Irish summer basketball camp, while Ken Barlow, who scored 1,342 career points for the Irish from 1982-86, was a guest speaker
  • Collis Jones, who scored 1,367 career points for the Irish from 1968-71, has visited with the Irish coaching staff and practice sessions during his trips to campus as a member of the University’s Advisory Council for the College of Business Administration.
  • Austin Carr, the all-time leading scorer in the history of Irish basketball with 2,560 points, was a special guest at “Friday Night Live,” a series of events that led to the first Irish practice at midnight on Oct. 16. Carr was joined at the event by ESPN and ABC announcer Dick Vitale and fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger.
  • Dwight Clay, who hit the game-winning shot against UCLA on Jan. 19, 1974, for a 71-70 victory over the Bruins to end their record 88-game winning streak, spoke to the Irish before their practice on Nov. 15 — the day before they beat Ohio State in the first round of the Preseason NIT.
NOTRE DAME STARTING LINE: No. Player        Pos   Ht.  Wt. Class  PPG  RPG Other   Notes:  3   Troy Murphy PF  6-10    237 So. 24.5  10.2  54.1 FG%  Three-time BIG EAST player-of-the-week34  David Graves    SF  6-6 208 So. 15.5  5.5 49.1 3FG%  Double figures in all but 2 games42  Harold Swanagan C   6-7 252 So. 5.9 5.2 11 assists  1st double-double of season vs. Rider (11,12)13  Matt Carroll    SG  6-6 200 Fr. 9.9 2.6 20-53 3FG   Career-high 22 vs. VMI21  Jimmy Dillon    PG  6-2 178 Sr. 2.9 2.1 74 asts.    Leads Irish with 97 career games
NOTRE DAME OFF THE BENCH: No. Player Pos Ht. Wt. Class PPG RPG Other Notes: 11 Ivan Kartelo C 6-11 247 Fr. 1.7 1.4 66.7 FT% Career-high 22 minutes vs. Elon15 Jere Macura F 6-9 218 Fr. 3.9 3.3 37.8 FG% First career start vs. VMI22 Mike Monserez G 6-6 192 Fr. 1.3 0.8 12 asts. Career-high 5 points vs. Elon24 Martin Ingelsby G 6-0 182 Jr. 5.9 1.4 17-41 3FGs 2 3FG in final 2:25 vs. OSU43 Sklyard Owens F 6-4 220 Sr. 0.5 0.8 1-1 FGA Has seen action in 4 games44 Todd Palmer F 6-6 216 Sr. 1.6 1.1 5 ast. 4 points vs. Valparaiso

Biography Updates
13 Matt Carroll Guard, Freshman, 6-6, 200, Horsham, PA (Hatboro-Horsham)

Has now started the past six games for the Irish and scored a career-high 22 points vs. VMI (Dec. 18), including three three-point field goals…has scored in double figures in six games this season, including four as a starter…had a career-high seven assists vs. Rider (Dec. 22)…also scored 13 points vs. Valparaiso (Dec. 9) and a then career-high 18 points against Vanderbilt (Dec. 4), including two three-point field goals…came off the bench in the first six games of the season to see action..scored 16 points vs. Siena (Nov. 18), including a two-for-two performance from three-point field goal range…scored 11 points, including three three-point field goals vs. Maryland (Nov. 26)…had a career-high five rebounds vs. Indiana (Nov. 30)…the only player in the history of Pennsylvania high school basketball to be named state player of the year twice…a member of the USA Junior National Team last summer, which won the silver medal at the FIBA World Championship.

Season and Career Highs
22 points vs. VMI, 12/18/99
5 rebounds vs. Indiana, 11/30/99
7 assists vs. Rider, 12/22/99

21 Jimmy Dillon Guard, Freshman, 6-2, 178, Philadelphia, PA (Holy Ghost Prep)

Has started all 12 games this season at point guard…his 74 assists is already just six shy of his season high of 80 last year…had seven assists with just one turnover vs. Elon on Tuesday…hit a layup with two seconds left vs. Indiana (Nov. 30) to send game into overtime…hit a three-point field goal with 42 seconds left in regulation as he scored final five points of regulation…scored a season-high seven points vs. Hoosiers…leads the team in assists with 74 and has turned the ball over 43 times…dished out a career-high 12 assists in win over Siena (Nov. 18)…had nine assists and just one turnover vs. Maryland (Nov. 26)…had eight assists vs. Vanderbilt (Dec. 4) and Valpariaso (Dec. 9).

Season Highs Career Highs
7 points vs. Indiana, 11/30/99 9 points in two games
5 rebounds vs. Siena, 11/18/99 5 rebounds on two occassions
12 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99 12 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99

34 David Graves Forward, Sophomore, 6-6, 208, Lexington, KY (Lexington Catholic)

Has started all 12 games for the Irish, scoring in double figures in 10…had 33 points and 12 rebounds vs. Vanderbilt (Dec. 4) — posting career highs in both categories…also had four assists and five three-point field goals vs. the Commodores…was 11 for 15 from the field and six for eight from the free-throw line…recorded a game-high 24 points on Tuesday vs. Elon…hit game-winning jump shot at buzzer at Ohio State (Nov. 16) in season-opener…scored 18 points vs. the Buckeyes….scored 17 points vs. Arizona (Nov. 24) in semifinals of Preseason NIT and scored 17 vs. VMI (Dec. 18)…has now played 44 collegiate games, scoring in double figures in 31 of them…the Vandy game was the first double-double of his career…scored 370 points as a freshman last year, the fourth-highest in school history behind Troy Murphy, Adrian Dantley and David Rivers…has 556 career points.

Season Highs Career Highs
33 points vs. Vanderbilt, 12/4/99 33 points vs. Vanderbilt, 12/4/99
12 rebounds vs. Vanderbilt, 12/4/99 12 rebounds vs. Vanderbilt, 12/4/00
6 assists vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99 7 assists vs. Rutgers, 1/23/99

24 Martin Ingelsby Guard, Junior, 6-0, 192, Philadelphia, PA (Archbishop Carroll)

Started the first six games of the season as a combination guard working with Jimmy Dillon…scored 14 points in win over Ohio State (Nov. 16) and hit two key three-point field goals with 2:25 left to cut the OSU lead to 1 and at 1:30 to give the Irish a two-point lead…scored a season-high 15 points vs. Siena (Nov. 18)….had three three-point field goals in 11 point effort vs. Maryland…has 487 career points and 296 career assists.

Season Highs Career Highs
15 points vs. Siena, 11/18/99 22 points vs. Rutgers, 1/23/99
4 rebounds vs. Ohio State, 11/16/99 6 rebounds vs. Seton Hall, 1/19/99
4 assists in three games 8 assists in four games

11 Ivan Kartelo Center, Freshman, 6-11, 247, Split, Croatia (Winchendon, MA School)

Has come off the bench in all 12 games this season…scored a career-high six points vs. Elon on Tuesday and played a career-high 22 minutes…scored his first collegiate points with four point effort vs. Arizona (Nov. 24)…after playing three mintues in the first three games of the year, played 15 minutes vs. Arizona, 11 vs. Maryland and 12 vs. Indiana…played a then career-high 19 minutes vs. Valparaiso (Dec. 8) with four points…had a career-high five rebounds vs. VMI (Dec. 18)…injured his leg in the first exhibition game of the season, which slowed his progress…Croatian product who spent the 1998-99 academic year at the Winchendon School, a prep school in Massachusetts…was the first player to commit to the Notre Dame program after Matt Doherty had been named head coach.

Season and Career Highs
6 points vs. Elon, 12/28/99
5 rebounds vs. VMI, 12/18/99
1 assist in three games

15 Jere Macura Forward, Freshman, 6-9, 218, Split, Croatia

Made his first collegiate start vs. VMI (Dec. 18) and scored two points in 15 minutes of action…came off the bench in the first nine games of the season and the lsat two …had a career-high 13 points, including two three-point field goals, and eight rebounds vs. Indiana (Nov. 30)…played a career-high 33 minutes vs. the Hoosiers…scored nine points with a three-for-four effort from three-point range vs. Maryland (Nov. 26)…scored eight points vs. Elon on Tuesday night and had seven points against Siena (Nov. 18) with seven rebounds…Crotian native that the Irish coaching staff recruited off film and did not actually meet him until he arrived on the Notre Dame campus in August.

Season and Career Highs
13 points vs. Indiana, 11/30/99
8 rebounds vs. Indiana, 11/30/99
2 assists vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99

22 Mike Monserez Guard, Freshman, 6-6, 192, Cincinnati, OH (Moeller)

Has come off the bench in all 12 games…had a career-high five points vs. Elon on Tuesday night and added three assists…had his first collegiate field goal with a three-pointer against Siena (Nov. 18)…also had two rebounds vs. the Saints…had three assists vs. St. Francis (Pa.) (Nov. 21) and four points vs. Indiana (Nov. 30)…led Moeller High School to the Ohio class AAA championship last year and was named tournament MVP.

Season and Career Highs
5 points vs. Elon, 12/28/99
2 rebounds in two games
3 assists in two games

3 Troy Murphy Forward, Freshman, 6-10, 237, Morristown, NJ (Delbarton)

Was named the BIG EAST player-of-the-week last Monday for his 32-point, nine-rebound effort vs. Rider on Dec. 22…the award marks the third time he has won it and the second week in row…also won it for his 30 point-10 rebound effort vs. VMI (Dec. 18)…has scored in double figures in all 12 games this season and has eight double-doubles — 21 points and 12 rebounds vs. Ohio State (Nov. 16), a career-high 35 points and 13 rebounds vs. St. Francis (Pa.) (Nov. 21), 22 points and 10 rebounds vs. Arizona (Nov. 22), 25 points and 11 rebounds vs. Maryland (Nov. 26), 22 points and 16 rebounds vs. Indiana (Nov. 30) and 17 points, 12 rebounds vs. Vanderbilt (Dec. 4), 18 points and 10 rebounds vs. Miami of Ohio (Dec. 11) and the VMI game…was also named the BIG EAST player of the week on Nov. 22 for the Ohio State, Siena and St. Francis games…has now played in 39 collegiate basketball games, scoring in double figures in all but one and posting 20 double-doubles…has scored 20 or more points 20 different times and 30 or more points seven times…a preseason first team all-BIG EAST pick by the conference coaches and a second-team preseason All-America pick by the Basketball News and Dick Vitale’s College Basketball Yearbook … the 1999 BIG EAST rookie of the year, who set the Notre Dame school record for freshman scoring with 519 points…has 813 career points…one of three Irish captains along with Skylard Owens and Todd Palmer.

Season Highs Career Highs
35 points vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99 35 points vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99
16 rebounds vs. Indiana, 11/30/99 17 rebounds vs. Alaska-Anchorage, 11/27/98
4 assists in two games 4 assists in three games

43 Skylard Owens Forward, Senior, 6-4, 220, Shreveport, LA (Loyola College Prep)

One of three captains along with Troy Murphy and Todd Palmer…had been sidelined earlier this season with a toe injury and now has a hip flexer…scored two points in one minute against Arizona (Nov. 24)…played eight minutes vs. Vanderbilt (Dec. 4) and had two rebounds.

Season Highs Career Highs
2 points vs. Arizona, 11/24/99 7 points vs. Connecticut, 1/12/99
2 rebounds vs. Vanderbilt, 12/4/99 7 rebounds vs. Providence, 1/30/99
2 assists vs. Providence, 1/30/99

44 Todd Palmer Forward, Senior, 6-6, 216, Harrington Park, NJ (Don Bosco Prep)

One of three captains along with Skylard Owens and Troy Murphy…had six points in win over St. Francis (Pa.) (Nov. 20)…also had three rebounds…came off the bench to score four points against Siena (Nov. 18) along with two rebounds and a career-high three assists…had four points in three minutes of action vs. Valparaiso (Dec. 8).

Season Highs Career Highs
6 points vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99 9 points vs. Villanova, 1/16/99
3 rebounds vs. St. Francis (Pa.), 11/21/99 6 rebounds vs. Stetson, 12/21/98
3 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99 3 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99

42 Harold Swanagan Center, Sophomore, 6-7, 252, Hopkinsville, KY (University Heights Academy)

Had started the first nine games of the season at center and was moved back into the starting lineup vs. Rider (Dec. 22) and responded with the first his first double-double of the season and third of his career with 11 points and 12 rebounds — both season highs…had a season-high 10 points vs. Valparaiso (Dec. 8) and added four rebounds…scored nine points to go along with six rebounds and four assists (to tie career high) vs. Siena (Nov. 18)…set key screen in David Graves’ game-winning shot vs. Ohio State (Nov. 16).

Season Highs Career Highs
11 points vs. Rider, 12/22/99 22 points vs. Villanova, 1/16/99
12 rebounds vs. Rider, 12/22/99 15 rebounds, 1/16/99
4 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99 4 assists vs. Siena, 11/18/99