No. 6/7 Irish Face St. John's Wednesday

Jan. 25, 2005

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(#6 AP/#7 ESPN/USA Today) Notre Dame Fighting Irish (16-3, 4-2) vs. St. John’s Red Storm (14-3, 3-3)

The Date and Time: Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2005, at 7 p.m. ET.
The Site: Joyce Center (11,418) in Notre Dame, Ind.
The Tickets: Still available through the Notre Dame athletics ticket
office (574-631-7356) or at the Joyce Center Gate 10 ticket windows
on game day.
The TV Plans: Comcast Local regional broadcast with Ben Holden (play-by-play), former Irish All-American Ruth Riley (analysis) and Andy Greathouse (producer/director). Comcast Local is available in South Bend on Comcast Cable Channel 3, and Comcast SportsNet Chicago (DirecTV Channel 640) will air the game on a same-day delayed basis at 8 p.m. ET/7 p.m. CT.
The Radio Plans: Wednesday’s game will be broadcast live on WDND-AM (ESPN Radio 1580) and WNDV-AM (1490) in South Bend with Sean Stires (play-by-play) and former Irish standout Sara Liebscher (analysis) calling the action. These broadcasts also are available through the Notre Dame athletics web site at www.und.com.
Real-Time Statistics: Live in-game statistics are available for the St. John’s game, via the Notre Dame (www.und.com) athletics web site.
Web Sites: Notre Dame (www.und.com), St. John’s (www.redstormsports.com).

Fresh off its fourth victory over a ranked opponent, and third against a top-10 foe this season, No. 6/7 Notre Dame looks to remain on track Wednesday when it plays host to St. John’s in a 7 p.m. (ET) BIG EAST contest at the Joyce Center.

The Irish (16-3, 4-2 BIG EAST) carded their third consecutive win Sunday with a 63-47 victory over then-No. 6/7 Rutgers. Notre Dame trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, and by 11 points at halftime before putting together a stirring second-half rally for the win. Notre Dame punctuated the comeback with a 23-0 run during the final eight minutes.

Senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast scored a game-high 27 points, including 18 in the second half when she singlehandedly outscored the Scarlet Knights, 18-16. Junior guard Megan Duffy added a career-high 11 assists for the Irish.

St. John’s (14-3, 3-3) evened its conference record last Saturday with a 57-54 win at home against Syracuse. Sophomore guard Kia Wright scored a team-high 21 points for the Red Storm.

Wright leads SJU in scoring (14.9 ppg.), assists (4.0 apg.) and steals (2.1 spg.), while sophomore forward Angela Clark is second in scoring (12.8 ppg.) and tops in rebounding (8.4 rpg.).

Head coach Kim Barnes Arico is 32-40 (.444) in her three seasons at SJU, but is 0-3 vs. the Irish.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE FIGHTING IRISH
It’s hard to say a 13-3 team was at a crossroads in its season, but Notre Dame found itself in such a situation entering its Jan. 16 game with No. 20 Purdue. The Irish had opened with wins in 13 of their first 14 games, including a memorable run to the Sportsview.tv Preseason WNIT title that included victories over a pair of top-10 opponents (No. 6 Duke and No. 10 Ohio State). However, after rising as high as third in the polls, a pair of bitter losses to BIG EAST foes Villanova and No. 16 Connecticut sapped some of the team’s confidence and left them searching for answers heading into the Purdue contest.

After a tense struggle through the first 10 minutes, Notre Dame pulled away and put together its second-highest offensive production of the season while ending a four-game losing streak to its in-state rival. The victory sparked a current Irish three-game winning streak that has seen Notre Dame win all three contests by double figures, including two against ranked opponents. Most recently, the Irish rallied from a double-digit deficit for the first time since March 2003, climbing from a 13-point first-half hole to oust No. 6/7 Rutgers, 63-47.

Despite the added focus shown to her by opposing teams, senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast was a major catalyst for the Irish this season, averaging 19.0 points (26th in the nation as of Jan. 24), 6.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. She was named the Preseason WNIT Most Valuable Player and BIG EAST Player of the Week on Nov. 22 after logging a career-high 32 points in the WNIT championship game against Ohio State. She has scored in double digits in 17 Irish games this season, has earned game-high scoring honors 11 times and has four double-doubles. With her 22-point effort at Villanova on Jan. 9, Batteast also moved into fifth place on Notre Dame’s career scoring list (now with 1,676 points), giving her top-five placement on the school’s all-time points, rebounds and blocks charts.

Junior guard Megan Duffy also has stepped up her play this season, registering 11.6 points per game with a team-high 5.4 assists and 2.7 steals per game. Duffy also leads the BIG EAST and is fourth in the nation with a .921 free throw percentage (70-for-76) this season, sparking the Irish to a league-leading .759 free throw ratio (14th in the NCAA as of Jan. 24).

Duffy’s backcourt mate, sophomore Breona Gray, has also shown great improvement this year. Moviing easily into the starting lineup, the Las Vegas native has more than doubled her scoring average from last season (2.1 to 5.7 ppg.), highlighted by a career-high 17-point effort vs. Syracuse on Jan. 5, and she is second on the team with 25 steals (1.32 spg.).

In the post, senior center Teresa Borton is showing capable leadership by example. In her past six games, Borton is averaging 11.8 ppg. with a .622 field goal percentage (28-for-45) and has scored in double figures three times. She is third on the team in scoring this season (8.6 ppg.), second in rebounding (5.6 rpg.) and first in both blocked shots (1.6 bpg.) and field goal percentage (.563).

SOME POTENT NOTABLES ABOUT THE FIGHTING IRISH

• Notre Dame won its first seven games this season, the second-best debut in the program’s history. The 2000-01 squad opened with a 23-game win streak en route to school’s first national championship. The Irish also reached the double-digit win mark Dec. 19 at Marquette, getting their 10th win faster than any team in school history (the ’00-01 team did it two days later on Dec. 21, 2000).
• The Irish are 6-1 on the road this year, and won their first five road games this season for the second time in school history. The 2000-01 club opened with a 10-game road winning streak to set the school standard. Ironically, Notre Dame struggled in true road games last year, losing its first four and six of its first seven on the opposition’s floor.
• Notre Dame has been a fixture near the top of all major RPI charts this season. Through Jan. 23, the Irish are fourth in the WBCA/Summerville RPI rankings, with the nation’s 12th-toughest schedule.
• Notre Dame has appeared in the top 10 of the AP balloting 10 times in the first 12 polls of the year, returning to that level this week at No. 6 after a one-week hiatus. On three other times in school history have the Irish spent longer in the AP top 10 – 1998-99 (16 weeks), 1999-2000 (15 weeks) and 2000-01 (18 weeks). All told, Notre Dame has now spent 66 weeks in the AP top 10 and has a 100-17 (.855) all-time record when it’s ranked in the top 10.
• The Irish have posted 34 wins over Top 25 opponents in the past seven seasons (1998-99 to present). Two of those wins came in Notre Dame’s first four games this year (76-65 vs. No. 6 Duke and 66-62 vs. No. 10 Ohio State), while the third came Jan. 16 vs. No. 20 Purdue (86-69) in the BIG EAST/Big Ten Challenge and the latest occurred last Sunday against No. 6 Rutgers (63-47).
• The Irish have defeated 21 top-10 opponents in their history, adding to that total with three victories this season (sixth-ranked Duke and 10th-ranked Ohio State in the Sportsview.tv Preseason WNIT, followed by No. 6 Rutgers last Sunday).
• Notre Dame owns a unique distinction with victories over both the No. 1 (Duke) and No. 3 (Ohio State) teams in this week’s Associated Press poll. In fact, the Irish are one of only two teams to defeat Duke so far this season, and also one of just two squads to solve OSU in 2004-05. Notre Dame came within mere seconds of handing No. 8 (and twice-beaten) Michigan State a third loss this year, leading the Spartans by six in the final half-minute of regulation, but MSU rallied to force overtime and left the Joyce Center with an 82-73 win on Dec. 2.
• Head coach Muffet McGraw has a 400-152 (.724) record in 18 seasons with the Irish, having logged the milestone 400th victory this past Sunday against Rutgers. She also has a 488-193 (.717) overall record in 23 seasons, leaving her only 12 victories shy of the 500-win plateau for her career.

A QUICK LOOK AT ST. JOHN’S
During the past three seasons, perhaps no team in the BIG EAST has made bigger strides than St. John’s. When head coach Kim Barnes Arico took over prior to the 2002-03 campaign, the Red Storm were coming off a 3-24 season and their roster was in disarray. However, Barnes Arico has wasted little time in turning around SJU’s fortunes, highlighted by this year’s 14-3 record (3-3 in the BIG EAST) which has assured the program of its first winning season in a decade.

St. John’s last played on Saturday afternoon when it defeated Syracuse, 57-54 at Carnesecca Arena (formerly Alumni Hall) in Queens. Sophomore guard Kia Wright, a transfer from Connecticut, scored a team-high 21 points and junior forward Danielle Chambers grabbed a team-best nine rebounds as the Red Storm beat back a late rally by the Orange to even their conference record this season.

Wright leads a trio of St. John’s players who are scoring in double figures, logging 14.9 points per game along with a team-high 4.0 assists and 2.1 steals per night. Sophomore forward Angela Clark, a BIG EAST all-freshman team pick last year, is second on the team in scoring (12.8 ppg.) and tops in rebounding (8.4 rpg.), while junior college transfer guard Tara Walker is collecting 11.8 ppg. with a .419 three-point percentage.

Barnes Arico has a 32-40 (.444) record in three seasons at St. John’s. She is in her ninth year as a college head coach, with an overall mark of 126-112 (.529). She is 0-3 all-time against Notre Dame.

THE NOTRE DAME-ST. JOHN’S SERIES
Notre Dame and St. John’s began facing one another when the Irish joined the BIG EAST Conference in 1995-96. Since that time, the series has been tipped strongly in favor of Notre Dame, with the Irish going 14-0 all-time against the Red Storm, including a 6-0 mark at the Joyce Center, site of Wednesday night’s game. In those 14 previous matchups, Notre Dame has won each time by at least 13 points and has scored at least 70 points on 10 occasions.

Among current Irish players, senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast and junior forward Courtney LaVere have had the most success against St. John’s, each averaging 13.0 points per game. Senior center Teresa Borton also is averaging in double digits vs. the Red Storm, logging 10.3 ppg. with a .682 field goal percentage. A complete rundown of the statistics active Notre Dame players have compiled against St. John’s can be found on page 16 of this notes package.

THE LAST TIME NOTRE DAME AND ST. JOHN’S MET
Behind solid three-point shooting from a cagey veteran and some timely free throw shooting down the stretch, Notre Dame picked up an important BIG EAST Conference road win, toppling St. John’s, 69-56 on Feb. 17, 2004 at Alumni Hall (now Carnesecca Arena) in Jamaica, N.Y.

Megan Duffy led all scorers with 17 points, connecting on a career-high 11 of 13 free throws. Jeneka Joyce turned in her second consecutive career performance, rolling up new personal bests with 15 points and five three-point field goals (on 10 attempts). Le’Tania Severe also established a career milestone, notching her first-ever double-double with 10 points and a career-high tying 10 rebounds. Teresa Borton made a solid contribution on the glass, matching her career best with a game-high 11 rebounds.

Angela Clark piled up a double-double for St. John’s, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Kim MacMillan, who came into the game ranked second in the nation in three-pointers made per game, lived up to her sharpshooting reptuation, scoring 14 points and hitting four of nine treys. Shemika Stevens chipped in with 12 points and a game-high six assists for the Red Storm.

Notre Dame earned its seventh win in the past eight games the hard way, fighting off a stiff challenge from a rapidly-improving St. John’s club. The Irish found themselves trailing almost right from the opening tip, as Stevens converted a three-point play only four seconds into the game. The hosts opened up a four-point lead in the early stages before Notre Dame took its first lead at 7-6 on a triple by Joyce at the 16:29 mark. That signalled the beginning of a back-and-forth struggle that would last well into the second half. In fact, the team combined for 10 lead changes in the first half alone.

St. John’s had the largest lead of the period for either side, going on an 11-4 run that included a pair of threes by MacMillan, and taking a 34-28 advantage with 2:40 to go. Notre Dame rallied to within a point, but Danielle Chambers sank a layup with 11 seconds remaining to give the Red Storm a 36-33 lead at halftime. SJU shot a blistering 53.6 percent (15 of 28) in the opening 20 minutes.

The see-saw affair continued into the second half with two more ties and three more lead changes in the first 11 and a half minutes. The Irish grabbed a three-point lead, matching their largest at the time, at 45-42 when Courtney LaVere hit a spinning layup in the paint with 9:08 left. However, that was quickly erased when MacMillan canned her third three-pointer of the night just 36 seconds later to knot the score at 45-45. At it turned out that would be the final tie of the ball game.

Duffy gave Notre Dame the lead for good with an old-fashioned three-point play at the 7:43 mark. That ignited a 10-2 Irish run that swung the momentum over to the visitors’ side. Jacqueline Batteast, who had been held largely in check to that point, came up big in the game-changing run, grabbing a pair of missed layups and converting on her third opportunity with six minutes left. That boardwork also helped propel Batteast into the top 10 on the school’s career rebounding list.

Joyce then followed with a crucial three-pointer, finding the bottom of the net for the fifth time just before the shot clock expired with 4:40 remaining. Batteast tacked on a foul line jumper on her team’s next possession and Notre Dame was in control.

St. John’s made one final charge, getting within six points twice, the second coming when MacMillan hit a trey with 2:23 left to pull her side within 58-52. However, the Irish kept the Red Storm at bay down the stretch, connecting on 14 of 16 free throws in the final three minutes – Duffy was eight for 10 and Severe made all six of her foul shots. As a team, Notre Dame wound up connecting at an 84.6 percent clip (22 of 26) from the free throw line in the victory.

THE LAST TIME NOTRE DAME AND ST. JOHN’S MET AT THE JOYCE CENTER
Alicia Ratay scored 19 points to pace four Notre Dame players in double figures, as the Irish led from tip to buzzer in a 76-48 BIG EAST Conference win over St. John’s on Feb. 12, 2003 at the Joyce Center.

Ratay also collected a game-high seven rebounds and a season-best four steals while passing the 1,600-point mark for her career. Jacqueline Batteast turned in another workmanlike performance, knocking down seven of her nine shots to finish with 16 points. She also pulled down a game-best seven rebounds. Courtney LaVere added 13 points, including her first career three-point basket, and Teresa Borton dumped in 12 points, highlighted by a (then) career-best 6-for-6 effort at the free throw line.

Shemika Stevens scored a game-high 20 points for St. John’s, while Patrycja Gulak came off the bench to contribute 10 points and a team-high six rebounds for the Red Storm. SJU was playing without leading scorer Danielle Rainey, who was declared ineligible by the school earlier in the day.

Notre Dame wasted little time in moving ahead, as Borton found Batteast for the game’s opening bucket with just 13 seconds gone. St. John’s got as close as 4-3 in the first two minutes, but layups by Borton and Batteast thwarted the Red Storm’s initial surge. A pair of free throws by Borton bumped the Irish lead into double digits for the first time at 18-7 with 9:19 remaining in the first half. SJU cut the lead back to eight, but Notre Dame responded with a 9-2 run late in the period and took a 35-20 lead to the dressing room.

The Irish then scored the first eight points of the second half to move their lead over the 20-point mark. St. John’s could get back inside of 20 points only twice in the last 20 minutes, drawing within 17 on two free throws by Stevens at the 16:32 mark. Meanwhile, Notre Dame steadily pulled away, taking its largest lead of the night (28 points) four times in the period, including the final margin.

OTHER NOTRE DAME-ST. JOHN’S SERIES NOTES

• St. John’s is one of three BIG EAST Conference opponents against whom Notre Dame has never lost, going 14-0 all-time. The others are Pittsburgh (14-0), which plays host to the Irish Feb. 5, and Providence (12-0), whom Notre Dame visits Feb. 9.
• St. John’s has never scored more than 60 points in any of its 14 series games against Notre Dame. On the other hand, the Irish have never scored less than 66 points in any previous encounter with the Red Storm.
• No game in the Notre Dame-St. John’s series has been decided by less than 13 points, with the average margin of victory for the Irish of 27.8 points per game (30.5 ppg. over the past six meetings).
• The Irish have won all six series games at the Joyce Center by an average spread of 31.7 points per game. The past five matchups in South Bend have resulted in at least 28-point wins for Notre Dame.
• Notre Dame has shot better than 50 percent in eight of 14 games against SJU, including a high-water performance of .571 (36-63) in a 94-51 win at the Joyce Center on Feb. 12, 2000.
• The 31 points allowed by Notre Dame vs. St. John’s on Feb. 13, 2002 at the Joyce Center represented the fourth-lowest opponent scoring total in school history, the second-lowest by a Division I opponent, and the lowest ever by a conference opponent (in any league – North Star, Midwestern Collegiate or BIG EAST).

NEW YORK, NEW YORK
Notre Dame owns a superb 34-2 (.944) record all-time against schools from the state of New York, going 18-2 vs. Syracuse, 14-0 vs. St. John’s and 1-0 vs. both Army and Fordham. The Irish also are a perfect 17-0 at the Joyce Center against Empire State teams, winning by an average margin of 26.1 points per game. In fact, only once in those 17 home games has a New York-based squad come within single digits of Notre Dame – the Irish edged Syracuse, 71-66 on Dec. 8, 1990.

PROTECTING PERFECTION
Coming into the 2004-05 season, Notre Dame had a perfect all-time record against four of the opponents on its schedule. St. John’s represents the second foe in that list, with the Irish holding a 14-0 series record against the Red Storm. In fact, of the four perfect series the Irish will defend this season, the Irish have defeated all four opponents at least 10 times – the others are Valparaiso (18-0 after a 69-59 win on Nov. 30), Pittsburgh (14-0) and Providence (12-0).

STREAKING ACROSS THE BIG EAST
The Irish have winning streaks of 10 or more games against three of their 13 BIG EAST Conference opponents. Their longest active conference winning streak is 14 games against St. John’s and Pittsburgh, followed by an 12-game success string against Providence. The longest current Irish winning streak vs. any opponent is 18 games against Valparaiso.

THE BEAST OF THE BIG EAST
Notre Dame is 128-30 (.810) in regular-season competition against the rest of BIG EAST Conference, owning the best conference winning percentage of any current member of the BIG EAST since joining the circuit for the 1995-96 campaign. The Irish also have finished either first or second in the BIG EAST eight times in their nine-year membership, and claimed a share of their first-ever regular-season conference championship in 2001. When including postseason competition (BIG EAST and NCAA tournaments), Notre Dame is 141-39 (.783) against league opponents – when factoring in these 22 postseason tilts, the Irish are 72-8 (.900) at home, 56-25 (.691) on the road and 13-6 (.684) at neutral sites all-time vs. BIG EAST foes.

POLLING PLACE
Notre Dame is 177-43 (.805) all-time when it is ranked in the Associated Press poll at tipoff (the Irish are sixth entering Wednesday’s game against St. John’s). When playing at home, Notre Dame has been especially strong, going 83-10 (.892) as a ranked host after posting a 10-2 record at the Joyce Center this season. Conversely, the Irish are 70-25 (.737) all-time when they play on the road as a ranked team.

Upon closer inspection, Notre Dame has been very sharp when it’s ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll. The Irish are 100-18 (.847) as a top-10 squad, including a 49-4 (.925) record at home. In fact, prior to its Dec. 2 overtime loss to then-No. 15 Michigan State, Notre Dame had a 41-game home winning streak when it was ranked in the AP top 10, dating back to December of 1998.

DUFFY LENDS A HAND
During the past six games (starting with the first matchup vs. Syracuse), junior guard Megan Duffy is averaging 7.5 assists per game, with at least six handouts in each contest. In that time, she also has posted a sharp 2.14 assist/turnover ratio (45 assists, 21 turnovers).

BATTEAST NAMED BIG EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK FOR THIRD TIME
For the third time this season, and the fourth time in her career, Batteast has been selected as the BIG EAST Conference Player of the Week, the league office announced Monday. The 6-foot-2 wing also was tapped for the honor back on Nov. 22 and Dec. 20, and she is the third player this season to be named BIG EAST Player of the Week three times, joining Meg Bulger of West Virginia and Jessalyn Deveny of Boston College.

Batteast earned the weekly conference award after averaging 23.0 points per game with a .515 field goal percentage (17-for-33) as the Irish downed Syracuse (74-61) and Rutgers (63-47). In the first game at SU, she scored a game-high 19 points, including five critical markers down the stretch after the Orange had trimmed the Notre Dame lead to five points. Four days later against RU, Batteast tallied 18 of her game-high 27 points in the second half as the Irish erased a 13-point first-half deficit. In fact, Batteast herself outscored the entire Scarlet Knights’ squad in the final period (18-16).

BATTEAST NAMED TO WOODEN AWARD MIDSEASON TOP 20 LIST
Senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast has been named to the John R. Wooden Women’s Award Midseason Top 20 List, recognized the leading candidates for the honor that goes to the nation’s outstanding women’s college basketball player. In March, approximately 15 finalists for the Wooden Women’s Award will be placed on the voting ballot by the award’s National Advisory Board, which is comprised of some of the country’s leading sportswriters and sportscasters who cover women’s basketball on a regular basis. Those ballots will then be mailed to more than 250 voters across the nation, with the top five vote-getters earning Wooden Award All-America honors, as well as a trip to the Wooden Award trophy presentation ceremony April 9 at the Omni Hotel in Los Angeles.

For the season, Batteast ranks second in the BIG EAST in scoring (19.0 ppg.), and also stands among the conference leaders in rebounding (10th – 6.7 rpg.), assists (13th – 3.11 apg.), free throw percentage (2nd – .838), double-doubles (7th – 4) and 20-point games (2nd – 8). In addition, Batteast ranks in the top five on the Irish career lists for points (5th – 1,676), scoring average (4th – 15.4 ppg.), rebounds (4th – 874), rebounding average (3rd – 8.0 rpg.), blocks (3rd – 147) and double-doubles (tie-2nd – 36).

ROAD WARRIORS
The Irish are off to a 6-1 start on the road this season, a far cry from last year’s struggles away from the Joyce Center, when they lost their first four and six of their first seven true road contests. In fact, Notre Dame won its first five road games this year, marking only the second time in school history the Irish opened with five or more road victories (they won 10 in a row to begin the 2000-01 campaign).

Accenting Notre Dame’s play on the road has been its defensive prowess. The Irish are holding opponents to 52.9 ppg., a .336 field goal percentage (130-for-387) and a .185 three-point percentage (22-for-119) away from home and have allowed more than 60 points only once in their six road games this year (61 by Syracuse on Jan. 19).

THREE-FENSE
In the past 16 games, Notre Dame has limited its opponents to a .224 three-point percentage (62-for-277), after Irish foes were shooting .333 from beyond the arc (17-for-51) in the first three games of the season. On Dec. 9, Notre Dame held Dayton to an opponent season-low .071 three-point percentage (1-for-14), with the Flyers missing their final 13 three-point attempts.

For the season, Notre Dame leads the BIG EAST in three-point percentage defense, holding opponents to a .241 mark (79-for-328) from long range.

THE FIVE-FINGER DISCOUNT
Notre Dame ranks second in the BIG EAST Conference in steals this season, averaging 9.63 thefts per game (183 total). The Irish have come up with at least 10 steals in eight games and had a season-best 20 thefts on Nov. 22 vs. Colorado State, the most by a BIG EAST team this season.

Individually, junior guard Megan Duffy is tops in the conference in steals (2.74 spg., 52 total), while her backcourt mate, sophomore Breona Gray is second on the team with 1.32 steals per game (25 total). Three other Notre Dame players have at least 15 steals this year – senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast (24), freshman guard Charel Allen (21) and senior center Teresa Borton (16).

THE SEASON FOR SHARING
One of the key elements in Notre Dame’s success this season has been its penchant for distributing the ball well. In fact, the Irish have 318 assists (16.74 apg.; third in the BIG EAST and 26th in the nation as of Jan. 24) on 470 field goals made (24.7 per game), including a Preseason WNIT-record 29 handouts in the season opener vs. Illinois State.

Junior guard Megan Duffy leads the way at 5.37 assists per game (third in the BIG EAST and 34th in the nation), with at least five dimes in 12 contests this year, including a career-high 11 assists vs. Rutgers last Sunday. Duffy also leads the BIG EAST with 7.0 assists per game in conference play.

LOTS OF FREE STUFF
When given the opportunity, Notre Dame has taken advantage of its trips to the free throw line this season. The Irish lead the BIG EAST Conference and are 14th nationally (as of Jan. 24), shooting 75.9 percent from the charity stripe. In fact, they set a school record by going a perfect 18-for-18 on Nov. 30 at Valparaiso, which also matches the best mark by any team in the country this season.

Notre Dame has been led at the gift line by junior guard Megan Duffy (.921, 70-76), senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast (.838, 83-99) and freshman guard Charel Allen (.833, 40-48). Duffy currently ranks first in the BIG EAST and fourth in the nation in free throw percentage, while Batteast is second in the conference and has shown the greatest improvement among all Irish players this season with more than a 21-percent jump from last year’s career low .627 mark.

One side note about Duffy’s free throw prowess – the Irish junior struggled at the line early in her freshman season, shooting just 59.3 percent (16-27) during her first 15 collegiate games. However, in the 67 games since then (Jan. 20, 2003 to present), Duffy is connecting at an .869 clip (185-213) on her foul shots. She also has made 78 of her last 85 free throws (.918) in the past 25 Irish games, dating back to Feb. 28, 2004.

McGRAW’S MILESTONES
Entering this season, Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw had the opportunity to reach three career coaching milestones. Here’s a look at her progress toward each landmark:

• Winningest basketball coach at Notre Dame – picked up 394th victory with the Irish on Dec. 19 at Marquette, passing longtime men’s coach Digger Phelps (393 wins from 1971-91).
• 400th victory at Notre Dame – registered 400th win at Notre Dame on Jan. 23 vs. Rutgers (current record: 400-152, .725)
• 500th victory overall – needs 12 wins (current record: 488-193, .717)

THE RUTGERS RECAP
Notre Dame had the better second half Sunday. Senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast made sure of that.

After sixth-ranked Rutgers held Notre Dame to its lowest scoring half of the season (20 points) in the first half, the 11th-ranked Irish held the Scarlet Knights to their lowest scoring half (16 points) in the second. Batteast had two more points in the second half than the Knights, finishing with 27 points to lead the Irish to a 63-47 victory on Sunday afternoon at the Joyce Center.

Batteast scored the first 12 points of the second half to get the Irish (16-3, 4-2 BIG EAST) back into the game, then added six more points during a 23-0 run that put the game away.

The Scarlet Knights (13-4, 4-1) looked to be too quick for the Irish in the first half, jumping to a 13-point lead. But in the second half, Notre Dame’s zone defense was too much for the Knights, repeatedly forcing them to take bad shots to avoid shot-clock violations.

In the first half, the Scarlet Knights turned 16 Notre Dame turnovers into 19 points. But the Irish turned the ball over just five times in the second, while the Knights turned it over eight times, leading to 10 points for the Irish.

The Scarlet Knights, who shot 47 percent in the first half and led by as many as 13, shot just 17 percent in the second.

Batteast was the only Irish player in double figures, but junior guard Megan Duffy had a career-high 11 assists, including eight in the second half with only one turnover, and sophomore forward Crystal Erwin added nine rebounds. Chelsea Newton had 18 points and Cappie Pondexter added 17 for Rutgers.

NOTING THE RUTGERS WIN

• Notre Dame registers its third win over a top-10 opponent this season (also No. 6 Duke and No. 10/9 Ohio State), and the 21st top-10 win in school history.
• The Irish are 4-2 against ranked opponents this season, having also defeated No. 20 Purdue, while falling to No. 15 Michigan State and No. 16 Connecticut.
• Notre Dame snaps a three-game losing streak vs. Rutgers, defeating the Scarlet Knights for the first time since Feb. 16, 2002 (57-52 at Piscataway, N.J.).
• It’s also the second-fewest points Notre Dame has ever allowed to Rutgers – the Irish beat the Scarlet Knights, 67-46 on Jan. 6, 2001 at the Joyce Center.
• Notre Dame rallied from a 13-point first-half deficit to claim the win, its first comeback from a double-digit deficit since March 1, 2003, when the Irish climbed out of a pair of 12-point holes to down Seton Hall, 62-60 at the Joyce Center.
• The 13-point comeback also is the largest for Notre Dame since Jan. 8, 2003, when the Irish erased a 14-point second-half margin at West Virginia to record a 66-59 victory.
• The 23 consecutive points scored by Notre Dame in the second half tied for the fifth-longest run of unanswered points in school history and the most since a 26-0 run to open a win over Dayton on Dec. 13, 2003 at the Joyce Center.
• Senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast matched the second-highest point total of her career, scoring 27 points in a game for the fourth time (also Marquette on Dec. 19, and last year vs. Auburn and Middle Tennessee); Batteast also outscored Rutgers by herself in the second half (18-16).
• Junior guard Megan Duffy dished out a career-high 11 assists (eight in the second half with just one turnover), one more than her previous best of 10 set vs. Washington on Dec. 11.
• Sophomore forward Crystal Erwin collected a career-high nine rebounds, topping her old personal standard of eight boards vs. Seton Hall on Jan. 2.
• Freshman guard Charel Allen scored at least eight points for the fourth consecutive game and is averaging 10.3 points per game with a .483 field goal percentage (14-for-29) in that time.
• Irish head coach Muffet McGraw picked up her 400th win in 18 seasons at Notre Dame; she has a 400-152 (.725) record under the Golden Dome and a career mark of 488-193 (.717) in 23 years of college coaching.
• The victory over Rutgers also assured the Irish of finishing with a winning record for the 13th consecutive season, the 17th time in the 18-year McGraw era and the 24th time in the 28-year history of the program.

SPORTSVIEW.TV PRESEASON WNIT REWIND
Punctuated by emotional second-half rallies in the semifinal and final, Notre Dame won four consecutive games to claim the 2004 Sportsview.tv Preseason WNIT championship. The Irish capped off their season-opening charge with a 66-62 victory over No. 10/9 Ohio State in the title game, scoring the final 12 points of the contest to erase an eight-point Buckeye lead with a little more than five minutes remaining. That win came on the heels of a 76-65 semifinal conquest of No. 6 Duke, a victory that also saw Notre Dame come back from an eight-point deficit late in the second half.

Senior All-America forward Jacqueline Batteast was named the tournament Most Valuable Player after averaging 21.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists with a .507 field goal percentage in the four-game series. Batteast was at her best in the final two games, scoring a game-high 17 points vs. Duke (including a personal 10-0 run that put the Irish ahead for good) and then rolling up a career-best 32 points in the championship game against Ohio State. In that latter contest, she had another 10-point run in the first half and later scored seven of her team’s last 12 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 2:45 to play. However, her biggest contribution came with two seconds remaining, when she raced from beyond the top of the key all the way to the deep corner, blocking OSU’s potential game-tying three-pointer to cement Notre Dame’s title.

Not to be overlooked, junior guard Megan Duffy earned a place on the Preseason WNIT all-tournament team after recording 15.0 points and 6.0 assists per game with a .500 field goal percentage (.600 from beyond the arc). She was the catalyst for an Irish offense that averaged nearly 77 points per game and dished out better than 20 assists per night in the tournament, including a Preseason WNIT-record 29 assists in the first round vs. Illinois State.

HALF AND HALF
Over the past five seasons, Notre Dame has been nearly unbeatable when it has the lead at halftime. The Irish are 90-7 (.928) since the start of the 2000-01 campaign when they go into the dressing room with the lead. Notre Dame is 13-0 in such games this season, including a 3-0 record in BIG EAST Conference play.

THE BEST OFFENSE IS A GOOD DEFENSE …
During the past decade, 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 140-7 (.952) record when they hold their opponents to less than 60 points in a game, including an 11-1 mark this season.

… 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. Over the past decade (1995-96 to present), the Irish are 90-3 (.968) 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 and a 106-81 loss to Connecticut in 1998. Notre Dame has tacked two more wins onto that ledger with its victories this season over Illinois State and Purdue.

NOTRE DAME AMONG RECENT WINS LEADERS
Notre Dame has won 218 games over the past nine seasons, which is tied for the seventh-most wins of any school in the country during that time. Here’s where the Irish rank in terms of their wins since the start of the 1996-97 campaign (totals through games of Jan. 24):

SWEET SUCCESS
Notre Dame is one of only five schools in the country to have appeared in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen six times in the past eight seasons (1997-2004). The others are Connecticut (eight times), Tennessee (eight times), Duke (seven times) and Louisiana Tech (seven times).

THE GOLD STANDARD
The Irish are one of just six teams nationwide to have an active streak of 11 consecutive 20-win seasons. The others in these elite club are Tennessee (28), Texas Tech (15), Louisiana Tech (13), Old Dominion (13) and Connecticut (11).

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 123 of their last 134 games (.918) at the 11,418-seat Joyce Center. Notre Dame also has a 72-8 (.900) home record in BIG EAST play.

The Irish have been particularly strong when it comes to non-conference games at home, winning 54 of their last 57 non-BIG EAST contests (.947) at the Joyce Center, dating back to the 1994-95 season. The only three losses in that span all came against Big Ten Conference teams – Wisconsin in 1996 (81-69), Purdue in 2003 (71-54) and Michigan State in 2004 (82-73 in OT).

Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center, posting a 273-72 (.791) record at the venerable facility. In three of the past five seasons (1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2003-04), the Irish were a perfect 15-0 at home, setting a school record for home wins in a season.

JAMMIN’ THE JOYCE
Beginning with its national championship season of 2000-01, Notre Dame has ranked in the top 15 in the nation in attendance each of the past four years, and early returns indicate this season will be no different. According to the Jan. 17 unofficial national attendance rankings (as compiled by the University of Wisconsin Sports Information Office), Notre Dame is 14th in the nation with an average of 5,566 fans per game.

All of the top 20 crowds in the Irish record book have occurred during the 18-year tenure of head coach Muffet McGraw (1987-present). And, as more evidence of Notre Dame’s rapid elevation to “hot ticket” status in South Bend, 19 of the top 20 crowds in school history have been recorded in the past six seasons (1999-2000 to present), including 12 audiences of 8,000 or more fans, and 61 of the past 63 home games with at least 5,000 fans filing into the Joyce Center.

NOTRE DAME ON THE SMALL SCREEN
The Irish are scheduled to make at least 13 appearances on regional or national television during the 2004-05 season (additional broadcasts may be announced at a later date).

Notre Dame made its TV debut this season on Nov. 20 when it defeated No. 10/9 Ohio State, 66-62 in the championship game of the Sportsview.tv Preseason WNIT. That contest was shown globally via broadband Internet connection at www.sportsview.tv, as well either live or delayed on several Comcast SportsNet outlets nationwide. The American Forces Network, which broadcasts to more than one million U.S. service men and women in 176 countries, also aired the game.

The Irish returned to the airwaves Dec. 2 when they dropped an 82-73 overtime decision to No. 15 Michigan State on College Sports Television (CSTV). That was the first of three Notre Dame games that will air nationally on the fledgling cable network, which has signed an agreement with the BIG EAST Conference to carry a national women’s basketball Game of the Week eight times in 2004-05. The Irish also faced Connecticut Jan. 12 at the Joyce Center and will visit Boston College on Feb. 15 in front of the CSTV cameras.

In addition, Notre Dame is scheduled to play twice on ESPN2 this year. On Jan. 16, the Irish battled Purdue in the second annual BIG EAST/Big Ten Challenge at the Joyce Center. On Sunday, Notre Dame is back on ESPN2 when it heads to Storrs, Conn., to meet Connecticut at Gampel Pavilion.

The BIG EAST also added two Irish games to its regional television package this season. Notre Dame visited Villanova on Jan. 9 and played host to Rutgers on Jan. 23, both on BIG EAST Television. Among those affiliates carrying the BETV package are Comcast SportsNet outlets in Chicago, Philadelphia and the Mid-Atlantic region, as well as Fox Sports Net outlets in New York, New England and Pittsburgh.

Detroit-based Comcast Local (Channel 3 on Comcast cable systems in South Bend) is the latest television outlet to select Notre Dame women’s basketball games for broadcast. The newly-formed network will air five Irish games this season – at USC (Nov. 26), and home games vs. Washington (Dec. 11), St. John’s (Wednesday), Georgetown (Feb. 12) and West Virginia (Feb. 26) – with former Irish All-America center, WNBA champion and 2004 Olympic gold medalist Ruth Riley slated to provide color commentary on the final three broadcasts. Comcast Local can be seen in South Bend on Comcast Cable channel 3.

NOTRE DAME ON THE AIRWAVES
Once again this season, every Irish women’s basketball game (home and away) airs on the flagship stations of the Artistic Media Partners (AMP) Network – WDND-AM (ESPN Radio 1580) and WNDV-AM (1490) in South Bend. Veteran broadcaster and AMP sports director Sean Stires is now in his fifth season handling the play-by-play for Notre Dame. The Irish also can be heard on the Internet at Notre Dame’s official athletics web site (www.und.com) by subscribing to College Sports Pass, which gives listeners full multimedia access to a variety of Irish athletics events for only $6.95 per month.

OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
For the fourth time in school history (all during the Muffet McGraw era), Notre Dame will have three players sharing the captain’s duties this year. Senior forward Jacqueline Batteast, senior center Teresa Borton and junior guard Megan Duffy all were accorded the honor based upon a vote of their teammates prior to the season. All three are serving as captains for the first time in their respective careers.

IRISH ADD TWO PLAYERS DURING EARLY SIGNING PERIOD
Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw has announced that Lindsay Schrader, a 6-0 guard from Bartlett, Ill., and Chandrica Smith, a 6-1 forward from Stone Mountain, Ga., have chosen to continue their careers with the Irish, signing National Letters of Intent to attend Notre Dame beginning in the fall of 2005.

With the additions of Schrader and Smith, Notre Dame’s newest recruiting class is ranked 16th in the nation by Blue Star Index. That marks the ninth consecutive year the Irish have had a top-20 class, according to that publication, which makes Notre Dame one of only three schools in the nation that can claim that distinction (Connecticut and Tennessee are the others).

Schrader has been widely regarded as one of the top all-around players in the state of Illinois while attending Bartlett High School the past three seasons. She is a three-time all-state selection, a two-time Illinois Miss Basketball finalist, and a two-time Street & Smith’s All-America selection who has averaged 20.1 points, 9.8 rebounds, 3.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game in her prep career. Her finest all-around season came as a junior in 2003-04, when she averaged 20.8 ppg., 10.8 rpg. and 2.0 bpg. while earning first-team all-state honors from the Associated Press, Chicago Tribune and Champaign News-Gazette. She also was a sixth-team All-America selection by Street & Smith’s and was a finalist for Illinois Miss Basketball honors, an award she will likely contend for once again this season.

On the summer camp circuit, Schrader was an Underclass All-Star at the 2002 adidas Top Ten Camp, before attending the Nike All-America Camp in both 2003 and 2004. She is ranked among the top 30 high school seniors in the nation by three separate recruiting services – Blue Star Index (14th), All-Game Sports (21st) and All-Star Girls Report (26th overall – eighth among shooting guards).

In addition, Schrader made a significant impact at the 2004 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival in Colorado Springs. Playing for the North Team that won the silver medal, she ranked third at the Festival in scoring (14.8 ppg.) and rebounding (8.6 rpg.), as well as second in field goal percentage (.542). All three figures were team highs, as were her 2.2 steals per game. For her efforts, Schrader was invited to attend the 2004 USA Women’s Junior World Championship Qualifying Team Trials, where she was one of 17 finalists for the 12-player team that won the gold medal this past August.

Smith currently attends Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va., where she transferred prior to her senior season. Previously, she was a standout at Stephenson High School in Stone Mountain, Ga., where she averaged 12.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.5 steals and 2.4 blocks per game with a .620 field goal percentage. She also was a key component in the Jaguars’ run to a 32-1 record and the Georgia 5A state championship last year. In fact, during her first three prep seasons, her teams posted a combined 89-7 (.927) record with three trips to the Georgia state championship and one state title.

Smith herself has received numerous accolades during her high school career. She is a two-time honorable mention All-America selection by Street & Smith’s and was a Student Sports All-American in 2004. In addition, she attended the adidas Top Ten Camp three consecutive years and was named to its prestigious all-star team all three years (Underclass All-Star in 2002 & 2003; Upperclass All-Star in 2004). Last season, she was an honorable mention 5A all-state selection and a first-team all-county choice. She is ranked as high as 29th in the nation among high school seniors by All-Star Girls Report.

Like Schrader, Smith also attended the 2004 USA Basketball Youth Development Festival in Colorado Springs. Playing for the South Team, she averaged 5.4 points and 2.6 rebounds per game, scoring a personal-best 13 points in the bronze-medal game victory over the East squad.

Muffet McGraw SIGNS CONTRACT EXTENSION THROUGH 2010-11 SEASON
On Nov. 6, Notre Dame announced that Muffet McGraw has signed a two-year extension to continue as head coach of the Notre Dame women’s basketball program through the 2010-11 season.

McGraw, who is now in her 18th season with the Irish, most recently signed a four-year contract extension in July 2002 that took her through the 2008-09 season. Her first 17 seasons at Notre Dame have been highlighted by 15 20-win campaigns (including a current string of 11 straight), 11 NCAA tournament appearances (including a current streak of nine straight) and the 2001 NCAA title. Entering the 2004-05 season, she had a 384-149 (.720) record at Notre Dame.

In 2003-04, McGraw skillfully guided her team to a 21-11 record and a second consecutive berth in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen (the fourth for the Irish in five years). McGraw’s charges placed second in the BIG EAST Conference, their eighth top-two finish since joining the league nine years ago. In addition, the Irish went 15-0 at home, their third perfect record at the Joyce Center in the past five seasons, and extended their overall home win streak to 20 games, the second-longest in school history and eighth-longest active string in the nation heading into the 2004-05 campaign.

McGraw has continued to enhance her reputation as one of the nation’s outstanding big-game coaches and tacticians, piloting Notre Dame to a school-record seven wins over top 25 teams during the 2003-04 regular season. During her 17-year tenure with the Irish, McGraw has compiled 40 victories over nationally-ranked opponents, including 30 in the past six seasons (an average of five per year).

Under McGraw’s guidance, the past nine years have been the most successful in Notre Dame’s history as the Irish have compiled an impressive 225-69 (.765) record, including a sparkling 124-28 (.816) regular-season mark in BIG EAST play, the best winning percentage in league history. Notre Dame also has averaged 25 victories per campaign during that span, with two 30-win seasons to its credit. The Irish have won at least one NCAA tournament game every season over that time, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen six times (1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004) and the Final Four twice (1997 and 2001).

PROMOTIONAL CORNER
Here’s a rundown of some upcoming promotions and giveaways at future Notre Dame women’s basketball games this season (additional promotions and giveaways may be added at a later date):

• Jan. 26 vs. St. John’s – Notre Dame women’s basketball foam fingers (first 1,500 fans)
• Feb. 2 vs. Boston College – Notre Dame women’s basketball trading cards (first 1,500 fans)
• Feb. 12 vs. Georgetown – Notre Dame women’s basketball dry erase boards (first 2,000 fans)

NEXT GAME: CONNECTICUT
Notre Dame will get a second crack at its primary BIG EAST Conference rival, Connecticut, this weekend when the Irish and No. 9/10 Huskies square off before a national television audience Sunday at 7 p.m. (ET) inside Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Conn. The game will be shown across the country on ESPN2, with Dave O’Brien and Doris Burke calling the action.

Beginning with its 67-50 defeat of Notre Dame back on Jan. 12 in South Bend, Connecticut has mounted a four-game winning streak that has included victories over conference troublemaker Villanova (73-57) and No. 15 Texas (73-57). The Huskies most recently downed Seton Hall, 64-47 last Saturday in Hartford behind 14 points apiece from veterans Jessica Moore and Barbara Turner. UConn is slated to play at Pittsburgh Wednesday night before returning home to meet the Irish.

Connecticut leads the all-time series with Notre Dame, 16-3, including a 9-0 mark at home (7-0 at Gampel Pavilion). The last time the teams met in Storrs, the top-ranked Huskies registered a 77-59 victory, although the Irish tied the game at 28-28 late in the first half and trailed by only five points at the intermission. Teresa Borton scored a career-high 21 points and Jacqueline Batteast grabbed a career-best 18 rebounds in that contest.