Dec. 21, 2001
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NOTRE DAME, Ind. – With final exams now firmly in the rearview mirror, Notre Dame turns its attention back to the basketball court Saturday for a 1 p.m. (EST) matchup with Conference USA member Marquette at the Joyce Center. At 4-4, the Irish, winners of their last two contests, will be out to extend their 42-game home winning streak, the longest active skein in the nation, and a 27-game non-conference home winning string which dates back more than five years.
Marquette (5-5) comes to town on a hot streak, having won its last three ball games, including a 63-60 squeaker at Arkansas State Wednesday night. Senior guard Kristi Johnson tossed in a team-high 17 points, including four three-point field goals, to lead the Golden Eagles. Marquette held a double-digit lead into the early stages of the second half before ASU rallied and pulled within a point in the final four minutes. However, MU hung tough and used clutch free throw shooting to seal the victory.
The Golden Eagles have been a virtual mirror image of Notre Dame this season, facing a difficult non-conference schedule which has included three ranked opponents. Marquette also has been in some tight spots this season, with four games decided by three points or less. In fact, one of those nailbiters was a 56-55 loss to nationally-ranked Wisconsin, a game in which MU led by 16 points in the second half before the Badgers clawed back for the win.
Junior forward Rachel Klug is the only Marquette player scoring in double figures, averaging 13.7 points per game while shooting 57.4 percent from the field. In the backcourt, Johnson has shown veteran leadership, averaging a team-high 2.8 assists per game while hitting a team-best 19 three-pointers. Senior center Sarah Zawodny is the top rebounder for the Golden Eagles at 6.2 caroms per game despite playing less than 19 minutes per night.
Marquette head coach Terri Mitchell has a 104-53 (.662) record in her sixth season at the Golden Eagle helm. She is 0-2 all-time against Notre Dame.
SCOUTING THE IRISH – Notre Dame looks to write a new chapter in its rapidly-developing history as the Irish defend their first NCAA championship in 2001-02. Seven monogram winners, including two starters, return from last season’s title-winning squad, giving head coach Muffet McGraw a broad foundation from which to build this year. In addition, the Irish welcome six talented freshmen to the fold, a group heralded as perhaps the finest recruiting class in school history and ranked as high as third by several national publications.
McGraw is in her 15th year at Notre Dame with a 326-121 (.729) record and has led the Irish to six straight NCAA Tournament appearances and eight overall. She was a near-unanimous choice as national coach of the year in 2000-01, winning top honors from the Atlanta Tipoff Club (Naismith Award), Associated Press, Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), and Sports Illustrated for Women. She also was named the BIG EAST Coach of the Year, marking the third different conference to recognize McGraw as its top skipper since she took the reins at Notre Dame in 1987.
Both of Notre Dame’s returning starters were honored by the BIG EAST coaches in their preseason balloting. Senior guard/forward Ericka Haney (6.3 ppg., 5.4 rpg.) was a second team preseason all-conference pick and brings explosive quickness and versatility to the Irish lineup, along with veteran leadership. As Notre Dame’s only captain, she is being called upon to assume a greater mantle of responsibility in ’01-02. After starting the first six games for the Irish, she has moved into a reserve role in the last two games, picking up her first double-double of the year with season highs 12 points and 10 rebounds against Western Michigan. Junior guard Alicia Ratay (13.6 ppg., 5.6 rpg.) was a first team preseason all-BIG EAST choice and is one of 30 finalists for the Naismith Award after setting an NCAA record for three-point percentage (.547) by a sophomore last season. On Dec. 6 at Purdue, she became the 19th player in school history to score 1,000 career points.
Joining Ratay in the backcourt is sophomore Le’Tania Severe (9.9 ppg., 4.0 rpg, 5.6 apg), who was hampered by injuries last season, appearing in just 22 games, but has confidently taken control of the Irish offense this season. She scored a career-high 17 points against USC and matched her career best with eight assists against Western Michigan. She also ranks fifth in the BIG EAST Conference in assists. Juniors Monique Hernandez (0.3 ppg., 0.6 rpg.) and Karen Swanson (1.7 ppg., 1.0 rpg.), along with sophomore Jeneka Joyce (5.6 ppg., 1.9 rpg.) give McGraw tremendous flexibility in her guard rotation. Joyce has started the last two games for the Irish, the first starting assignments of her career, and she is shooting 57.7 percent from the field (15-of-26) in her last five games. Additionally, freshmen Allison Bustamante (3.0 ppg., 2.0 rpg.) Jill Krause (0.0 ppg., 0.7 rpg.) and Kelsey Wicks (4.0 ppg., 3.3 rpg.) provide the Irish with solid ballhandling and perimeter shooting depth. Bustamante is slated to return to action Saturday against Marquette after recovering from a high left ankle sprain she suffered in practice on Nov. 28.
A pair of freshmen (and former Parade All-Americans) are making an immediate impact on the Notre Dame front line, as forward Jacqueline Batteast (13.9 ppg., 7.8 rpg.) and center Teresa Borton (5.1 ppg., 5.8 rpg.) started the first six games for the Irish. Batteast was named the 2001-02 preseason BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and her combination of speed, athleticism and perimeter shooting ability already make her a valuable weapon in the Irish arsenal. Batteast was named the BIG EAST Rookie of the Week for the third consecutive time on Monday after notching a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds against Western Michigan. Meanwhile, at 6-3, Borton is a smooth and versatile post player with excellent mobility and a solid defensive presence. She showed tremendous promise in her first collegiate game against Valparaiso, scoring a game-high 14 points and grabbing a game-best nine rebounds. Junior Amanda Barksdale (4.5 ppg., 3.0 rpg., 4.0 bpg.) was one of the nation’s top shot blockers last season and has recovered nicely after missing Notre Dame’s first four games with a stress reaction in her right leg- she got her first career start against USC and responded by matching her career high with seven blocks. Meanwhile, freshman Katy Flecky (3.7 ppg., 3.3 rpg.) was a two-time Miss Colorado Basketball and offers the Irish an physical presence in the post. She also has proven to be highly effective from the free throw line, hitting 92.3 percent of her charity tosses (12-of-13), including all four against Western Michigan.
RECAPPING WESTERN MICHIGAN – Freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast posted her third double-double of the season with a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds to pace Notre Dame to a 71-48 win over Western Michigan Dec. 12 before a crowd of 7,310 at the Joyce Center. The victory was the 42nd consecutive home triumph for the Irish, extending the nation’s longest active home court winning streak.
Senior guard/forward Ericka Haney added season highs of 12 points and 10 rebounds, charting her first double-double of the year and sixth of her career. Junior guard Alicia Ratay chipped in with 10 points for Notre Dame, which remains unbeaten in seven career meetings with Western Michigan.
Curleta Harris came off the bench to score a team-high 12 points for WMU (2-7). Casey Rost contributed 10 points for the Broncos, who shot just 27.4 percent (17-of-62) from the field, the lowest ratio by an Irish opponent this season.
The game was virtually even through the first 10 minutes of play. Western Michigan took an early 5-3 lead, but Notre Dame bounced back with five of the next points to move in front by two with 15:39 left in the first half. The two teams then went nearly basket-for-basket over the next five minutes, culminating with a turnaround jumper by Bronco forward Kristin Koetsier, which cut the Irish lead to 16-12 at the 10:28 mark. As it turned out, those would be the final points WMU would score in the first half.
Notre Dame put the Broncos on their heels in the latter stages of the period, going on a 16-0 spurt over the final 10:13 to take a 32-12 lead at the half. The Irish shot a season-best 60 percent from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, while holding Western Michigan to an opponent season-low 12 points on 17.9 percent shooting (5-for-28).
In the second half, Notre Dame preserved its lead, never letting the visitors get closer than 17 points and opening up its largest lead at 56-27 with 10:26 remaining. On offense, the Irish cooled off somewhat in the second half, but still shot a season-high 46 percent from the field and 60 percent from the three-point line. Notre Dame also wound up outscoring Western Michigan, 38-14 in the paint and tallied 13 points in transition.
THE NOTRE DAME-MARQUETTE SERIES – Notre Dame and Marquette will be playing for the 27th time on the hardwood in what has been one of the most frequent series in school history. Beginning with the formation of the Irish program in 1977-78, the two teams met in 18 of the next 19 seasons before going on a three-year hiatus from 1996-98. The series restarted in 1999 and has continued ever since.
Notre Dame holds a 22-4 edge in the all-time series and a 13-1 advantage at the Joyce Center. Marquette actually won three of the first four games in the series, but the Irish have since claimed 21 of the last 22 meetings between the two teams, including the last 12 matchups at the Joyce Center. In fact, the Golden Eagles have not defeated Notre Dame since a 66-62 win in Milwaukee to open the 1992-93 season, downing an Irish team captained by current Notre Dame assistant Coquese Washington. The only Marquette victory at the Joyce Center came on Feb. 2, 1980, when the visitors earned a 67-46 win over the Irish.
The two squads last met on Dec. 21, 2000, at the brand-new U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee, with Notre Dame walking out a 75-56 victor. Guard/forward Ericka Haney, the lone senior on this year’s club, poured in a career-high 21 points, connecting on her first 10 shots from the floor as the Irish jumped out to an early double-digit lead and made it stand up the rest of the way. Consensus national player of the year Ruth Riley notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds and All-America guard Niele Ivey also tossed in 18 points for Notre Dame, which held Marquette to 31.7 percent shooting for the contest.
The last time the Golden Eagles came to the Joyce Center, the Irish posted a 75-60 win on Jan. 2, 2000 behind 19 points and 12 assists from Ivey and 18 points and nine rebounds from Riley.
NOTRE DAME AGAINST CONFERENCE USA – Notre Dame is 42-20 (.677) against the current members of Conference USA, playing more games against C-USA opponents than any other league outside of the BIG EAST Conference (122 games). The Irish have won seven consecutive games against C-USA competition, having not lost to the league since joining the BIG EAST for the 1995-96 season. DePaul was the last current C-USA member to defeat Notre Dame, winning 96-87 on Jan. 16, 1995, in Chicago.
BATTLING THE BADGER STATE – Notre Dame is 27-8 (.771) all-time against teams from the state of Wisconsin, with the majority of those games coming against Saturday’s opponent, Marquette. The Irish also hold series leads against the state’s flagship school, Wisconsin (3-2), as well as Wisconsin-Green Bay (1-0) and Wisconsin-Milwaukee (1-0). Interestingly, Wisconsin-La Crosse, a Division III institution, is the only school from the Badger State to hold a series lead on Notre Dame, having defeated the Irish in their only meeting, 80-57, on March 15, 1980 in the AIAW National Tournament in La Crosse, Wis.
DEFENDING YOUR LIFE – Notre Dame has turned up the defense in its last two games, holding USC and Western Michigan to less than 50 points each while limiting them to a combined .301 field goal percentage (37-for-123). In addition, the Irish blocked a season-high 10 shots in the win over USC (seven by Amanda Barksdale, the fourth-highest total in the nation this year), and collected 56 rebounds against Western Michigan, the second-highest total for the Irish this season.
Notre Dame also has extended its defensive clamps to the three-point line, where opponents are now a paltry 9-of-50 (.180) over the last three games, including a 1-of-13 performance by seventh-ranked Purdue on Dec. 6.
And, against Western Michigan, the Irish held the Broncos to just 12 first-half points and a .179 field goal percentage (5-of-28). It was the fewest points allowed in a half by Notre Dame since Georgetown tallied 10 in the quarterfinals of last season’s BIG EAST Championship. It also marked the second time this season the Irish had held an opponent to under 20 points in one half – Notre Dame held Valparaiso to just 15 points in the second half of its season-opening win on Nov. 18.
BATTEAST NAMED BIG EAST ROOKIE OF THE WEEK FOR THIRD TIME – Freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast was selected as the BIG EAST Conference Rookie of the Week for the third consecutive week, the league office announced Monday. She is the third Irish player to win the award in three consecutive weeks, joining junior guard Alicia Ratay (Feb. 7-21, 2000) and 2001 consensus national player of the year Ruth Riley (Jan. 12-26, 1998) as the only Notre Dame players to pull off that feat. Batteast also is the sixth BIG EAST athlete to earn three consecutive Rookie of the Week honors.
Batteast, the 2001-02 preseason BIG EAST Rookie of the Year, posted her third double-double of the season, collecting a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds to pace Notre Dame to a 71-48 win over Western Michigan on Dec. 12 at the Joyce Center. Batteast also was 9-of-17 from the field (2-of-4 from three-point range) and added three assists and three steals in 29 minutes, helping the Irish extend the nation’s longest active home winning streak to 42 games.
JOYCE JUMPING INTO THE FRAY – Sophomore guard Jeneka Joyce has been a potent weapon for Notre Dame in the last five games. The Topeka, Kan., native has averaged 8.3 points per game while shooting 57.7 percent (15-of-26) from the field in that five-game stretch. She also tossed in a season-high 11 points on Dec. 2 in a loss to No. 16/17 Michigan.
Joyce has been rewarded with starting assignments against USC and Western Michigan, the first of her career. She has responded by averaging 6.5 ppg. and shooting 71.4 percent (5-of-7) from the floor in her two starts. This season, she leads the Irish in field goal (.533) and three-point (.474) percentage.
BARKSDALE’S BLOCK PARTY – Junior center Amanda Barksdale already has opponents dealing with rejection through the first month of the season. Although she missed Notre Dame’s first four games with a stress reaction in her leg, she still leads the Irish with 16 blocked shots (4.0 per game). She was at her best on Dec. 9 in a win over USC, capitalizing on her first career start by matching her career high with seven blocks, including five in the first half alone. In her career, Barksdale has 108 career blocks, making her only the fifth player in school history to reach the century mark in career rejections. She is averaging 1.61 blocks per game in her three-year career, which is second in Irish history behind only 2001 consensus national player of the year, Ruth Riley, who averaged 2.82 swats per game from 1997-2001.
ALICIA ALMOST AUTOMATIC FROM THE LINE – Junior guard Alicia Ratay has been nearly perfect from the free throw line this season, making 22 of 23 charity tosses to lead the BIG EAST Conference (and rank fourth nationally) with a sparkling .957 free throw percentage. The Lake Zurich, Ill., native also has made 13 consecutive free throws, dating back to her final two shots at Colorado State on Nov. 21. Additionally, since the start of last season, she has made 90.6 percent of her foul shots (87-of-96).
Ratay is Notre Dame’s career free throw percentage leader by a wide margin, connecting on 86.8 percent of her charities (171-of-197) in her three-year tenure with the Irish. Mollie Peirick (1994-98) is second on the career free throw percentage list with an .819 ratio.
TWO MORE IRISH GAMES SLATED FOR TELEVISION – The Notre Dame games at Miami on Jan. 2 and Seton Hall on Feb. 2 now are scheduled to be televised regionally. The Miami contest will air on Fox Sports Florida, while the Seton Hall tussle will be shown on CN8, The Comcast Network in Philadelphia. Check your local listings for broadcast times and availability.
NOTRE DAME AMONG NATIONAL ATTENDANCE LEADERS – Notre Dame is ranked seventh in the nation, according to the latest unofficial attendance figures compiled Monday by the University of Wisconsin Sports Information Department. The Irish have averaged 7,547 fans for their four home games, nearly 1,200 more than last season, when Notre Dame was ranked ninth in the country in attendance with an average of 6,376 fans per game.
IRISH HOPING TO ENJOY ALL THE COMFORTS OF HOME – After a rugged first month of the season that saw Notre Dame face three ranked opponents and play four of its first six games away from home, the schedule now appears to balance out over the next month. The Irish are in the midst of a stretch where they play six of eight games at the Joyce Center, including a three-game, 13-day homestand which concludes Saturday against Marquette. After the contest with the Golden Eagles, the Irish will have another six days off for the Christmas holidays before coming back next Friday with a visit to Rice.
IRISH GOING THROUGH BASIC TRAINING – For the sixth time in the last eight seasons, Notre Dame played three ranked opponents in its first seven games, going 0-3 against Colorado State, Michigan and Purdue (all away from home). However, recent history has shown that these early-season tests have proven invaluable later in the year – during this stretch, the Irish have gone on to make six consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, reaching the Sweet Sixteen four times and the Final Four twice, including the 2001 national championship. Additionally, in the previous seven seasons (1995-2001), Notre Dame has gone on to win 20 games each year, carding four 25-win campaigns and two 30-win seasons.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK – With six freshmen on this year’s roster, Notre Dame is certainly going through some growing pains. However, the Irish rookies are getting a great deal of college experience this season, as evidenced by their production through eight games of the 2001-02 campaign. Notre Dame’s freshmen have accounted for 40.8 percent of the points (212 of 520), 45.6 percent of the rebounds (159 of 349) and 38.8 percent of the minutes (620 of 1600) recorded by the Irish this season. Additionally, Notre Dame has started at least two freshmen (Jacqueline Batteast and Teresa Borton) in its first six games this year, and four of the six Irish rookies are averaging at least 12 minutes per contest.
A SEVERE DEVELOPMENT – Sophomore guard Le’Tania Severe has quickly adapted to her new role as the starting point guard for the Irish, filling the large shoes of All-American Niele Ivey. Through eight games this season, Severe is third on the team with 9.9 points per game and leads the squad with 5.6 assists per game, ranking fifth in the BIG EAST Conference in the latter category. Entering the 2001-02 campaign, her career highs were seven points and two assists and she had played in just 22 games due to injury.
Severe has proven to be a scoring threat when necessary, pouring in a career-high 17 points in a win over USC Dec. 9. She also has been adept at distributing the ball to her teammates, handing out at least five assists five times, including a career-high eight assists Dec. 6 at Purdue and Dec. 12 against Western Michigan.
IT’S BATTEAST, TO SAY THE LEAST – Freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast is already showing flashes of the potential which led the BIG EAST coaches to vote her as the league’s preseason Rookie of the Year. The South Bend, Ind., resident, who was chosen as the BIG EAST Rookie of the Week for the third consecutive time on Monday, has posted three double-doubles this season (Colorado State, Army and Western Michigan) and has scored in double figures in seven of Notre Dame’s eight games. This season, Batteast leads the team in scoring at 13.9 points per game (which is tied for 10th in the BIG EAST Conference) and rebounding at 7.8 boards per outing, good for fourth in the BIG EAST. She also is ranked among the league leaders in field goal percentage (15th, .419) and blocked shots (6th, 1.38 bpg.).
CRASHING THE BOARDS – Despite losing its top two rebounders from last year (Ruth Riley and Kelley Siemon), Notre Dame doesn’t appear to have broken stride in the rebounding department this season. The Irish have averaged 43.6 rebounds per game in their first eight games of 2001-02, owning a +7.8 edge on the glass, which ranks 28th in the nation according to the latest NCAA statistical reports.
Leading the charge on the boards for Notre Dame have been a pair of freshmen – forward Jacqueline Batteast is setting the pace at 7.8 rebounds per game (ranking fourth in the BIG EAST Conference), while center Teresa Borton is second with 5.8 caroms per contest. In fact, five different players are averaging at least four rebounds per game. Additionally, the Irish have been potent on the offensive glass, collecting 16 offensive rebounds per game. Batteast and Borton also are setting the pace in that category with 25 and 24 offensive caroms, respectively – figures which rank seventh and eighth in the BIG EAST.
THE BEST OFFENSE IS A GOOD DEFENSE … – Over the last five-plus seasons, 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 91-1 (.989) record when they hold their opponents to less than 60 points in a game. Curiously, the only time that notion didn’t come to pass was last season, when Rutgers handed Notre Dame a 54-53 loss, one of only two setbacks the Irish suffered en route to the 2001 national championship.
The Irish already have added to this total four times during the 2001-02 season, turning the trick their four home games vs. Valparaiso (35 points), Army (57), USC (49) and Western Michigan (48).
… 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 last five-plus seasons (1995-96 to present), the Irish are 80-3 (.964) 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 contributed another win to that growing record when it rang up 89 points in a win over Army on Nov. 26.
NOTRE DAME MAKING A LIVING BEYOND THE ARC – Notre Dame has established itself as one of the top three-point shooting teams in the nation over the last three seasons. The Irish led the nation in three-point percentage last year, hitting 46.4 percent of their shots from long distance – in fact, over the last six seasons, Notre Dame has averaged better than 10 three-point attempts per game. The Irish also set a new school record with 28 three-point tries in their win over Army on Nov. 26.
However, this year’s season-opening win over Valparaiso produced an offensive anomaly for Notre Dame. The Irish were held without a three-point field goal, breaking a streak of 50 consecutive games in which they had made at least one trey. Prior to that game, the last time Notre Dame had gone dry from beyond the arc was Jan. 26, 2000, at St. John’s.
Notre Dame didn’t waste time in starting up a new three-point streak, canning 43 triples in their last seven games (6.1 treys per game). The Irish have now made at least one three-pointer in 153 of their last 155 games, a streak which stretches back more than four seasons.
FRESH FACES IN THE IRISH LINEUP – Notre Dame had a decidedly youthful look in its starting lineup when it opened the season Nov. 18 against Valparaiso, as freshmen Jacqueline Batteast and Teresa Borton got the nod at forward and center, respectively. In doing so, the pair were first rookie tandem in 20 years to start a season opener for the Irish – Ruth Kaiser and Mary Beth Schueth cracked the starting five in a 78-44 win over St. Joseph’s (Ind.) on Dec. 2, 1981. Borton paced the Irish with 14 points and nine rebounds against the Crusaders, while Batteast scored two points and grabbed five rebounds against Valparaiso.
THE END OF ONE STREAK … – For the first time since the end of the 1997-98 season, Notre Dame was not ranked in either of the major national polls on Dec. 3. The exclusion snapped a 60-week run in the ESPN/USA Today poll and a 56-week stretch in the AP rankings. This week, the Irish earned six points in the Associated Press poll and 15 points in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
… BUT THE CONTINUATION OF ANOTHER – Thanks to Kent State’s loss at home to Rhode Island on Dec. 1, Notre Dame now owns the longest active home winning streak in the nation at 41 games. The Irish have not lost a game at the Joyce Center since Dec. 8, 1998, when Connecticut logged a 106-81 victory. Notre Dame’s home winning streak next will be put to the test on Wednesday when the Irish welcome Western Michigan to the Joyce Center.
RATAY NAMED NAISMITH CANDIDATE FOR SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR – Notre Dame junior guard Alicia Ratay has been selected as a preseason candidate for the 2001-02 Naismith College Basketball Player of the Year Award. It marks the second time in as many seasons that Ratay has been named to the 30-player preseason Naismith watch list.
Ratay averaged 12.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game last season, and set an NCAA record for three-point percentage (54.7 percent) by a sophomore on the way to third-team all-BIG EAST Conference honors – she was the only sophomore to make any of the three all-league squads. Ratay also is a former BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and was named an honorable mention All-American by the Associated Press in 2000. She will be looking to follow in the footsteps of her former teammate, Ruth Riley, who won the 2000-01 Naismith Award, becoming the first Notre Dame women’s basketball player to be so recognized.
The Naismith Awards, in their 34th year, are given in honor of the inventor of the game of basketball – Dr. James Naismith. The awards program was founded by the Atlanta Tipoff Club, an organization dedicated to recognizing the achievements of student-athletes in basketball. The Awards, including Men’s and Women’s College Player of the Year, Men’s and Women’s Coach of the Year, Male and Female Prep Player of the Year and Men’s and Women’s Official of the Year, are determined by a vote of the Naismith Board of Selectors. In addition, the Board of Selectors, comprised of a select group of leading basketball coaches, journalists and administrators, honors a Men’s and Women’s Outstanding Contributor to Basketball. The 2001-02 Naismith Award will presented April 5, 2002 in Atlanta.
NOTRE DAME PICKED SECOND IN BIG EAST PRESEASON BALLOTING – Fresh off a share of their first-ever BIG EAST championship last season, the Irish have been picked to finish second in 2001-02 according to a preseason poll of the league’s coaches which was released at BIG EAST Media Day on Oct. 25. Notre Dame claimed two first-place votes and 155 points overall, trailing only Connecticut (11 first-place votes, 167 points). Rutgers, Boston College and Villanova round out the top five, with VU picking up the remaining first-place vote.
Individually, junior guard Alicia Ratay was a first team preseason all-BIG EAST selection after earning third-team honors last year. The Lake Zurich, Ill., native set an NCAA record for three-point percentage by a sophomore last season (.547) and is the top returning scorer for the Irish in 2001-02 after charting 12.9 points per game a year ago.
Senior guard/forward Ericka Haney also was recognized by the conference coaches, earning second team preseason all-BIG EAST laurels. She joins Ratay as one of two starters back from last year’s NCAA championship squad and averaged 11 ppg. and 5.7 rpg. during the ’00-01 campaign.
In addition, freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast was chosen as the preseason BIG EAST Rookie of the Year. It was one in a series of early-season honors for the South Bend, Ind., product, who also has been named a first team freshman All-American by the Women’s Basketball News Service and has been tabbed as one of the Top 21 “New Players of Impact” by Women’s College Hoops.com.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN – This season, for only the fourth time in school history, Notre Dame has just one captain – senior guard/forward Ericka Haney. She is the first solo captain for the Irish since Sheila McMillen in 1998-99 and the second in head coach Muffet McGraw’s 15-year tenure.
IRISH HAIL FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA – The 13 players on this season’s Notre Dame roster hail from 10 different states, including two each from Florida, Illinois and Ohio. Other states represented on the Irish roster include Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wyoming. The all-time Notre Dame women’s basketball roster features players from 34 different states, including 23 during the Muffet McGraw era. Ironically, the most common home state on the Irish all-time roster – Michigan (14) – is not represented on this season’s roster.
FUN WITH NUMBERS – This season, Notre Dame fans are seeing a pair of jersey numbers on the floor that haven’t made an appearance in quite some time. Freshman guard Kelsey Wicks has chosen to wear No. 24, becoming the first Irish player since Andrea Alexander (1990-94) to sport those digits. In addition, freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast is wearing No. 21 this season, a number which has not been modeled by an Irish player since All-American Beth Morgan wore the same jersey from 1993-97. Prior to Morgan, the last Notre Dame player to wear No. 21 was current Irish assistant coach Coquese Washington, who had the number from 1989-93.
NOW THAT’S A HOME COURT ADVANTAGE – Notre Dame is looking to continue some impressive streaks in 2001-02. The Irish have won a school-record 42 consecutive games at home, which became the longest active streak in the nation when Kent State’s 43-game run came to an end Dec. 1 with a loss to Rhode Island. The Irish have not lost at home in more than three years, dating back to a defeat at the hands of top-ranked Connecticut on Dec. 8, 1998. Notre Dame also has a 49-3 (.942) record in BIG EAST games at the Joyce Center, with Connecticut the only league team to solve the Irish at home.
Notre Dame also sports a five-year, 27-game non-conference winning streak at the Joyce Center – a streak that includes victories over a trio of sixth-ranked teams (UCLA and Duke in 1998-99 and Purdue in 2000-01), as well as 25th-ranked Illinois in ’98-99. Notre Dame’s last non-conference loss at the Joyce Center came way back on Dec. 9, 1996, when 19th-ranked Wisconsin toppled the Irish, 81-69. Overall, the Irish are 67-2 (.971) at the Joyce Center in their last 69 home games, with the only losses coming to Connecticut.
Since its inaugural season in 1977-78, Notre Dame has played all of its games at the Joyce Center. The Irish own a 230-65 mark for a .780 winning percentage since that first season. Last year, the Irish were a perfect 15-0 for the second year in a row. The 15 victories are a school record for home wins in a season and the first time Notre Dame teams have been undefeated at home during the regular season. Also, since joining the BIG EAST Conference in time for the 1995-96 season, Muffet McGraw’s squad is 80-4 (.952) at the Joyce Center.
SEASON TICKET SALES REACH ALL-TIME HIGH FOR IRISH – Attendance at Notre Dame women’s basketball games in 2000-01 increased nearly 88 percent compared to the previous season – and indications suggest another significant jump is in order for the 2001-02 campaign. Coming off the 2001 NCAA championship, there already have been more than 6,700 season tickets sold to the general public and University faculty and staff for the ’01-’02 women’s basketball season. That’s compared to 2,700 a year ago and 940 in 1999-2000- a jump of nearly 150 percent over last season, and a whopping 700 percent rise in just two years.
The sale of season tickets for the ’01-02 campaign actually began midway through Notre Dame’s 2001 championship season. All seats are reserved for Irish women’s games for the first time this season – all seating in previous years had been general admission.
The Irish ranked ninth nationally in attendance last year at 6,376 fans per game, compared to 3,392 in 1999-2000. Notre Dame also recorded the first two women’s basketball sellouts in school history, as 11,418 fans packed the Joyce Center for victories over top-ranked Connecticut and Georgetown.
All four of Notre Dame’s home games in 2001-02 have attracted more than 7,300 fans, placing them among the top 15 crowds in school history (see chart on page 9). In fact, all of the top 20 crowds in the Notre Dame record book have occurred during the 15-year tenure of head coach Muffet McGraw.
NOTRE DAME FACES TOUGH SCHEDULE IN 2001-02 – Notre Dame is slated to play 10 teams which reached the postseason as part of a rugged schedule this year. On the docket are seven NCAA Tournament squads, including four (Connecticut – 1/1, Purdue – 7/7, Michigan – 13/13 and Colorado State – 17/15) which are ranked in the Top 25 in the latest Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today polls. In addition, six Irish opponents (Boston College, DePaul, Miami, Rice, Rutgers and Virginia Tech) are receiving votes in one or both of the major rankings this week.
IRISH ON THE SMALL SCREEN – Notre Dame is getting a good deal of face time in 2001-02, playing on television at least eight times, including a pair of nationally-televised contests – Nov. 21 at Arizona (Fox Sports Net) and Jan. 21 at Connecticut (ESPN). The Irish also will make two regional television appearances this season – Jan. 2 at Miami (Fox Sports Florida) and Feb. 2 at Seton Hall (CN8, The Comcast Network).
In addition, Notre Dame will appear three times as part of the BIG EAST regular-season television package, playing host to Virginia Tech (Jan. 26) and traveling to Villanova (Jan. 12) and Rutgers (Feb. 16). All three of those games will be telecast live on Fox Sports Chicago as part of the league’s TV deal. The BIG EAST Championship semifinals on March 4 also will be aired on the BIG EAST TV package, while the conference title game on March 5 will be broadcast live on ESPN2.
Additionally, the Dec. 6 rematch of the 2001 NCAA championship game between Notre Dame and Purdue was televised live statewide by LeSea Broadcasting, which includes WHME-TV (Channel 46) in South Bend and WHMB-TV (Channel 40) in Indianapolis.
NOTRE DAME RECEIVES COMMITMENTS FROM PAIR OF TOP 25 PROSPECTS – Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw announced Nov. 15 that two of the nation’s top high school student-athletes have chosen to continue their careers with the Irish, signing national letters of intent to attend Notre Dame beginning in the fall of 2002. Megan Duffy (Dayton, OH/Chaminade-Julienne HS) and Courtney LaVere (Ventura, CA/Buena HS) are the first players to commit to the Irish during the early signing period.
Duffy, a 5-7 guard, averaged 17 points per game last season for Chaminade-Julienne High School in Dayton, Ohio. She was a 2001 first-team Division I all-state selection and earned honorable mention All-America accolades from Street & Smith’s. Additionally, Student Sports tabbed her as a junior All-America selection. She was rated as high as No. 24 in the country by the All-Star Girls Report (ASGR) and No. 29 by School Sports.
LaVere, a 6-3 forward, tallied 13.8 points and eight rebounds per game last season for Buena High School in Ventura, Calif. She also shot 54 percent from the field and 73 percent from the free throw line for BHS, which was ranked in the top 10 nationally throughout the 2000-01 season by USA Today. In addition, LaVere was an All-America honoree by both USA Today and Street & Smith’s last year, and she already has been selected as a preseason third-team All-American for the ’01-02 campaign by School Sports. Like Duffy, LaVere also was a first-team all-state selection last season. She is a consensus top-15 player according to all of the major recruiting services – No. 10 by the Blue Star Index, No. 13 by School Sports and No. 15 by ASGR.
The additions of Duffy and LaVere already have given Notre Dame one of this year’s top 10 recruiting classes, according to at least one recruiting outlet. The Blue Star Index has ranked the latest group of Irish signees sixth in the nation, marking the sixth consecutive year in which Blue Star has placed Notre Dame’s recruiting class among the Top 20 in the country.
BOOK ON NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON MAKES PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT – Fans of Notre Dame women’s basketball will be able to relive the 2000-01 NCAA championship season in a new book by Mark Bradford entitled “Nice Girls Finish First.” The book, which hit store shelves Dec. 10, is the story of how the Irish and head coach Muffet McGraw put together a squad of truly remarkable young women, some of whom overcame great odds, to win the national championship last April. Included in the book are in-depth interviews with members of the Notre Dame senior class and starting lineup, giving an unique perspective on what it goes into putting together a championship team.
Bradford is a sportswriter for the South Bend Tribune, and also has done freelance work for the Associated Press and Indianapolis Star. The Mishawaka, Ind., resident has covered Notre Dame football and men’s and women’s basketball for the last six years.
KRAUSE FEATURED IN “CONFESSIONS OF A FRESHMAN” – Freshman guard Jill Krause is giving fans an inside look at the the 2001-02 Irish women’s basketball team through regular diary entries on the Notre Dame athletic website, www.und.com. Entitled “Confessions of a Freshman,” the Glenview, Ill., native is detailing her journey as a first-year player on the defending NCAA championship squad. Her diary entries may be accessed either from the front page or the women’s basketball page on the Notre Dame website.
HANEY SHINES ON BIG EAST ALL-STAR TEAM – For the second time in as many years, Notre Dame sent a player with the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball All-Star Team, as guard/forward Ericka Haney joined the squad for its six-game swing of Germany this summer. Haney followed in the footsteps of Niele Ivey, who helped lead the BIG EAST All-Stars to a 5-1 record during a junket through Canada in the summer of 2000. Haney helped the BIG EAST, which was led by Syracuse head coach Marianna Freeman, to an unbeaten 6-0 record during its tour, scoring a team-high 18 points in a 103-57 win over Ludwigsburg/Malmsheim in the final game of the trip. Haney finished with a team-high 13.0 points per game and collected 4.5 rebounds per game during her European vacation. She also scored in double figures in five of the All-Stars’ six wins.
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