Jan. 16, 2000
No. 6/6 Notre Dame (13-2, 4-0) at
Pittsburgh (11-5, 2-3)
Date: Tuesday, January 18, 2000
Place: Fitzgerald Field House (6,798)
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Radio: All Notre Dame games are broadcast on WJVA-AM (1580 in South Bend). Jeremy Gray provides play-by-play for games.
TONIGHT’S GAME — The Notre Dame women’s basketball team (13-2, 4-0) plays the first of three consecutive road games Tuesday evening as the Irish meet the Pittsburgh Panthers (11-5, 2-3). Tonight’s contest is the first of two regular-season meetings between the two teams. The Irish and Panthers also will play each other on Wednesday, February 9.
Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad, ranked sixth nationally and winners of nine straight, broke the school record for consecutive wins (16) at the Joyce Center on Saturday with its 71-56 victory over Syracuse. The Irish have not lost since dropping a 71-61 decision to Purdue on the road on December 8. Notre Dame is 8-0 at home in 1999-2000 and has not lost at the Joyce Center since December 8, 1998 when it suffered a 106-81 setback to Connecticut. The current Irish streak began with a 63-62 victory over Villanova on December 10, 1998.
Notre Dame is 6-0 against the Panthers and has a 3-0 mark against Pittsburgh at Fitzgerald Field House. The two teams played only once a year ago with the Irish earning an 81-72 victory at Pittsburgh. The largest margin of victory in the series is 39 points when Notre Dame beat the Panthers 90-51 on February 7, 1996.
Notre Dame is sixth in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls this week. The Irish have been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 23 of the past 26 weeks, including a school-record 19 consecutive weeks from November 16, 1998 thru November 29, 1999. Notre Dame has been in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today poll for 26 straight weeks.
Notre Dame Probable Starting Lineup
No. Name Hometown Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG 32 Julie Henderson*** Ann Arbor, MI F/C 6-3 Sr. 4.4 3.900 Ruth Riley** Macy, IN C 6-5 Jr. 15.3 7.2 12 Danielle Green*** Chicago, IL G 5-8 Sr. 10.8 3.022 Alicia Ratay Lake Zurich, IL G 5-11 Fr. 15.2 5.0 33 Niele Ivey** St. Louis, MO G 5-8 Sr. 11.9 3.4
Off The Bench 3 Ericka Haney Toledo, OH G/F 6-1 So. 7.6 4.511 Karen Swanson Westlake, OH G 5-7 Fr. 0.8 0.3 23 Monique Hernandez Rio Rancho, NM G 5-9 Fr. 2.9 1.2 31 Amanda Barksdale Friendswood, TX F 6-3 Fr. 0.7 1.041 Imani Dunbar** San Angelo, TX G 5-7 Jr. 1.2 1.944 Meaghan Leahy* Wilbraham, MA F 6-4 So. 3.2 2.950 Kelley Siemon** Edina, MN F 6-2 Jr. 5.5 4.1
* Indicates monograms won
Series Record
Notre Dame leads 6-0
Home: 3-0
Away: 3-0
Neutral: 0-0
Date Site Score2-7-96 Notre Dame, IN W 90-512-17-96 Pittsburgh, PA W 89-511-18-97 Notre Dame, IN W 65-4912-31-97 Pittsburgh, PA W 66-462-15-98 Notre Dame, IN W 75-601-16-99 Pittsburgh, PA W 81-72
Series Scoring Total Average Notre Dame 466 77.7Pittsburgh 329 54.8
Current Win Streak: Notre Dame, 6 games
McGraw vs. Pittsburgh: 6-0
ND Biggest Win: 39 (90-51 on 2-17-96)
UP Biggest Win: 0
ND Longest Win Streak: 6 (from 1996-99)
UP Longest Win Streak: 0
SYRACUSE REVIEW – Leading by just two points (32-30) at halftime, Notre Dame outscored Syracuse 17-5 in the first seven minutes of the second half to record its 10 straight victory over the Orangewomen. Niele Ivey tossed in a season-high 22 points as she was eight-of-14 from the field. The senior guard connected on a career-best six three-pointers in the contest. She also dished off eight assists in the game and was one of three Irish players in double figures. Ruth Riley chipped in 15 points on six-of-nine shooting from the field. She and three other Notre Dame players (Danielle Green, Alicia Ratay and Kelley Siemon) finished with a team-high six boards in the contest. Danielle Green reached double figures for the seventh time in eight games as she scored 14 points. Notre Dame shot 45.5 percent from the field and 82.4 percent from the charity stripe. Syracuse, after hitting 50.0 percent in the first half, shot just 38.1 percent (8-21) in the final 20 minutes. The 56 points marked the fifth straight game the Irish had held an opponent to 60 points or under.
Irish All-Time vs. 1999-2000 Opponents
Team Record
Boston College 4-3
Butler 19-6
Connecticut 0-10
Florida International 1-0
Georgetown 12-1
Illinois 1-4
Liberty 2-0
Marquette 21-4
Miami 7-2
Michigan State 4-6
North Carolina 1-0
Pittsburgh 6-0
Providence 6-0
Purdue 2-9
Richmond 1-0
Rutgers 5-6
St. John’s 7-0
Seton Hall 8-2
Syracuse 11-1
Toledo 3-2
USC 1-1
Valparaiso 13-0
Villanova 9-3
West Virginia 7-0
Total 151-60 (.716)
RATAY CLAIMS THIRD ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONOR – For the third time this season, Irish rookie Alicia Ratay claimed BIG EAST rookie-of-the-week accolades as she shared the honor with Brookie Stewart of Pittsburgh. The only three-time honoree thus far in 1999-2000, she averaged 17.5 points and 5.5 rebounds in wins over West Virginia and Georgetown last week. Ratay shot 57.1 percent from the field in the two wins as she hit 12 of her 21 field goal attempts.
RILEY HAS HIGH SCHOOL NUMBER RETIRED – Notre Dame junior Ruth Riley had her high school number 25 retired at North Miami High School (Indiana) on Thursday night (January 6). The Macy, Ind., native was a standout in three sports – basketball, volleyball and track. She is the first such athlete from her high school to have her number retired.
IRISH TOUGH AT HOME AGAINST BIG EAST FOES – Notre Dame has compiled a 37-3 (.925) record against BIG EAST opponents at the Joyce Center since joining the league in 1995-96. All three of those losses have been to Connecticut. Notre Dame was a perfect 9-0 at the Joyce Center in league action during the 1996-97 campaign.
16 AND COUNTING – Notre Dame won its 16th consecutive home game (a school record) with its 71-56 victory over Syracuse on Saturday. The former mark of 15 was set on two previous occasions before the current win streak. The 16-game Joyce Center streak began on December 10, 1998 when the Irish defeated Villanova 63-62. That win followed a 106-81 setback to Connecticut on December 8, 1998 which snapped a 15-game win streak at the Joyce Center. Notre Dame does not play at home until until January 29 when the Irish host Georgetown at 7:30 p.m.
HELPING PUT THE BIG IN THE BIG EAST – During its four-plus seasons as a member of the BIG EAST Conference, Notre Dame has proven to be one of the league’s most dominant teams. The Irish have a 63-13 record (82.9 percent) in regular season games and an 8-4 mark (66.7 percent) in BIG EAST tournament action for an overall record of 71-17 (80.7 percent) against league opponents. Of Notre Dame’s 17 league losses, 10 have come against Connecticut. The Irish have lost to four other teams in the BIG EAST – Rutgers (three times), Boston College (twice), Villanova and Miami. All of the losses to those teams have come on the road.
IVEY SHINES AGAINST ORANGEWOMEN – Niele Ivey scored a season-high 22 points against Syracuse in Saturday’s win. Six of her eight field goals in the game were from three-point range. The six three-pointers marked a career best for the senior guard who scored 20-plus points for the fourth time in her career. Ivey hit six-of-11 three-point attempts in the game. She had eight assists in the which marked the 11th time in 15 outings in which she has dished off six or more assists.
A BIG ASSIST – For the second straight year, Niele Ivey has dished off 100-plus assists and is nearing the 400 assists in her career. She needs just six more to become the fifth Irish player with 500 or more career assists. Ivey, among the nation’s leader in that category, is averaging 7.2 assists per game. She has dished off eight or more assists in Notre Dame’s last six games and is averaging 9.0 assists in the those games. Ivey has dished off 10 or more assists in four games this season.
RILEY STREAK SNAPPED – Ruth Riley failed to reach double figures for just the second time this season in scoring nine points against West Virginia on January 5. After being held scoreless for the first time in her career (64 games) in the season opener against Toledo, Riley came back to score in double figures in 10 consecutive games. She has scored 20-plus points twice this season as she netted a season-high 32 points against Liberty on December 5 which marked the third 30-point performance of her career. Riley also had 20 points in a win over Florida International at the Orange Bowl Women’s Basketball Fab Four. She tops the Irish scoring column with 15.3 ppg. and has led the Irish in scoring in five games this season. Riley has scored in double figures in 59 of 78 career games.
ANOTHER DAILY DOUBLE FOR RUTH – Ruth Riley, who led Notre Dame and the BIG EAST Conference with 12 double-doubles last season, registered back-to-back double-double performances in games against Georgetown and Seton Hall. Her most recent double-double occurred a week ago against Seton Hall as she scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. That was preceded by her performance (18 points and 13 rebounds) against Georgetown, which marked her first double-double of the season. She has 23 career double-doubles and has grabbed 10 or more rebounds 24 times in her career
BABY RUTH GIVEAWAY
Baby Ruth candy bars are being thrown into the stands this season following every blocked shot by an Irish player. The Notre Dame-Michigan State game was designated ‘Baby Ruth Day’. All fans entering the game received a Baby Ruth bar.
FRESHMAN FOLLIES – Freshman guard Alicia Ratay is second on the team in scoring as she is averaging 15.2 points per game. Ratay, a two-time BIG EAST rookie-of-the-week honoree, has topped the 20-point mark three times this season, including a 32-point performance against North Carolina which marked just the second 30-point performance by an Irish rookie in the 22-year history of the program. Ratay led Notre Dame in scoring for the seventh time this season against Georgetown on January 8 as she scored a game-high 23 points in the Irish win over the Hoyas.
IRISH CAPTURE WACHOVIA WOMEN’S INVITATIONAL – Notre Dame captured the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament in Richmond, Va., as the Irish beat North Carolina and Liberty in the seventh annual event. The tournament is recognized as one of the most prestigious in-season events.
Junior center Ruth Riley was named MVP of the tournament in addition to being selected along with freshman Alicia Ratay to the all-tournament team. Riley scored 32 points (the third 30-point performance of her career) against Liberty in the championship game as she connected on 12-of-14 shots from the field and was a perfect eight-for-eight from the free throw line. In addition, she had seven rebounds and two blocked shots in 29 minutes of action. Against North Carolina, she registered 12 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots in 28 minutes. For the tournament she averaged 22.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots. Riley also was 17-of-22 (.773) from the field and a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe.
Ratay had the first 30-point performance of her career, and second-ever by a Notre Dame freshman, when she tossed in 32 points on a 12-for-15 shooting performance against North Carolina. The Irish rookie also hit six-of-eight from three-point range. In the championship tilt, she was the only other Notre Dame player in double figures as she netted 17 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished off five assists playing a season-high 36 minutes. For the tournament, she averaged 24.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals. Ratay shot 18-of-25 (.720) percent from the field and was seven-for-11 (.636) from three-point range.
POLL WATCHING – Notre Dame is ranked sixth in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today rankings this week. The number six ranking ties the all-time high for Irish in the regular season in both polls. Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 23 of the last 26 weeks over the past two seasons. The Irish slipped out of the top 10 (after a school-record 19 consecutive weeks there) on November 29, 1999, prior to that, Notre Dame had held a spot in the top 10 of every poll dating back to November 16, 1998. Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad has now been ranked 26 consecutive weeks in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today ranking. Notre Dame has earned a top 25 ranking for a school-record 29 consecutive weeks, breaking the old mark of 24 weeks set from February 5, 1996 thru March 10, 1997.
NOTRE DAME POLL WATCHING
(Week By Week)
Date AP ESPN/USA Today Preseason 8 9 Nov. 15 7 9Nov. 22 6 6Nov. 29 11 8Dec. 6 7 6Dec. 13 11 7Dec. 20 12 8Dec. 27 10 8Jan. 3 8 6Jan. 10 6 6
ASSOCIATED PRESS(Week of Jan. 10) LW1. Connecticut 12. Tennessee 23. North Carolina State 34. Louisiana Tech 45. Penn State 66. NOTRE DAME 87. Georgia 78. Iowa State 109. Rutgers 1110. Auburn 511. Duke 1412. Illinois 1513. Tulane 1914. UCLA 1715. North Carolina 916. Texas Tech 1317. LSU 1618. Purdue 1219. Santa Barbara 2220. Arizona 1821. Kansas 2322. Old Dominion 2123. Oregon 2424 Mississippi St. 2025. Boston College 25
ESPN/USA TODAY(Week of Jan. 10) LW1. Connecticut 1 2. Tennessee 23. North Carolina State 44. Louisiana Tech 45. Penn State 56. NOTRE DAME 67. Georgia 78. Duke 109. Iowa State 1110. Auburn 811. Rutgers 1412. North Carolina 913. Illinois 1614. Texas Tech 1315. Tulane 2016. Purdue 1217. UCLA 1718. Arizona 1519. LSU 2120. Santa Barbara 2221. Old Dominion 1922. Mississippi State 1823. Kansas 2324. Oregon 2425. Boston College 25
HEAD COACH MUFFET McGRAW – Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw is in her 13th season with the Irish and 17th as a collegiate coach. She has guided Notre Dame to four straight NCAA tournament appearances and six overall. McGraw led the Irish to the 1997 Final Four as her team claimed the East Regional championship. In 1998, McGraw’s squad finished with a 22-10 mark and advanced to the Sweet 16. In 12-plus seasons at Notre Dame, she has a record of 274-112 (.710), and in 17-plus campaigns overall, her teams have registered a 362-153 (.703) ledger. Prior to coming to Notre Dame, she spent five seasons at Lehigh where she compiled an 88-41 record for a .683 winning percentage. Last season, McGraw, after guiding the Irish to their sixth consecutive 20-win season, was named as a finalist for the Naismith Women’s Basketball and Associated Press coach-of-the-year awards.
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER MAGAZINE TO FOLLOW IRISH ALL SEASON – Annette John-Hall, a feature writer for the Philadelphia Inquirer will be following head coach Muffet McGraw, a native of Pottsville, Pa., and the Irish all season long and feature them in the magazine section of that publication. She will file stories throughout the season on McGraw and her squad. Hall has already written three features thus far with the fourth installment scheduled for sometime in January.
IRISH GET 200TH WIN AT JOYCE CENTER – Notre Dame earned its 200th win at the Joyce Center against Valparaiso on December 29. Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, the Irish own a 204-65 mark for a .758 winning percentage. Notre Dame set a new school record with its 16 consecutive home victory at the Joyce Center against Syracuse on January 15. The last time the Irish lost at home was on December 8, 1998. The Irish have won a school-record 15 straight on two occasions – January 2, 1995-January 10, 1996 and December 10, 1997-December 2, 1998. Both times Connecticut stopped the Irish home win streaks.
IRISH IN THE NCAA STATISTICS
Ruth Riley - Field Goal Pct. (8th) Blocked Shots (6th)
Niele Ivey - Assists (11th)
Alicia Ratay - 3pt. Field Goal Pct. (9th)
Team - Field Goal Pct. (9th) 3pt. Field Goal Pct. (3rd) Field Goal Pct. Defense (16th)
HOME SWEET HOME – Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center. The Irish own a 204-65 mark for a .758 winning percentage since that first season. Currently, the Irish are 8-0 at home and have won 16 straight home games dating back to the 1998-99 campaign. Last season, Notre Dame won a school-record 12 games at home en route to a 12-1 home mark. During the last four-plus seasons, Coach Muffet McGraw’s squad is 54-4 (.931) at the Joyce Center.
SERIES RECORD VERSUS PITTSBURGH – Tonight’s matchup is the seventh meeting between the two teams. The Irish are 6-0 against the Panthers and 3-0 at Fitzgerald Field House. Its largest margin of victory at Pittsburgh (38 points) when the Irish beat the Panthers 89-51 on February 17, 1996. Last year, Notre Dame earned an 11-point decision (81-72) at Fitzgerald Field House.
LINEUP SHAKEUP – In the 17 games played this season, Notre Dame has used seven different starting lineups. Below is a listing of the starting lineup and ND’s record with that starting five.
Haney, Siemon, Riley, Ratay and Ivey – (1-0)
Haney, Ratay, Riley, Green and Ivey – (1-0)
Henderson, Riley, Ratay, Ivey and Dunbar – (3-1)
Haney, Henderson, Riley, Ratay and Ivey – (5-0)
Haney, Siemon, Riley, Ratay and Dunbar – (1-0)
Riley, Green, Ratay, Ivey and Siemon – (1-0)
Riley, Green, Ratay, Ivey and Siemon – (1-0)
Henderson, Riley, Green, Ratay and Ivey – (2-0)
RILEY REACHES 1,000-POINT – Junior center Ruth Riley became the 15th player in Notre Dame women’s basketball history to reach the 1,000-point plateau this season. Riley reached the mark in the first half of Notre Dame’s win over Florida International on December 19. The 6-5 Macy, Ind., native has 1,111 career points in 78 career games for a 14.2 career scoring average. Currently, Riley is 13th on the Irish career scoring list.
RILEY GRABS 600TH REBOUND – Ruth Riley reached another milestone on Saturday against Syracuse when she grabbed her 600th career rebound. She is just the 10 players in Notre Dame history with 600 or more rebounds. She currently is 10th on the all-time Irish rebounding list and needs just 22 more to move ahead of Beth Morgan (1993-97) on that list. Riley is one of just nine Irish players to score 1,000 points and grab 600 rebounds.
IRONWOMAN – Against Syracuse, Ruth Riley made her 72nd consecutive start in an Irish uniform. The Irish junior has played in all 78 games throughout her career. Her first career start came seven games into her freshman season during the 1997-98 campaign and was against Wisconsin on the road in Madison, Wis., on December 8, 1997.
A PERFECT 10 – Ruth Riley, who has made 39 of her 46 free throw attempts this season (.825), was a perfect 10-for-10 from the charity stripe against Georgetown. It marked a personal best for the Irish junior who earlier this season hit eight-of-eight from the line against Liberty en route to a 32-point performance.
GREEN PROVIDES A SPARK – Senior guard Danielle Green has been a spark for the Irish both as a starter and off the bench as she has scored in double figures in eight of the last nine games. Green has started four of the 12 games she has played and been in the starting lineup in Notre Dame’s last three outings. She has scored in double figures in eight games this season. Against Seton Hall a week ago, her string of six consecutive games in double figures was snapped when she had just eight points against the Pirates. Against the Orangewomen, she scored 14 points as she connected on three-of-seven field goal attempts and was a perfect eight-for-eight from the line. Green had 15 points and five rebounds in Notre Dame’s win over Marquette on January 2. The 15 points were one shy of the season-high 16 she scored in the season opener at Toledo. Green is averaging 10.8 points per game (fourth best on the team).
DOUBLE DIPPER – Guard Niele Ivey had her fourth double-double of the season in Notre Dame’s win over Seton Hall as she scored 14 points and dished off 10 assists. It was the eighth double-double of her career and the eighth time she has dished off 10 or more assists in a game. Her other double-doubles this season have come against North Carolina (17 points, 13 assists), Michigan State (14 points, 11 assists) and Marquette (19 points, 12 assists). Ivey leads the team in assists with 108 for a 7.2 average.
IVEY SHINES AGAINST VALPARAISO – Guard Niele Ivey had one of her best games of the season against Valparaiso on December 29 as she scored 13 points, dished off eight assists and tied her personal best with seven steals in the game. In 29 minutes of action, Ivey had just one turnover in the game. She is averaging 3.20 turnovers per game and as a 2.3 to 1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Ivey also is averaging just one turnover every 9.7 minutes.
“D” UP – Notre Dame is yielding just 62.1 points per game this season. In its last five games, the Irish have not allowed their opponents more than 65 points. For the third time in five games against Syracuse on Saturday, Notre Dame held its opponent to under 55 points. In the last five outings, the Irish defense is allowing just 55.4 points per game.
RILEY NOTCHES THIRD 30-POINT PERFORMANCE – Ruth Riley’s 32-point performance in the championship game of the Wachovia Women’s Invitational marked the third time in her career that she scored better than 30 points in a game. Riley had two 30-plus efforts last season, both against Providence College, as she scored 36 and a school-record 41.
A ROOKIE RARITY – Alicia Ratay’s 32-point performance against North Carolina was the first 30-point outing of her brief career and marked just the second time an Irish freshman has scored better than 30 points in a game. The only other Notre Dame rookie to record a 30-point performance was Michelle Marciniak as she scored 33 versus Georgia in a 90-86 loss on December 8, 1991.
RILEY NAMED FINALIST FOR NAISMITH PLAYER OF THE YEAR – On everyone’s preseason All-America teams, Ruth Riley, a third-team Associated Press All-America selection in 1999, is one of 10 finalists for the 1999-2000 Naismith Women’s Basketball Player of the Year Award which is presented by the Atlanta Tip-off Club. Riley and the nine other candidates were selected by a vote of the Board of Selectors comprised of leading college basketball coaches, journalists and basketball analysts. She is the first Notre Dame women’s basketball player to be named a finalist for the award, which was first presented in 1983. The nine other finalists include: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut), Edwina Brown (Texas), Tamika Catchings (Tennessee), Tamicha Jackson (Louisiana Tech), Maylana Martin (UCLA), Kelly Miller (Georgia), Lynn Pride (Kansas), Semeka Randall (Tennessee) and Nikki Teasley (North Carolina).
NON-CONFERENCE LOSSES A RARITY – Notre Dame’s loss to Purdue marked just the second loss the Irish had suffered to a non-conference opponent during the regular season in two seasons. The Irish were a perfect 8-0 against non-conference foes during the 1998-99 regular season. When Notre Dame lost to Illinois on November 27, it marked the first regular season loss to a non-conference opponent in 12 games. Heading into its matchup with the Illini, Notre Dame’s last non-conference regular-season loss was to Wisconsin (89-77) on December 8, 1997.
NOTRE DAME TO TAKE ON 10 NCAA TOURNAMENT FOES THIS SEASON – The 1999-2000 Notre Dame women’s basketball slate features 10 teams which last season participated in the 64-team 1999 NCAA tournament field. Notre Dame has already played Toledo, Illinois, North Carolina, Liberty, Purdue and Florida International with four other tourney teams on the slate: Boston College (Feb. 5), Connecticut (Feb. 26), Marquette (Jan. 2), Rutgers (Feb. 19).
BIG EAST DEBUTS 16-GAME SLATE – The BIG EAST Conference will begin its 16-game league schedule this season. That’s a change from the 18-game format which had been in existence since the league expanded to 13 teams in 1995-96. In 1999-2000, Notre Dame will play Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Miami and St. John’s twice and has single games against West Virginia, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Providence, Villanova, Rutgers and Connecticut.
RATAY NETS 18 IN DEBUT – Freshman guard Alicia Ratay, a first-team Parade High School All-American, scored 18 points in her collegiate debut. It was the most by an Irish rookie in her first college game since Michelle Marciniak scored 16 points in an 86-70 loss to Penn State on November 22, 1991. Ratay’s five field goals were all from three-point range as she hit five-of-eight field goals from beyond the arc.
RILEY HELPS USA WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CAPTURE SILVER MEDAL – Ruth Riley was one of 12 players selected to the 1999 World University Games Team. She and 1999 graduate Sheila McMillen (now an assistant coach at Western Michigan) were among the 44 players invited to Colorado Springs, Colo., for the five-day tryout. The team, coached by Penn State’s Rene Portland, took home the silver medal after posting a 4-2 mark in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, site of the basketball competition. Riley appeared in all nine games with the USA and started five of those contests and was the team’s third-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder as she averaged 9.3 points and 5.2 rebounds, with a .630 field-goal percentage. At a tournament in Madrid Spain prior to the start of the World University Games, the USA Women’s Basketball squad posted a 3-0 mark and captured first-place. During those three games, she averaged 7.3 points and 5.3 rebounds. This was Riley’s second stint with the USA Women’s basketball program. In the summer of 1998, she was a member of the USA Women’s Basketball Select Team.
SIEMON TOURS WITH BIG EAST TEAM – Junior Kelley Siemon averaged 6.6 points and 4.6 rebounds in helping the BIG EAST/Nike Women’s Basketball All-Stars to a 4-1 record in a ’99 summer tour of Belgium and Germany. Siemon scored 14 points in the win over Aalst (Division) and had seven points and eight rebounds in a win over the Belgian Junior National Team. The team was coached by Boston College’s Cathy Inglese.
IRISH SIGN TWO – Notre Dame signed two players listed among the top 40 prep players in the country during the early signing period. Jeneka Joyce, a 5-9 shooting guard from Topeka, Kan., and Le’Tania Severe, a 5-9 point guard from Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., were rated 26th and 40th, respectively, by Blue Star Basketball.
PRESEASON HONORS FOR RILEY – The name Ruth Riley appears on preseason All-America teams of several publications. Notre Dame also is ranked in the polls of every preseason publication.
Street & Smith’s: Ruth Riley – High Honorable, Notre Dame Mention, Notre Dame – 7th
Athlon College Basketball: Notre Dame – 8th
Basketball News: Notre Dame – 8th
Women’s Basketball News Service: Ruth Riley – Second Team, Alicia Ratay – All-Freshman Third Team, Notre Dame – 9th
Women’s Basketball Journal: Ruth Riley – Second Team, Notre Dame – 25th
QUICK PLAYER BIOS:
Amanda Barksdale has seen action in all 15 contests… she scored her first career points against Michigan State when she made two of her three field goal attempts for four points… had two points and a career-high three rebounds against Valparaiso… has 11 blocked shots on the season.
Imani Dunbar earned starts against Butler, North Carolina, Liberty, Purdue and Marquette and has played in all 15 games… earned first career start versus the Bulldogs… played a career-high 23 minutes against USC and registered personal bests of eight assists, five rebounds and three steals… second on the team in assists with 37.
Danielle Green has started last three games and has been in double figure scoring in seven of the last eight games and nine games overall… had scored in double figures in six consecutive games before having that string snapped against Seton Hall (eight points)… has started four of the 12 games she has played… had 14 in recent outing against Syracuse… scored a season-high 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds coming off the bench in the season opener at Toledo… netted 15 points and grabbed five rebounds versus Marquette… grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Valparaiso… missed three games (Butler, North Carolina and Liberty) due to a disciplinary suspension… averaging 10.8 points and 3.0 rebounds.
Ericka Haney has started eight games this season and has played in all 15 contests… first career start came against Toledo in the season opener… scored in double figures in five of Notre Dame’s first seven games, but has failed to reach double figures in last eight contests… recorded first career double-double with personal bests of 18 points and 14 rebounds against North Carolina… tallied a season-high 11 points against Butler and also added five rebounds and three assists in the game… grabbed six rebounds in the Valparaiso game… scored 10 points in her first collegiate start in the season opener at Toledo… averaging 7.6 points and 4.5 rebounds.
Julie Henderson has been in the Irish starting lineup in 11 of Notre Dame’s last 13 games… has started all but four games this season after coming off the bench in the first two contests of the season… has had season-highs of six points in five games this season versus North Carolina, Liberty, Michigan State, USC and Seton Hall… grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Purdue, one shy of her career best? had four rebounds against the Tar Heels, five versus Florida International and six versus the Spartans and Women of Troy… grabbed five rebounds versus Valparaiso… averaging 4.5 points and 4.1 rebounds.
Monique Hernandez played in the first seven games of the season and has seen action in 14 contests… scored a career-high six points against West Virginia and Seton Hall… had five points, four rebounds and two assists against Valparaiso… played a season-high 15 minutes in both the Butler and North Carolina contests… scored four points and grabbed four rebounds against Butler… also netted four points in win over Marquette.
Niele Ivey started the first 12 games of the season, but was not in the starting lineup against Marquette… scored a season-high 22 points against Syracuse… 18 of those 22 points came from three-pointers as she made a career-high six in the contest… is averaging 11.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 7.2 assists… has registered four double-doubles, most recent was against Seton Hall as she scored 14 points and dished off 10 assists… has eight career double-doubles and has dished off 10 or more assists in eight games… registered a season-high 19 points and dished off 12 assists in win over Marquette for her seventh career double-double…?had first double-double of the season against North Carolina as she scored a then season-high 17 points and dished off a career-best 13 assists versus North Carolina in the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament… the 13 assists in the game also marked a tournament record… has scored in double figures in five games this season… had 14 points and 11 assists in win over Michigan State… had solid all-around game against Valparaiso as she scored 13 points, dished off eight assists and made seven steals, tying her career-high, while playing 29 minutes and committing just one turnover… dished off nine assists and had two turnovers in 31 minutes versus Georgetown.
Meaghan Leahy has come off the bench for the Irish in all 15 games…?averaging 3.2 points and 2.9 rebounds… tied her personal best of nine points against Georgetown… had career-highs of nine points and nine rebounds while playing 24 minutes (also a career-high) against Butler… scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds in 18 minutes of action against Illinois… grabbed five rebounds against Michigan State and dished off a career-high four assists.
Alicia Ratay is second on the team in both scoring and rebounding as she is averaing 15.2 points and 5.0 rebounds… named game MVP at the Orange Bowl Women’s Basketball Four Four against Florida International… scored 27 points, grabbed five rebounds and made five steals (personal best) in the contest while playing a season-high 39 minutes against the Panthers… turned in only the second 30-point performance by an Irish rookie when she scored 32 points against North Carolina… has scored in double figures in 10 games and has been the team’s leading scorer in seven of those contests… in her collegiate debut, scored a game-high 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 33 minutes of action… it was the most points by an Irish rookie in a season opener since 1991… tallied 16 points and dished off seven assists against Butler… scored 19 points against USC as she hit six-of-10 shots from the field (4-5 from three-point range)… has earned BIG EAST Rookie of the Week honors three times this season… selected to the all-tournament team at the Wachovia Women’s Invitational Tournament… has had a career-high seven rebounds in three games (Toledo, Butler and Marquette)… had the third 20-plus point performance of her career when she scored 23 points against Georgetown.
Ruth Riley has been in double figures scoring in 13 of 15 games and has posted double-doubles against Georgetown and Seton Hall… was plagued by foul trouble in the first two games of the season and played only 28 minutes in those outings… has 23 career double-doubles after scoring 17 points and grabbing 13 boards versus Seton Hall… recorded her first double-double of the season when she scored 18 points and grabbed 13 rebounds against Georgetown… had the third 30-plus outing of her career when she scored 32 points against Liberty in the championship game of the Wachovia Women’s Basketball Invitational… second on the team in scoring as she is averaging 15.2 ppg…. tops the rebounding list with 89 (6.8 per game)… scored her 1,000th career point against Florida International and finished with 20 for the game on nine-for-11 shooting from the field… grabbed her 500th career rebound against Butler… had a season-high nine rebounds against Florida International… hauled in eight rebounds versus Purdue… blocked a season-high seven shots versus Butler… was the only player in double figures against Illinois with 16 points in 18 minutes of action… played only 10 minutes in the season opener at Toledo because of foul trouble… held scoreless in the contest for the first time in 64 career games… scored 18 points and blocked six shots versus Michigan State… had 15 points and eight rebounds against Valparaiso… scored 18 points and tied her season-high with nine rebounds against Marquette… one of just two players who has started all 15 games.
Kelley Siemon has been a starter in three of the 15 games she has played… started the season opener at Toledo and also earned start against Marquette… scored four points and grabbed four rebounds in the game… scored a season-high 12 points and grabbed five rebounds against North Carolina… had a season-high seven rebounds against Toledo… scored eight points and grabbed six rebounds versus West Virginia… scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds in earning start against Georgetown? grabbed five rebounds against Seton Hall and six in win over Syracuse… averaging 5.5 points and 4.1 rebounds.
Karen Swanson is a walk-on freshman who has played in 12 games… tallied her first career basket against USC… registered her first career three-pointer against Vaparaiso.
1999-2000 BIG EAST STANDINGS
(through games of Jan. 13)
BIG EAST Overall Record Record Rutgers 4-0 11-2 Connecticut 3-0 13-0 NOTRE DAME 3-0 12-2 Boston College 3-0 14-3 Providence 2-1 8-5 Pittsburgh 2-2 11-4 Villanova 1-1 7-5 Miami 1-1 7-6 Georgetown 1-3 7-7 Syracuse 0-2 7-6 Seton Hall 0-3 6-7 St. John's 0-4 5-9 West Virginia 0-4 5-9
1999-2000 BIG EAST WEEKLY AWARDSPlayer of the Week:Nov. 22 Becky Gottstein (BC) Jen Gombotz (PC)Nov. 29 Shea Ralph (UC)Dec. 6 Ruth Riley (ND) Swin Cash (UC)Dec. 13 Becky Gottstein (BC) Katie Smrcka-Duffy (GU)Dec. 20 Cal Bouchard (BC) Shawnetta Stewart (RU)Dec. 27 Shanetta Stewart (RU) Svetlana Abrosimova (UC)Jan. 3 Becky Gottstein (BC) Monika Roberts (PC)Jan. 10 Sue Bird (UC)
Rookie of the Week:Nov. 22 Amanda Papuga (UM)Nov. 29 Shannon Perry (SU) Trish Juhline (VU)Dec. 6 Alicia Ratay (ND)Dec. 13 Santia Jackson (GU)Dec. 20 Alicia Ratay (ND)Dec. 27 Kennitra Johnson (UC)Jan. 3 Mandy Wittenmyer (UP)Jan. 10 Alicia Ratay (ND) Brooke Stewart (UP)
1999-2000 BIG EAST Coaches' Preseason Poll 1. Connecticut (10) 142 2. Rutgers (3) 135 3. NOTRE DAME 121 4. Boston College 112 5. Georgetown 90 6. Villanova 86 7. Miami 79 8. Syracuse 59 9. St. John's 46 10. Pittsburgh 44 11. Seton Hall 39 12. Providence 38 13. West Virginia 23
Preseason All-BIG EAST First Team: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut), Tasha Pointer (Rutgers), Shea Ralph (Connecticut), Ruth Riley (Notre Dame), Shawnetta Stewart (Rutgers)
Preseason All-BIG EAST Second Team: Niele Ivey (Notre Dame), Alissa Murphy (Boston College), Katie Smrcka-Duffy (Georgetown), Tammy Sutton-Brown (Rutgers), Tamika Williams (Connecticut)
BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year: Svetlana Abrosimova (Connecticut)
BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year: Kennitra Johnson (Connecticut)
Irish Record
By Day On Sundays: 3-0 On Mondays: 1-0 On Tuesdays: 1-0 On Wednesdays: 3-1 On Thursdays: 0-0 On Fridays: 0-0 On Saturdays: 5-1
By Time Night Games: 7-1 Day Games: 6-1
By Location Home Games: 8-0 Road Games: 3-2 Neutral Games: 2-0
By Halftime Score Lead at halftime: 13-0 Trail at halftime: 0-2 Tied at halftime: 0-0
By Rebound Margin Outrebounding opponents: 11-0 Outrebounded by opponents: 2-1 Same number of rebounds 0-1
By Field Goal Shooting Shoot better from field: 13-1 Shoot worse from field: 0-1 Shoot same from field: 0-0 Shoot 50% or better: 6-0 Shoot less than 50%: 6-2 Keep opponents under 50%: 13-2 Keep opponents under 40%: 10-0
By Free Throw Margin Hit more free throws: 7-0 Hit fewer free throws: 6-2 Same number of free throws: 1-0
By Turnovers Commit fewer turnovers: 5-0 Commit more turnovers: 6-2 Commit same number of turnovers: 1-0
By Margin One-point games: 0-0 Two-point games: 0-0 Three-point games: 0-0 Four-point games: 0-0 5-10 point games: 1-2 11-20 point games: 7-0 21-30 point games: 5-0 31+point games: 0-0
By Conference Mid-American 1-0 Big Ten 1-2 Midwestern Collegiate 1-0 Atlantic Coast 1-0 Big South 1-0 Sun Belt 1-0 Pac 10 1-0 Mid-Continent 1-0 Conference USA 1-0 BIG EAST 4-0
By Month In November 1-1 In December 7-1 In January 5-0 In February 0-0 In March 0-0