Feb. 21, 2003
Notre Dame, Ind. –
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SCOUTING THE IRISH – The Notre Dame men’s basketball team (20-5, 8-3) plays the first of two home games in just over 48 hours as it plays host to Virginia Tech (10-14, 3-8) on Saturday afternoon. Notre Dame faces two BIG EAST East Division rivals in its next two games in Saturday’s matchup with the Hokies and Monday night’s game (February 24) against Connecticut. The Irish are 2-0 in cross-divisional matchups this season. Notre Dame wlll play three of their remaining five regular-season games at home.
The Irish are coming off of a 56-55 victory at West Virginia on Tuesday night. The win over the Mountaineers gave Notre Dame its fourth straight 20-win season. The last time Irish teams registered four straight 20-win campaigns was from 1985-89 – 1985-86 (23-6), 1986-87 (24-8), 1987-88 (20-9) and 1988-89 (21-9). Mike Brey is the only coach in Notre Dame history to have his teams post 20-win seasons in each of his first three seasons.
Notre Dame enters the game having won 16 of its last 20 games. The Irish are a perfect 13-0 at home this season and own a 15-game home win streak dating back to last season. The 15-game win streak is the longest since the 1985-86 campaign when that Irish team finished up with a perfect 15-0 record at the Joyce Center. The last 16-game win streak at the Joyce Center was from December 9, 1982-November 26, 1983.
Notre Dame is off to its second best BIG EAST start since joining the league in 1995-96. During Brey’s first season, the Irish were 9-2 in their first 11 games before winning the BIG EAST West Division title with a final 11-5 regular-season mark. Notre Dame had owned the conference’s longest win streak (six games) prior to its loss to Seton Hall on February 5. The Irish are 5-0 at home and 3-3 on the road in BIG EAST games.
Virginia Tech enters the game having lost six of its last eight games. The Hokies dropped an 87-69 decision at Boston College on Wednesday night. Today’s contest is the fifth road contest for Virginia Tech in its last seven games. The Hokies will finish out the season by playing three of its final four regular-season games at home. They begin a three-game homestand on February 26 against Pittsburgh.
Notre Dame’s six-game conference win streak earlier this season was its second-longest since becoming a BIG EAST member. Notre Dame’s longest conference win streak was eight games in 2000-01. Last season, Brey’s 2001-02 squad manufactured a five-game win streak.
The Irish and Hokies are meeting for the first time since February 24, 2001 when Notre Dame earned a 85-61 decision in Blacksburg, Va. That’s been the only game played between the two teams since Virginia Tech joined the conference. The two schools are meeting for just the third time ever with the series tied 1-1. The first meeting ever between the two schools was in the championship game of the 1973 NIT at Madison Square Garden as the Hokies prevailed with a 92-91 overtime victory.
The Irish are ranked 12th in this week’s Associated Press poll and 10th in the ESPN/USA Today rankings last. Notre Dame dropped two spots in the AP poll and one spot in the latter ranking. Brey’s squad has been ranked in the top 10 of the both polls in eight of the last 11 weeks.
The current 20-5 record marks the best start for a Notre Dame team since the 1980-81 season. That Irish team posted a 22-4 record before suffering its fifth loss in the 27th game of the season en route to a final 23-6 mark. In terms of calendar date, this is the earliest an Irish team has ever produced 20 wins in the 97-plus years of basketball at the University.
Notre Dame has played five top 10 opponents and owns four wins over those teams – No. 10 Marquette (92-71), No. 8 Maryland (79-67), No. 2 Texas (98-91) and No. 4 Pittsburgh (66-64). The Irish earned the victories over the Golden Eagles, Terrapins and Longhorns in consecutive outings over a six-day stretch (Dec. 2-8). It marked the first time that an Irish team had beaten three straight top 10 opponents in the program’s history. Prior to the victory over the Golden Eagles on December 2, Notre Dame had not beaten a top 10 team since Brey’s first season when that Irish squad defeated Boston College (10th in AP and 9th in ESPN/USA Today polls). The win over the Longhorns was Notre Dame’s first win over a top five opponent since January 5, 2000 versus No. 2 Connecticut (75-70) at the Hartford Civic Center.
Notre Dame’s 66-64 last-second victory over Pittsburgh on February 9 at the Joyce Center marked just the second time in school history that an Irish team had beaten four top 10 opponents in the same season. The only other team in Notre Dame history to post four wins over top 10 teams was the 1977-78 squad which advanced to the Final Four. That Irish team defeated No. 5 UCLA (69-66) and then a No. 3 UCLA squad (75-73), No. 1 Marquette (65-59) and No. 3 DePaul (84-64).
The Notre Dame-Pittsburgh game also was the first victory for an Irish team at the Joyce Center against a top five opponent (Pittsburgh was ranked fourth at the time of the game), since Notre Dame defeated UCLA 79-63 on February 5, 1994 (the Bruins were ranked fourth in the AP poll and were tied for second the Coaches’s poll). The Notre Dame-Pittsburgh matchup also marked the first contest between two top 10 teams at the Joyce Center since December 9, 1980 when No. 9 Notre Dame defeated No. 7 Indiana 68-64.
The Irish have played seven ranked opponents this season and owns a 4-3 mark against those teams. Eight of the Irish’s opponents were ranked in either the AP or ESPN/USA Today poll this week. The victory over Texas in early December marked the fourth time in history that a Notre Dame team had beaten at least three top 10 opponents in a single season.
The 98 points scored by the Irish against Texas were the most scored by an Irish team over a ranked opponent since a 101-98 victory over Syracuse (ranked 10th at the time) on Feb. 15, 1992 at the Carrier Dome. The 21-point margin of victory against Marquette was the largest over a ranked opponent since a 98-67 win over then third-ranked Missouri on March 3, 1990.
Notre Dame is averaging 78.8 points and has scored 90-plus points in seven games this season and has topped the century mark twice. The 56 points scored by the Irish in Tuesday night’s win marked the third time this season that the Irish were held to under 60 points in a game. The Irish are yielding 67.8 points per contest and have held their opponents to 65 points and under on 12 occasions.
Each of Notre Dame’s last five games have been decided by a combined 12 points and no point total greater than six points. The Irish’s last three wins versus Georgetown (93-92 in double overtime), Pittsburgh (66-64) and West Virginia (56-55) have been by a combined five points.
Matt Carroll (Horsham, Pa.) is making a Notre Dame record 117th career start this afternoon in his 125th career game. He leads the team in scoring with a 20.4 scoring average and a 21.5 average in conference play. He is the only player who has scored in double figures in all 25 games, and heading into the today’s game with Virginia Tech, has scored in double figures in 31 straight contests. Carroll had a career-high 36-point outing against Georgetown in a 93-92 double overtime victory. He has topped the 30-point mark on three occasions this season and four times during his career. Carroll has scored 20-plus points in six of the last 12 games.
Carroll already owns the Notre Dame career three-point field goals made mark with 273.
Chris Thomas (Indianapolis, Ind.) has averaged 19.5 points and 6.5 assists in Notre Dame’s last 11 games and has a 17.8 scoring average overall and 18.7 average in BIG EAST Conference games. He leads the team in assists (7.0) and steals (1.8). He has registered three double doubles this season and has dished off 10-plus assists in four games. He had a season-high 13 assists against Canisius, which also matched his career best. Thomas topped the 20-point mark for the 10th time this season in Notre Dame’s win over Pittsburgh as he finished with 24 points against the Panthers. He also dished off his 400th career assist in the contest.
Dan Miller (Mt. Holly, N.J.) is third on the Irish scoring list with a 13.6 scoring average and is the team’s second-leading rebounder at 5.8 rebounds per game. He put in the game-winning basket with 15 seconds remaining in Tuesday night’s win over West Virginia. Miller netted a BIG EAST career-best 21-point outing (and one below his career high) against Seton Hall on February 5 after tying his personal best with 11 rebounds versus the Hoyas on February 1. Miller has scored in double figures in 17 games and has scored 20 or more points on six occasions.
Torin Francis (Roslindale, Mass.) is averaging 10.5 points and a team-leading 8.2 rebounds. In addition, he leads the team with seven double doubles. Francis had the game-winning layup with six-tenths of a second remaining in the Pittsburgh game and is coming off a 17-point and six-rebound effort against Syracuse. He has started all 25 games and has reached double figures in 14 contests and grabbed 10-plus rebounds in eight games.
Jordan Cornette (Cincinnati, Ohio), who started the first six games of the season, has been in the Notre Dame starting lineup for each of the last 11 contests. He played a career-high 33 minutes in the win over Rutgers (January 14), scoring eight points, grabbing seven rebounds and blocking eight shots. Cornette has had a real impact for the Irish on the defensive end of the floor. He is averaging 2.8 points and 4.4 rebounds, in addition to 2.4 blocked shots. In the season opener against Belmont, Cornette registered his first career double double with an unlikely combination of 13 rebounds and a Notre Dame and Joyce Center record 11 blocked shots. His 59 blocked shots this season are 42 more than he blocked all of last season.
No Notre Dame player has been as important off the bench than junior swingman Torrian Jones (Fairless Hills, Pa.). He hit the game-winning free throw with four seconds to play in Notre Dame’s 93-92 double overtime victory over Georgetown. Jones is averaging 5.2 points and 3.1 rebounds. He had one of his best all-around efforts in an Irish uniform against Vanderbilt on December 30 as he scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished off two assists and had a block and a steal in playing a career-high 29 minutes. Jones, who is averaging a career-best 18.6 minutes off the bench, has scored in double figures in three games. He has played 20-plus minutes in seven of the last 10 games and in 12 contests overall.
Chris Quinn (Dublin, Ohio) is averaging significant minutes off the bench at 15.0 minutes per game and has played 20-plus minutes in eight contests. He scored a career-high 12 points versus Marquette and is averaging 3.9 points and 1.4 rebounds. Quinn, along with Francis, is the only rookie who has played in all 25 games. He has connected on 32 field goals with 21 coming from three-point range. He was a key in the first half against Boston College on January 25 as he scored 10 points in 12 minutes of action.
Tom Timmermans (Driehuis, Netherlands) had started eight straight games before the Seton Hall game on January 12. He made his first career start in the victory over Marquette on December 1 and is averaging 14.2 minutes of playing time. Timmermans equalled his personal best of nine points against West Virginia, in addition to grabbing a career-high eight boards. He is averaging 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds, but has averaged 5.8 points and 5.7 rebounds in the last six contests.
HEAD COACH MIKE BREY – Mike Brey is in his third year as the Notre Dame head coach and eighth in the collegiate ranks. He was named the 17th head coach in the program’s history on July 14, 2000, following five seasons (1995-2000) as head coach at the University of Delaware, where he led the Blue Hens to an overall record of 99-52. Brey owns a 62-26 mark (.705) with the Irish and earned his 50th victory at Notre Dame with the win over Texas in the championship game of the BB&T Classic. He is the only coach in Notre Dame history to lead his teams to three consecutive 20-win campaigns and consecutive NCAA tournament appearances in his first two seasons. In 2001-02, Brey led his team to a 22-11 record and 10-6 mark in BIG EAST play after guiding the 2000-01 Irish to the 2000-01 BIG EAST West Division crown with an 11-5 record and finishing with a 20-10 overall record. Five of his eight teams have advanced to postseason competition (four NCAA and one NIT appearances). Since his arrival, he has led Notre Dame to a 29-14 mark in BIG EAST play during the regular season for a .674 winning percentage. In the two-year period from 2000-02, the Irish’s BIG EAST wins are matched only by Boston College and Connecticut. His 21 wins after two seasons ranked as the third-best total in conference history. Only four other BIG EAST coaches, including St. John’s mentor Mike Jarvis, have ever posted a better winning percentage in their first two seasons in the league. Among active BIG EAST coaches, Brey’s 30-16 record (including regular season and championship contests) for a .652 winning percentage ranks him fourth behind Jarvis, Jim Boeheim and Jim Calhoun, and sixth all-time. Brey has an overall record of 161-76 (.679) as a head coach. His 150th career win came on December 14, 2002 with Notre Dame’s 102-71 victory over DePaul (the 224th game of his coaching career).
BREY VERSUS RANKED OPPONENTS – As a head coach at both Notre Dame and Delaware, Mike Brey has coached in 29 games against ranked opponents. The Irish were 3-6 and 4-3 during the 2001-02 and 2000-01 campaigns, respectively. This year, Brey is 4-3 versus ranked foes. Overall, in his seven-plus seasons as a head coach, he owns an 11-18 record all-time against ranked opponents.
BREY HAS THE FORMULA FOR BIG EAST SUCCESS AT NOTRE DAME – Since his arrival to Notre Dame, Mike Brey has led Notre Dame to a 29-14 record in BIG EAST regular-season games for a 67.4 winning percentage and 1-2 mark in tournament play for an overall record of 30-16 (.652) against league foes. The Irish won the BIG EAST West Division title in 2001 by fashioning an 11-5 record (the most conference wins in its six-year tenure in the league). Under Brey, Notre Dame is the only BIG EAST school to win 10-plus league games each of the past two seasons and the only school who has earned a first round bye in the BIG EAST tournament. Prior to Brey’s arrival at Notre Dame, Irish teams had a 35-53 (39.8 percent) regular-season record in its conference games since 1995-96.
BREY AND THE IRISH IN OVERTIME GAMES – Notre Dame is 3-0 in overtime games (two on the road and one at home) under head coach Mike Brey during his tenure. The Irish did not play an overtime game in Brey’s first season. The first overtime game played by Notre Dame under Brey was last season’s four-overtime epic matchup against Georgetown in which the Irish defeated the Hoyas 116-111 at the MCI Center. The Irish have played two overtime contests this season – at Boston College (101-96) and at home against Georgetown (93-92 in double overtime).
OVER THE CENTURY MARK – Notre Dame’s 101-96 overtime victory against Boston College on January 25 marked the second time this season the Irish went over the century mark. The Irish also reached the century mark in their 102-71 victory over DePaul on January 14. Notre Dame has scored 100 points or more points five times during Mike Brey’s tenure with the Irish.
SERIES RECORD VS. VIRGINIA TECH – This is just the second meeting ever between Notre Dame and Virginia Tech in BIG EAST play. The Irish earned an 85-61 victory in Blacksburgh, Va., on February 24, 2001 in a win that clinched the ’01 BIG EAST West Division regular-season title. The only other meeting between the two prior to the matchup two years ago was in the championship game of the 1973 NIT on March 25, 1973 in Madison Square Garden as Virginia Tech defeated Notre Dame 92-91 in overtime.
CROSSING OVER – Since the inception of divisional play in the BIG EAST Conference in 2000-01, Notre Dame owns a 7-3 record against the league’s East Division foes. During the first year, the Irish were 3-1 against those teams with their only loss coming against Connecticut. Last season, Notre Dame registered a 2-2 mark with wins over Miami on the road (90-77) and Providence at home (76-68) and losses to Villanova at the Joyce Center (74-72) and to St. John’s (84-81) at Madison Square Garden. Notre Dame is already 2-0 this season against teams from East Division with wins over Boston College and Providence.
THE 20-WIN MARK – Notre Dame reached the 20-win plateau for the 30th time in the program’s 98-year history with Tuesday night’s win over West Virginia. It marked the fourth straight 20-win campaign and the first time since 1985-89 that Irish teams posted four consecutive 20-win seasons.
REMEMBER NOVEMBER – For the second straight year, Notre Dame played six games during the month of November and finished up the first month of the season with a 5-1 record. Last year, the Irish completed the first month of the season with a perfect 6-0 slate. It marked the most wins ever by a Notre Dame team in the month of November and the third time in the program’s history that the Irish played six games during that month. Notre Dame also played six games in the month of November during both the 1999-2000 and 1998-99 campaigns and finished with 4-2 and 2-4 marks, respectively. Under Irish head coach Mike Brey, Notre Dame owns a 14-1 mark in November.
A PERFECT DECEMBER – With its win over Vanderbilt on December 30, Notre Dame finished the month of December with an unblemished 6-0 mark. The last time an Irish team went undefeated during December was during the 1980-81 campaign as that Notre Dame squad also posted a perfect 6-0 mark.
A JANUARY JUMP – Notre Dame finished the month of January with a 6-2 record in the eight games it played during the past month. Two years ago, Notre Dame compiled a 5-3 record in eight games during the first month of the New Year. Last season, Notre Dame was 4-4 in its eight January contests. Overall, the Irish are 15-9 (.625) under Brey during the month of January.
ON A ROLL – Notre Dame has won 16 of its last 20 games. The Irish had a six-game conference win streak snapped against Seton Hall on February 5 in a 78-72 setback. Notre Dame’s longest win streak of the season has been eight games (from Nov. 30-Jan. 5) before Pittsburgh ended the streak with its 72-55 victory on January 6 in the first regular-season matchup between the two teams. That marked the longest win streak for a Notre Dame team since 2000-01 campaign (Brey’s first season), when that Irish squad put together eight consecutive victories midway through the season.
HOME SWEET HOME – Since the inaugural season (1968-69) playing in the Joyce Center, Notre Dame owns a 419-122 record all-time for a .774 winning percentage. The Irish are 34-8 (.810) at the Joyce Center during Mike Brey’s two-plus seasons, and since the 1996-97 campaign, they own a 84-27 mark for a .757 winning percentage.
THE IRISH ALL-TIME – The 2002-03 campaign marks the 98th season of men’s basketball at Notre Dame. Irish teams have posted a 1525-833 record all-time for a .647 winning percentage.
NOTRE DAME ALL-TIME IN THE BIG EAST – In seven-plus seasons as a member of the BIG EAST Conference, Notre Dame owns a 64-67 record all-time in conference regular-season play for a .489 winning percentage. In its first five years, Irish teams were 35-53 (.398), but since Mike Brey took over the program, the Irish have compiled a 29-14 (.674) mark in regular-season play.
THE HOME ADVANTAGE – Notre Dame has an unblemished 13-0 record at home this season and has won 15 straight at the Joyce Center dating back to last season when the Irish won the their final two home games of the regular season. The last loss at the Joyce Center for Notre Dame was against Syracuse (68-65) on February 17, 2002. The current 15-game win streak is the longest since 1985-86 season when that Irish squad finished with a perfect 15-0 mark at home.
IRISH FIND SUCCESS AT THE MCI CENTER – Notre Dame is 5-1 all-time in games played at the MCI Center following wins against Maryland and Texas in early December. Since dropping a 76-56 decision the first time a Notre Dame squad took the floor of the MCI Center against Georgetown on February 7, 1998, Irish teams have won five straight with three wins coming against the Hoyas. Certainly one of the most memorable was the epic four-overtime contest as the Irish prevailed 60 minutes later with a 116-111 victory.
BREY SHOWS IRISH THE WAY ON THE ROAD – Notre Dame played just 13 homes games during the 2001-02 campaign, but found life on the road to be rather friendly. The Irish were 8-4 in contests played on the opponent’s home floor and were 5-3 in neutral site contests for an overall record of 13-7 away from the Joyce Center. In Brey’s first year, Notre Dame was 6-4 on the road and 2-2 in neutral site games for an overall record of 8-6. In two-plus seasons under Brey, Notre Dame has a 17-11 (.607) road mark and 11-6 (.647) mark in neutral site contests. Over the past two-plus seasons, Irish teams have compiled a 28-18 (.609) record playing away from home.
HISTORY MADE – Wins over No. 10 Marquette, No. 8 Maryland and No. 2 Texas in consecutive outings proved historic as the 2002-03 Irish squad became the first team in school history to beat three consecutive top 10 foes. The victory against the Longhorns marked just the third time a Notre Dame team has beaten three top 10 teams in the same season. It also marked the fourth time in the history of the program that an Irish team has faced three consecutive top 10 opponents.
HISTORY MADE II – Notre Dame’s 66-64 victory over No. 4 Pittsburgh marked the fourth win for the Irish over a top 10 opponent this season. The only other time that has occurred was in 1977-78. That Irish team, which advanced to the Final Four, defeated No. 5 UCLA (69-66) and then a No. 3 UCLA squad (75-73), No. 1 Marquette (65-59) and No. 3 DePaul (84-64).
A HISTORIC LEAP – Notre Dame’s rise from being unranked to No. 10 in the Associated Press Poll on December 9th marked the third highest jump since the ranking began including 25 teams. Kansas went from unranked to 4th on November 27 1989, while Arizona made its debut at No. 8 on November 20, 2001.
CARROLL ONE OF 10 FINALISTS FOR SENIOR CLASS AWARD – Matt Carroll is one of 10 finalists for the Senior Class Award (acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School). The award is presented to a male and female senior NCAA Division I basketball player. It was presented last year for the first time and was awarded to Juan Dixon of Maryland and Sue Bird of Connecticut. The initial idea for the award came from CBS sportscaster Dick Enberg, who now serves as Honorary Chairman of the award. This year’s award will be presented at the Senior CLASS Award Tribute Gala in Kansa City, Mo., on Friday, April 23.
In addition to Carroll, the finalists include Nick Collison (Kansas), Brian Cook (Illinois), Kirk Hinrich (Kansas), Reece Gaines (Louisville), Jason Gardner (Arizona), Josh Howard (Wake Forest), Kyle Korver (Creighton), Hollis Price (Oklahoma) and David West (Xavier).
THOMAS NAMED TO WOODEN MIDSEASON TOP 30 AND NAISMITH LISTS – Sophomore point guard Chris Thomas was recently named to the Top 30 Midseason list for the 2002-03 John R. Wooden Award and is one of 20 finalists for the Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award. Thomas is among seven BIG EAST players still remaining on the Wooden List and one of three conference players still remaining on the Naismith ballot.
HOT SHOTS – Notre Dame connected on a combined 58.2 percent of its shots from the field in back-to-back wins against DePaul and Canisius. The Irish shot 60.0 percent from the field against the Blue Demons as they made 30-50 shots. It marked the best shooting performance by an Irish team since November 22, 2000 when Notre Dame converted 36-56 field goals (64.3 percent) against Loyola (Chicago). It also was the second time a Brey-coached team shot 60 percent or better in a game. The Irish were 34-60 (.567) from the field against Canisius. Overall, Notre Dame is shooting 45.0 percent from the field this season and has shot 50.0 percent or better on six occasions.
‘CARROLL’-ING INTO THE RECORD BOOKS – Senior guard Matt Carroll etched his name into the Notre Dame record books on February 1 when he became the school’s career three-point shooting leader. His six three-pointers (equalling his personal best) against Georgetown moved ahead of David Graves’ (1998-2002) record of 259. In 124 career games played, Carroll has 273 three-point fields for an average of 2.20. With 116 career starts to his credit, his start against Virginia Tech will be a Notre Dame school-record 117th. He tied David Rivers’ (1984-88) school mark on Tuesday night against West Virginia. Carroll also is on pace to break Graves’ career mark of 130 games played.
CLOSING IN ON THE 1,000-POINT MARK – Chris Thomas is 38 points away from becoming the 42nd player in Notre Dame basketball history to score 1,000 career points. Heading into today’s game with Virginia Tech, Thomas has 962 points in 58 games for a 16.6 career scoring average. Only six former Irish players reached the mark during their second season – Austin Carr (1968-71), Adrian Dantley (1973-76), Troy Murphy (1998-2001), Tom Hawkins (1955-59), Bob Arnzen (1966-69) and John Shumate (1972-74). Dan Miller is also approaching the 1,000-point mark with 947 career points in 129 games played for a 7.3 career scoring average.
WHERE CHARITY BEGINS – Notre Dame has outscored its opponents 428-282 from the free throw line this season and has attempted 147 more free throws (564-417). The Irish have made 75.9 percent of their free throw attempts, while their opponents are converting on just 67.9 percent. In 19 games, Notre Dame has made more free throws than its opponents and hit on better than 75.0 percent on 15 occasions. In the last nine games, the Irish are a combined 216-274 (.788) from the line compared to 138-201 (.687) for their opponents.
HOME STRIPE – Notre Dame has been particularly successful from the charity stripe in home games as the Irish are 243-315 (.771) compared to 142-206 (.689) for their opponents. In the last eight home games, Notre Dame is 181-221 (.819) from the line as the Irish have made an average of 22.6 free throws on 27.6 attempts and have averaged just 5.0 misses per game. Coach Mike Brey’s squad shot a season best 95.7 percent from the line against Rutgers as the Irish converted 22 of its 23 attempts.
CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARDS – Heading into the West Virginia game January 18, the Irish had been outrebounded in six straight games, and in 12 games overall. Notre Dame reversed that fortune versus the Mountaineers as the Irish owned a decisive 51-27 advantage on the boards – the most rebounds in a game this season as well as the largest rebounding margin. The 51 rebounds also were the most by the Irish since last year’s Georgetown game at the MCI Center when they totalled 64. It also was the largest rebounding margin ever by Notre Dame in Mike Brey’s two-plus seasons. In the Pittsburgh game on February 9, the Irish were outrebounded 24-10 in the first half, but owned a 16-9 advantage in the second half. In Tuesday’s night’s win over the Mountaineers, Notre Dame owned a 42-29 rebounding advantage. Notre Dame has been outrebounded in 15 of its 25 games this season.
IRISH SPELL SUCCESS – D-E-F-E-N-S-E – Notre Dame’s strong defensive showing in its 25 games has resulted in 20 wins as the Irish have held opponents to 67.8 points per game and a combined shooting percentage of 39.9. Notre Dame’s defense has held seven of its opponents to 55 points and under.
DEFENDING THE SHOT – Irish opponents are shooting 39.9 percent from the field overall and 33.8 percent from three-point range. On 13 occasions this season, Notre Dame has limited teams to 40 percent and under. In seven of the the last 15 games, the Irish have held their opponents to 40 percent and under and limited them to just 42.2 percent shooting from the field (429-1016). Four teams have shot better than 50.0 percent against the Irish – Seton Hall (52.6) Kentucky (52.3), Pittsburgh (52.7) and Creighton (62.0). Each time an opponent has shot better than 50.0 percent, it has resulted in an Irish loss.
KEEPING IT CLOSE – Notre Dame’s 17-point loss (72-55) to Pittsburgh on January 6 marked the worst loss for an Irish team under head coach Mike Brey (spanning 88 games total). Prior to the contest, Notre Dame’s worst loss was a 16-point setback to Connecticut during Brey’s first season, the 2000-01 campaign. The Irish’s 11 losses last season were by a combined total of 49 points for an average margin of defeat of 4.45 points. Only one loss (versus Georgetown – 83-73) was by double figures, while eight of those setbacks were by five points or less. In the 26 losses the Irish have suffered under Brey over the course of the last two-plus seasons, only six have been by a double-digit margin. In his first season (2001-01), Brey’s squad lost 10 games by a combined 85 points with its biggest loss coming against Connecticut.
IRISH HAVE FACED DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS 31 TIMES – The Irish’s matchup against Maryland on December 7 marked the 31st time an Irish team had played a team that had won the national title the previous year. With its win over the Terrapins, Notre Dame now owns an 8-23 mark, but has been victorious three of the last four times it has gone up against a team which had won the national championship the previous season. Notre Dame’s 1999-00 squad beat Connecticut twice – 75-70 at the Harford Civic Center and 68-66 at the Joyce Center – the season after the Huskies claimed the ’99 NCAA title.
HE’S IRISH NOW – Notre Dame forward Dan Miller played his first three seasons at Maryland before tranferring in June of 2001. He faced his former team in the first round of the BB&T Classic on December 7 and had 17 points and seven rebounds in 38 minutes of action. Prior to that contest, the last time the Irish and Terrapins played each other in the consolation game of the Preseason NIT, Miller was wearing a Terrapin uniform. Miller started the game and played 32 minutes, while finishing with 12 points and four rebounds. Current Irish players Matt Carroll and Jere Macura played in the game. Maryland won the game 72-67 to claim third-place in the tournament.
THERE’S NO SLOWING HIM DOWN – Matt Carroll ended the 2001-02 campaign by scoring 20 points in Notre Dame’s two BIG EAST and two NCAA tournament games. Carroll has continued that streak by scoring 20-plus points in 11 of the 25 contests of the season. He has netted 20-plus points in six of the last 11 games. Carroll has had three 30-point outings this season, which include a career-high 36-point performance against Georgetown and a 31-point effort at Pittsburgh. He has notched four 30-point outings during his career. Carroll also scored 33 points against DePaul on December 14. His other 20-plus point outings include: IUPUI (26 pts.), Creighton (20 pts.), Texas (20 pts.), Canisius (25 pts.), Rutgers (25 pts.), Kentucky (29 pts.) and Providence (21 pts.). Carroll has recorded 15 20-point efforts in his last 29 games in an Irish uniform and owns 21 20-plus point games during his career. He is the only Notre Dame player who has scored in double figures in all 25 games this season and has netted double figures in 31 straight contests.
MILLER TIME – After sitting out the 2001-02 campaign following his transfer to Notre Dame in the summer of 2001, Dan Miller is averaging 13.6 points (third best scoring total on the team) and 5.8 rebounds (second highest scoring average). He recorded double doubles in the first two games of the season against Belmont and IUPUI and has scored in double figures in all but eight contests. Miller also has registered 20-point outings in six games – 20 points versus Furman, Marquette and Texas; 22 points versus Albany; a career-high 23 points in the win over Canisius in which he made a personal best six three-pointers; a BIG EAST career-best 21 points in Wednesday nights loss at Seton Hall. Against Belmont, he had 19 points and 10 rebounds and came back against IUPUI the following night to score 17 points and grab 11 rebounds (career-high). In his three seasons with the Terrapins (104 career games), he did not record a double double and never grabbed more than seven rebounds in a game; he also had scored in double figures just 19 times and had only finished with 20 or more points on one occasion. Miller had equalled his career best with 11 boards against Georgetown – the third time this season with 10-plus rebounds.
REGAINING HIS FORM – After scoring in double figures in eight consecutive games prior to the start the beginning of BIG EAST play, Dan Miller struggled somewhat in his first four league games, scoring just 29 points (7.3) and grabbing 17 rebounds (4.3). He shot a combined 11-33 (.333) from the field and 3-15 (.200) from three-point range. Of late, Miller seems to have regained his early-season form. Against Boston College on January 25, he netted 16 points and grabbed five rebounds as he shot 5-10 from the field and 3-3 from the charity stripe. In the win over West Virginia, he finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. His 21-point outing against Seton Hall was his fourth time in double figures in the last six contests. In the loss at Syracuse on Saturday, he finished with 14 points, hitting four three-pointers in the contest. In the last 14 games overall, he has shot 53-151 (.351) overall and 17-66 (.258) from three-point range.
FANTASTIC FRANCIS – Rookie Torin Francis was Notre Dame’s hero after putting in the game-winning layup against Pittsburgh in the 66-64 victory on February 9. He is averaging 10.3 points and a team-leading 8.2 rebounds, in addition to registering a team-high seven double doubles – versus IUPUI, Bucknell, Albany, Marquette, Texas, Vanderbilt and Valparaiso. He has had two 20-point outings this season which came in back-to-back outings against Maryland (20 points) and Texas (career-high 21 points) at the BB&T Classic. Francis has been in double figures in 14 of 25 games (and in 12 of the last 20 contests) and has posted a double double in five of those games. He also has grabbed 10-plus rebounds in eight contests. In addition to his 21 points against the Longhorns, he grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked a career best eight shots. In the win over Maryland, he connected on all eight of his shot attempts. Against Marquette, he scored 11 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, which was preceeded by a 15-point and 15-rebound outing against Albany. He registered his first career double double against IUPUI and had 11 points and 20 rebounds against the Bison. Francis produced back-to-back double doubles in Notre Dame’s win wins over Vanderbilt (11 points and 11 rebounds) and Valparaiso (12 points and 10 rebounds). The 20 rebounds he had against Bucknell were the most ever by an Irish freshman and the most since former Irish All-American Troy Murphy grabbed 20 rebounds against Seton Hall on January 8, 2001.
IRONMAN – Matt Carroll played in his 100th career game in Notre Dame’s win over Belmont and has seen action in 124 career games in an Irish uniform. He has started all but eight of those games and has missed just one contest throughout his career (Miami-Fla. on the road last season because of an ankle injury) in 125 contests overall.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL – During the 2000-01 and 2001-02 campaigns (63 games), Notre Dame averaged 18.3 assists and just 13.7 turnovers for a 1.34 assist-to-turnover ratio. The Irish ranked third last season with a 1.45 assist-to-turnover ratio and ninth in ’01-’02 with a 1.23 ratio. Notre Dame’s 629 assists last season were second-most in school history – the 1999-2000 team had 643 assists in 37 games for a 17.4 assist per game average. Notre Dame has had more turnovers than assists in just five games this season – Bucknell, Furman, Vanderbilt, Seton Hall and Kentucky. During the 2001-02 season, only twice did Notre Dame have more turnovers than assists. The Irish own a 1.29 assist-to-turnover ratio and 0.61 assist-to-basket ratio this season and are averaging 16.5 assists and 12.8 turnovers.
JONES PROVIDES THE SPARK – Torrian Jones has been a spark for Notre Dame off the bench this season, and it’s been his play at both the offensive and defensive end of the floor that has ignited the Irish. Against Georgetown, he notched the game-winning free throw with four seconds remaining in double overtime to lift Notre Dame to the one-point win. Jones had one of his best all-around performances in an Irish uniform against Vanderbilt on December 30 as he scored 12 points and grabbed a season-high seven rebounds. In the Bucknell game, it was his offensive play that helped produce the win as he scored 13 points (on 6-8 shooting from the field) while playing a season-high 21 minutes. He had his third double figure outing of the season in the loss at Kentucky as he finished with 10 points and six rebounds. Against Furman, he also played 21 minutes and scored nine points, while making a career-high four steals. He averaged 6.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in the BB&T Classic as he finished with four points and a season-high six rebounds versus Maryland and eight points and two boards against Texas. Jones is averaging 5.2 points and 3.1 rebounds.
IN THE SPIRIT OF GIVING – Chris Thomas’ unselfish play continues to be one of the reasons why the Irish have been so successful the past two seasons in compiling a 42-16 (.724) mark over the last 58 games. As a freshman, he ranked fifth nationally with a 7.64 assist average. This season, Thomas is averaging 7.0 assists, good for ninth nationally. He has dished off 10-plus assists in four games – IUPUI (11), Marquette (10), DePaul (10) and Canisius (13). His 13 assists in the Canisius game matched his career best. Thomas has dished off 10 or more assists 14 times during his career.
TWENTY SOMETHING – Chris Thomas has scored 20-plus points in 10 games this season, including five of the last 10 contests. He had 24 points against Georgetown and 28 points versus Boston College (25 in the second half). His performance against the Eagles followed his game-high 23 points at Providence four days earlier. In the first machup against Seton Hall, he scored 22 points in Notre Dame’s win over the Pirates. Thomas matched his personal best with 32 points against Marquette on December 2 and recorded his third double double, and 10th of his career, against Canisius as he finished with 17 points and 13 assists in just 23 minutes. Thomas had three straight 20-point outings for the first time in his career against Bucknell, Furman and Creighton, scoring 20 points against the Bison and Paladins and then tossing in 22 in the loss to the Blue Jays in the championship game of the Guardians Classic. Last season, he began his career by registering 24 and 22 points in the first two games of the season versus New Hampshire and Cornell. He also had back-to-back 20-plus point outings against Rutgers (32) and Georgetown (22) and then against West Virginia (26) and Miami (32). Thomas has scored 20-plus points 19 times during his career (58 games). His 32 points against the Golden Eagles this season marked the third time in his career career that he has scored 30-plus points. He has failed to score in double figures just 12 times during his career.
FORTY-MINUTE MAN – Chris Thomas has played the entire game in two contests this season – Rutgers and Pittsburgh. He played 42 minutes in the January 25th overtime win at Boston College and 45 versus Georgetown in the double overtime victory before fouling out of the game for the first time in his career. As a freshman last season, he played the entire game in 11 of 18 BIG EAST games (regular season and two tournament contests) and averaged 40.2 minutes in league contests and 38.0 minutes overall. Thomas also played all 60 minutes in Notre Dame’s epic four-overtime win (116-111) at Georgetown last February. In addition, he played the entire game on 14 occasions.
MAKING THE “QUINN”-ESSENTIAL POINT – Freshman Chris Quinn has played in all 25 games for the Irish and is averaging 15.0 minutes per game and 3.9 points per game. Quinn had his best outing of the season against Marquette, scoring a personal best 12 points (hit 5-8 shots from the field) while playing 26 minutes. He played a career-best 28 minutes in Notre Dame’s win over Maryland and had a career-high six rebounds versus Valparaiso. In the Boston College game, he scored 10 points in the first half in 12 minutes off the bench. He played the final 3:55 of double overtime against the Hoyas when Chris Thomas fouled out of the game. Quinn has played 20-plus minutes in eight games.
TOM TERRIFIC – A lower back problem forced Tom Timmermans to miss three games, but the Irish center started eight straight games prior to Notre Dame’s last 10 outings. Overall, he is averaging 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds. In the last six games, Timmermans has averaged 5.8 points and 5.7 points. He tied a personal best with nine points in 14 minutes off the bench against West Virginia and also finished with a career-high eight rebounds. Timmermans played a career best 25 minutes against Vanderbilt and finished with four points, three rebounds and a career-high three assists. He also played 25 minutes in the double overtime win against Georgetown and finished with six points and six rebounds. Timmermans had nine points against DePaul as he connected on all three of his field goals and free throw attempts and grabbed a personal best seven rebounds versus Canisius. He earned his first career start in the win over Marquette on Dec. 2 .
DECISIVE FIRST-HALF RUNS – In eight games this season, it’s been runs in the final eight minutes of the first half that have been decisive for the rest of the game in leading the Irish to victory.
* Against Belmont, Notre Dame led 26-21 with 2:57 remaining and closed out the half with a 14-5 run for a 40-21 halftime advantage.
* In the IUPUI game, Notre Dame trailed 23-22 with 6:34 left before the game, but used a 18-5 run to gain a 40-28 halftime lead.
* Leading by seven (23-16) with 4:41 remaining in the first half, Notre Dame outscored Bucknell 17-5 for a 40-21 halftime lead.
* Notre Dame leads Furman 23-17 with 7:49 remaining in the half before a 16-6 run breaks it open as the Irish grab a 16-point (39-23) halftime advantage.
* Leading by five (24-19) with 5:54 to play, Notre Dame finished the half by outscoring Marquette 18-11 for a 42-30 halftime lead.
* Trailing 20-19 with 7:18 remaining in the first half of the Maryland game, Notre Dame ended the half with a 16-5 run to take a 35-25 lead into the locker room.
* Led 35-34 with 3:20 left to play in the first half and outscored DePaul 13-2 to take a 12-point lead (48-36) into the locker room.
* Trailed 29-28 with 7:25 remaining in the first half against Seton Hall before using an 18-7 run to take a 46-36 lead at the intermission.
HAPPY HOMECOMING – In his homecoming back to the New England area in mid January, Torin Francis guided the Irish to two wins against Providence and Boston College. In the two games, he averaged 14.0 points and 8.0 rebounds. He scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds versus the Friars and netted 15 points and eight boards in 35 minutes versus Boston College.
BLOCK PARTY – Notre Dame set the single-season team record for blocked shots in 2000-01 campaign with 178 in 30 games for an average of 5.93 blocks per game. Last season, the Irish finished with 163 blocks for an average of 4.94 per game. Notre Dame is within reach of the single-season mark as the Irish are averaging 5.72 per game this season (143 blocks). Jordan Cornette and Torin Francis lead the way with 59 and 43, respectively.
138 AND COUNTING – Heading into today’s contest against Virginia Tech, Notre Dame has hit at least one three-pointer in 138 straight games, which dates back to the 1998-99 campaign. The last time the Irish did not make a three-pointer was in a 101-70 loss to Connecticut in the Hartford Civic Center (Jan. 12, 1999) as Notre Dame finished 0-7 in the contest from three-point range. The Pittsburgh game on Jan. 26, 2002, marked the 100th consecutive game in which the Irish hit a three-pointer. Notre Dame has made 10 or more three-pointers in five contests this season, including a season-high 13 in both the Albany and Texas contests.
ONE OF JUST 12 – Getting back into the NCAA tournament last season put Notre Dame in rather elite company as the Irish were one of just 12 schools to win at least one NCAA game in both 2001 and 2002. The list also includes: Arizona, Cincinnati, Duke, Illinois, Kansas, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryand, Missouri, Stanford and UCLA.
BROTHERLY LOVE – Three members of the Notre Dame squad have brothers playing at other Division I schools. Matt Carroll’s brother Pat is a sophomore at St. Joseph’s (Pa.); Jordan Cornette’s brother Joel is a senior at Butler; and Jere Macura has a brother Petar who is a freshman at IUPUI. Jere and Petar both saw action on the floor at the same time in Monday night’s matchup.
LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION – Head coach Mike Brey and the Irish once again will receive tremendous exposure with 10 nationally-televised games on CBS, ABC, ESPN and ESPN2. Notre Dame was featured on national television 16 times in the regular season during the past two seasons.
THE NATIONAL LINEUP
Mon., Dec. 2 vs. Marquette (7:00 p.m.) – ESPN2
Mon., Jan. 6 at Pittsburgh (7:00 p.m.) – ESPN
Sat., Jan. 18 at Kentucky (2:00 p.m.) – CBS
Sat., Jan. 25 at Boston College (2:00 p.m.) – ESPN
Sun., Feb. 9 vs. Pittsburgh (3:30 p.m.) – ABC
Sat., Feb. 15 at Syracuse (1:00 p.m.) – ESPN
Mon., Feb. 24 vs. Connecticut (7:00 p.m.) – ESPN
Sat., Mar. 1 at Rutgers (4:00 p.m.) – ESPN2
Tue., Mar. 4 vs. Syracuse (7:00 p.m.) – ESPN2
RECORDS FALL AGAINST BELMONT – Notre Dame’s win over Belmont in the season opener, produced several new Irish records.
* The 19 blocked shots the Irish had as a team set the school and Joyce Center mark, eclipsing the old mark of 12. The team total ties for third all-time on the NCAA blocked shots list with Seton Hall (November of 2000).
* Jordan Cornette’s 11 blocked shots broke the school record of eight set by LaPhonso Ellis in 1992 in an NIT game versus Kansas State. He also established a new Joyce Center record, breaking the record of 10 set by UCLA’s Bill Walton on January 27, 1973.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS – By beating Maryland and Texas to win the BB&T Classic at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C., Notre Dame won a regular-season tournament title for the second straight year. The Irish advanced to the championship game of the Guardians Classic earlier this season, but fell to Creighton in the championship game. Last season, Notre Dame won the Hawaii Pacific Thanksgiving Classic in November which marked the first regular-season tournament championship for an Irish team since the 1992-93 season when that squad claimed the title at the Sugar Bowl Tournament.
vs. Maryland (first round): Notre Dame beat the defending national champion Terrapins 79-67as four of the five starters netted double figures. Notre Dame closed the first half with a 16-5 run as the Irish grabbed a 35-25 halftime advantage.
Maryland scored the first five points of the second half to close the lead to 35-30, but the Irish then outscored the Terrapins 18-7 over a seven-minute stretch as they built a 16-point lead (53-37). Maryland was never able to get closer than eight points as the Irish maintained a double-digit lead for the final 8:13 of the contest. Notre Dame led by as many 18 points in the second half.
Torin Francis led the Irish with 20 points and eight rebounds as he made all eight of his shots from the field, while Matt Carroll finished with 19 points. Dan Miller had 17 points and seven rebounds against his former teammates. Chris Thomas chipped in 10 points and dished off a game-high nine assists, just one fewer than the whole Maryland team.
Notre Dame held Maryland to 37.1 percent shooting in the game, but was outrebounded 47-37. The Irish turned the ball over just 10 times in the contest and had 20 assists on the 28 baskets they made.
With the win over the Terrapins, Notre Dame snapped an 11-game losing streak to the ACC and it was head coach Mike Brey’s first win in seven tries against a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference. Before that win, the last time an Irish team defeated an ACC foe was on January 11, 1992 at Madison Square Garden as Notre Dame upended North Carolina 88-76.
vs. Texas (championship game): Torin Francis scored a career-high 21 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked eight shots in helping Notre Dame to the 98-92 victory over the second-ranked Longhorns. Dan Miller finished with 20 points and eight rebounds, while counterpart Matt Carroll also scored 20 points and grabbed six boards. Chris Thomas chipped in 19 points and dished off eight assists.
The Irish scored a season-high 51 points in the first half in grabbing a second-point (51-44) halftime advantage. Notre Dame led by as many as nine in the first half on several occasions.
Following the intermission, the Irish built a 13-point lead (59-46) with 17:40 left in the game, but the Longhorns used a 30-11 run over an 11-minute stretch to go up by six (76-70) with 8:47 to play. Jordan Cornette cut the lead to one (77-76) with a layup with 6:37 remaining, but the Longhorns extended the lead to five with 4:02 to play.
Torrian Jones’ layup with 2:11 to play cut the deficit to 83-82 before a three-pointer by Thomas gave the Irish the lead for good with 2:06 remaining. Francis hit five of six foul shots in the final 1:44 of the game.
Notre Dame shot 45.8 percent from the field (33-72) and turned the ball over just nine times in the game, while Irish players combined for 19 assists.
BB&T CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM HONORS – Dan Miller and Torin Francis were named to the BB&T Classic All-Tournament Team after leading the Irish to the tournament title. Miller averaged 18.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in the two games in the 38.5 minutes he played. Francis averaging 20.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 5.5 blocked shots in 32.0 minutes per game. He shot 75.5 percent from the field and 73.3 percent from the free throw line.
GUARDIANS CLASSIC RECAP (Kansas City, Mo.) – vs. Furman (semifinal): Chris Thomas and Dan Miller scored 20 points each to lead the Irish into the championship game with a 75-50 victory over Furman in the semifinals. Notre Dame held its fourth straight opponent to 50 points and under as the Paladins shot 40.0 percent from the field and 11.1 percent from three-point range.
The Irish connected on 26-60 from the field (43.3 percent) and shot 66.7 percent (8-12) from three-point range. Matt Carroll, who finished with 15 points and six rebounds, was three-of-six from beyond the arc. Torin Francis grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.
Notre Dame held an 18-14 advantage with 9:44 remaining in the first half, but used a 21-9 run to close out the half for a 39-23 halftime advantage.
Furman outscored the Irish 8-0 to begin the second half to close the lead to eight (39-31) with 17:20 remaining, but Notre Dame countered with a 12-2 run of its own to break open the game. The final 25-point outcome was the largest point differential of the contest.
vs. Creighton (championship): The Irish fell to the Blue Jays 80-75 in the championship game. Chris Thomas and Matt Carroll, both named to the Guardians Classic All-Tournament Team, scored 22 points and 20 points, respectively, as the only two Irish players in double figures.
Creighton shot a blistering 62.0 percent from the field (31-50) and 58.8 percent (10-17) from three-point range. Its the best that any team has ever shot against a Mike Brey-coached Irish team. In addition, the Blue Jays owned a 36-29 advantage on the boards.
Creighton led for most of the first half before the Irish used a 21-10 run to grab a seven-point lead (35-28) with 3:02 remaining before halftime. The Blue Jays, however, outscored the Irish 10-0 to close out the first half and grab a three-point halftime advantage (38-35).
The Blue Jays led by as many as 10 in the second half (54-44) with 14:01 remaining. Notre Dame grabbed its first lead of the second half (75-74) with 1:35 remaining on Thomas’ three-pointer, but the Irish were held scoreless in the final minute of the game. Creighton tied the game at 75-75 with 24 seconds remaining and then nailed a three-pointer and a free throw which sealed the victory.
GUARDIANS CLASSIC RECAP (NOTRE DAME REGIONAL) – vs. Belmont: Dan Miller recorded the first double double of his career in his debut in an Irish uniform as he scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Jordan Cornette blocked a school and Joyce Center record 11 blocked shots. In addition, he grabbed a career-best 13 rebounds.
Cornette broke the school record of eight blocked (set by LaPhonso Ellis in 1992) and Joyce Center mark of 10 (set by Bill Walton of UCLA in 1973). Several of his blocked shots came in a decisive 30-5 run. Notre Dame was leading 26-21 with 2:57 remaining before halftime and closed out the first half with a 14-0 run that gave the Irish a 40-21 halftime lead.
Notre Dame held Belmont to just eight points in the first 12:30 of the contest in building a 37-point advantage (66-29). The Irish held the Bruins to just 28.1 shooting accuracy from the field and forced 17 turnovers.
Matt Carroll and Chris Thomas each finished with 15 points each. Thomas also had eight assists in the game.
Notre Dame’s 19 blocked shots also established new school and Joyce Center records.
vs. IUPUI: Matt Carroll scored 26 points as he hit four-of-eight three-point attempts, while Dan Miller registered his second straight double double as he netted 17- points and grabbed 11 rebounds in leading the Irish to an 89-45 victory over IUPUI. Torin Francis registered his first career double double as he tossed in 16 points and grabbed 10 boards. Chris Thomas finished with 11 assists and eight points.
Notre Dame used a late first-half run to finish off the Jaguars. The Irish ended the first half with an 18-5 run and then opened the second half with a 20-6 run to the put the game out of reach.
The Jaguars shot 24.3 percent for the game and made just seven baskets (on 36 attempts), while shooting 19.4 percent in the second half. Notre Dame forced 17 turnovers and blocked 13 shots in the game.
Notre Dame finished the game by shooting 54.6 percent from the field and 50.0 percent from three-point range.
LUSTIG ADDED TO IRISH ROSTER – Senior Dan Lustig has joined the Irish as a walk-on for the 2002-03 campaign. The 6-5, 195-pound guard hails from Alexandria, Ind., and attended Alexandria Monroe High School. He led his high school prep team to the 1998 Indiana Class II-A state championship and an appearance in the semifinals in 1999. A member of the Irish Guard, he is the sixth family member of nine children to attend Notre Dame. He wearsNo. 24 this season.
MARKWOOD TRANSFERS TO MAINE – Junior guard Chris Markwood has left the team and will transfer to the University of Maine. The 6-4, 202-pound guard played in 24 games for the Irish during his career. He missed the entire 2000-01 campaign after undergoing arthrscopic knee surgery in September of 2000.
KEVIN WHITE RADIO SHOW – A weekly half-hour talk show featuring Notre Dame athletics director Kevin White airs on Chicago’s ESPN Radio 1000 (1000 AM in Chicago, www.espnradio1000.com). In its third season, “The Kevin White Show” can be heard in 35 states Thursdays at 9:00 p.m. Central time. White welcomes to the show a series of guests and prominent figures associated with college athletics, including administrators, coaches and media members.
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED RANKS NOTRE DAME 15TH – In the October 7, 2002 issue of Sports Illustrated, Notre Dame was ranked the 15th best Sports College among Division I schools for the 2001-02 school year. Texas and Stanford finished first and second, respectively. SI combined a variety of factors in arriving at its 2002 rankings, which included performance during the school year in five sports (baseball, football, hockey and men’s and women’s basketball); position in the ’01-’02 Sears Cup NCAA all-sports standings; number of varsity, club and intramural sports; range of recreational facilities; and whether or not spirit-boosting events like Midnight Madness were held.
USA TODAY/NCAA ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD – Notre Dame received a 2002 USA Today/NCAA Academic Achievement Award for graduating 90 percent of its freshmen student-athletes who enrolled in 1995. Now in its second year, the awards were presented in late September of 2002 to 10 institutions with the highest overall graduation rates for scholarship student-athletes who began college in the 1995-96 academic year. Rice University finished with a rate of 91 percent, one percentage point higher than Notre Dame, Stanford and Duke.
IRISH INK TWO IN EARLY SIGNING PERIOD – Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey signed two players to national letters of intent during the early signing period – Colin Falls, a 6-4, 200-pound shooting guard out of Park Ridge, Ill., and Omari Isreal, a 6-8, 210-pound forward from Rockville, Md. Falls averaged 24.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists during his junior season at Loyola Academy in Wilmette, Ill. In addition, he captured first-team all-Chicago Catholic League honors for the second consecutive year, while also earning second-team all-state accolades. Isreal averaged 18.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots in his junior season at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Wheaton, Md. An all-Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) second-team selection each of the last two years, he earned first team all-county honors from both the Montgomery County Journal and Montgomery County Gazette.
TOUGH TICKET AT THE JOYCE CENTER – The largest crowd ever to witness a Notre Dame basketball game (11,450) at the Joyce Center on February 9 against Pittsburgh marked the seventh sell out of the season. The other sell outs have been Bucknell, Marquette, DePaul, Vanderbilt, West Virginia and Georgetown. The remaining three games on the Irish home slate are already sold out to date. Before the start of the season, six games were sell outs, which equalled the total number at the Joyce Center during the entire 2001-02 campaign. All 3,160 student ticket packages available this year sold out in 36 hours. With the seven sell outs already and the expected three left for the remainder of the home season, that would give the Irish a total of 10 – the most since the 1985-86 season when 14 of the team’s 17 games drew a capacity crowd at the Joyce Center.
DRAFT ANALYSIS – Former Irish standout Ryan Humphrey was chosen as the 19th overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft, marking the second straight year Notre Dame has had a player chosen in the first round. In 2001, former two-time consensus All-American Troy Murphy was tabbed as the 14th pick overall. Humphrey became the 12th Irish player in the program’s history to be chosen in the first round. Notre Dame is one of just four schools (the others include Duke, Indiana and Stanford) to have had at least one player chosen in the first round of each of the last two NBA drafts.