Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

Women's Hoops Opens Three-Game Homestand

Feb. 3, 2000

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Notre Dame begins a three-game homestand as the Irish (18-2, 9-0) host Boston College (18-4, 7-1). A win for the fifth-ranked Irish in this afternoon’s matchup would be its 15th straight, tying a school record set during the 1990-91 campaign. Today’s game will be the only meeting of the season between the two teams. The 18th-ranked Eagles, winners of 14 of their last 15, are coming off a 66-55 win at Miami on Wednesday night. Notre Dame has not lost since dropping a 71-61 decision at Purdue on December 8, 1999.

The Irish look for their 18th straight victory at the Joyce Center today. Coach Muffet McGraw’s Irish have won 17 consecutive home games and have not lost at the Joyce Center since dropping a 106-81 decision on December 8, 1998.

Boston College is the first ranked opponent to visit the Joyce Center this season.

Notre Dame leads the all-time series 4-3 and is 4-2 against the Eagles since joining the BIG EAST Conference in 1995-96. The two teams met twice last season with each winning on their homecourt. Boston College took the first game 78-65 in Chestnut Hill, Mass., with the Irish then earning a 74-59 decision at home.

For the second consecutive week, the Irish are fifth in the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today rankings, which marks all-time highs in both polls for them during the regular season. Boston College is 18th in both polls.

In its last seven outings, Notre Dame has given up just 54.3 points per game and have held opponents to 60 points and under in all seven of those contests.

Notre Dame has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 26 of the past 29 weeks, including a school-record 19 consecutive weeks from November 16, 1998 thru November 29, 1999. The Irish have been in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today poll for 29 straight weeks

No. 18/18 Boston College (18-4, 7-1) at
No. 5/5 Notre Dame (18-2, 9-0)

Date: Saturday, February 5, 2000
Place: Joyce Center (11,418)
Time: 7:00 p.m. (EST)
Television: BIG EAST Television Package (Live: Fox Sports New England, Madison Square Garden Network, SportsChannel Florida, Empire Sports Network, WHME in South Bend.
Radio: All Notre Dame games are broadcast on WJVA-AM (1580 in South Bend). Jeremy Gray provides play-by-play for games.

Notre Dame Probable Starting Lineup

No. Name Hometown Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
32 Julie Henderson*** Ann Arbor, MI F/C 6-3 Sr. 4.7 4.3
00 Ruth Riley** Macy, IN C 6-5 Jr. 14.6 6.8
12 Danielle Green*** Chicago, IL G 5-8 Sr. 12.1 3.6
22 Alicia Ratay Lake Zurich, IL G 5-11 Fr. 14.4 4.9
33 Niele Ivey** St. Louis, MO G 5-8 Sr. 11.1 3.4

Off The Bench

No. Name Hometown Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
3 Ericka Haney Toledo, OH G/F 6-1 So. 6.9 4.0
11 Karen Swanson Westlake, OH G 5-7 Fr. 0.8 0.4
23 Monique Hernandez Rio Rancho, NM G 5-9 Fr. 2.6 1.1
31 Amanda Barksdale Friendswood, TX F 6-3 Fr. 1.3 1.4
41 Imani Dunbar** San Angelo, TX G 5-7 Jr. 1.2 1.7
44 Meaghan Leahy* Wilbraham, MA F 6-4 So. 2.7 2.7
50 Kelley Siemon** Edina, MN F 6-2 Jr. 6.9 4.0

* – Indicates monograms won

Series Record

Notre Dame leads 4-3
Home: 3-0 Away: 1-3 Neutral: 0-0

Date Site Score
12-30-83 Chestnut Hill, MA* L 55-59
1-6-96 Notre Dame, IN W 80-51
1-7-97 Chestnut Hill, MA W 61-57
2-12-97 Notre Dame, IN W 91-64
2-12-98 Chestnut Hill, MA L 76-78
12-30-98 Chestnut Hill, MA L 65-78
2-3-90 Notre Dame, IN W 74-59
Series Scoring Total Average
Notre Dame 502 71.7
North Carolina 446 63.7

Current Win Streak: Notre Dame, 1 game
McGraw vs. Boston College: 4-2
ND Biggest Win: 27 (91-64 on 2-12-97)
BC Biggest Win: 13 (78-65 on 12-30-98)
ND Longest Win Streak: 3 (from 1996-97)
BC Longest Win Streak: 2 (1998)

PROVIDENCE REVIEW – Notre Dame cruised to its 14th straight win and second 30-point margin of victory in as many games as the Irish defeated Providence College 90-60 behind Kelley Siemon’s career-high 23 points. The junior forward connected on 10-of-12 shots from the field and was three-of-six from the free throw line in scoring 20-plus points for the second time in her career. Siemon was one of three Irish players in double figures as freshman Alicia Ratay and Danielle Green each finished with 16 points. Notre Dame shot 54.2 percent from the field, topping the 50-percent mark for the third time in four games. The Irish defense held the Friars to just 30.2 percent accuracy from the field and forced 25 Providence College turnovers. Notre Dame also held a 42-37 advantage on the boards, including a season-high nine from Green. The Irish went to the free throw line 36 times in the contest and connected on 25 of those chances.

TOUGH TO SCORE ON – Notre Dame’s defense currently is yielding just 60.2 points per game to its opponents in 20 games overall, and in its nine BIG EAST wins has given up just 54.9 ppg. In its last 13 games, no opponent has scored more than 63 points. The Irish held St. John’s to 49 points, the fewest yielded by opponent this season. In the last 14 games, Notre Dame is giving up just 57.5 points per outing.

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.

IVEY NAMED FINALIST FOR ST. LOUIS COLLEGE SPORTSWOMAN OF THE YEAR – Niele Ivey, a native of St. Louis, Mo., and product of Cor Jesu High School, has been named a finalist for the College Sportswoman of the Year award which is being presented by the St. Louis Association for Girls and Women in Sport. The winner will be announced on Thursday, February 10 at the Regal Riverfront Hotel in St. Louis. Nominees for the award are those from the St. Louis area who have distinguished themselves in the community and the athletic arena.

FOLLOW RUTH ON THE WEB – A website highlighting the season accomplishments of Irish junior center Ruth Riley has been created on the official Notre Dame athletic department website (www.und.com). Information (season and career statistics and audio updates) can be found at www.und.com/ruthriley.

IRISH TOUGH AT HOME AGAINST BIG EAST FOES – Notre Dame has compiled a 38-3 (.927) 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.

17 AND COUNTING – Notre Dame won its 16th consecutive home game (a school record) with its 71-56 victory over Syracuse on January 15. The current win-streak stands at 17 with the 87-56 victory over Georgetown last Saturday night. 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.

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 68-13 record (84.0 percent) in regular season games and an 8-4 mark (66.7 percent) in BIG EAST tournament action for an overall record of 76-17 (81.7 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.

SIEMON HAS CAREER NIGHT AGAINST FRIARS – Junior forward Kelley Siemon had her best outing in an Irish uniform against Providence on Tuesday night as she scored a career-high 23 points. It marked the second 20-point performance in her two-plus seasons at Notre Dame. Siemon hit 10-of-12 shots from the field and nailed three-of-six attempts from the charity stripe. She also grabbed seven rebounds in the contest and dished off three assists in 28 minutes of action. Her only other 20-point outing came during her freshman year at UCLA when she scored 20 points against the Bruins in a double overtime victory on November 30, 1997.

GREEN NETS SEASON-HIGH AGAINST HURRICANES – Danielle Green topped the 20-point mark for the first time this season in scoring a season-high 22 points against Miami. It marked the seventh time in her career that she scored 20 or more points in a game. Last season, Green netted 20-plus points in five contests contests a year ago, including the first three games of the 1998-99 campaign.

GREEN STRONG ON THE BOARDS AGAINST PROVIDENCE – Danielle Green led the Irish in rebounding with a season-high nine rebounds against Providence to bolster her rebounding total to 3.6 rebounds per game.

HENDERSON GETS FIRST CAREER DOUBLE DOUBLE – Senior Julie Henderson had her first career double-double against Miami as she scored a season-high 13 points and grabbed a personal best 11 rebounds. It was the first time this season that Henderson had scored in double digits and marked the first time in her career with 10 or more rebounds.

A BIG ASSIST – For the second straight year, Niele Ivey has dished off 100-plus assists and has 420 in her career. Ivey reached the 400-assist mark against Pittsburgh on January 18 and is just the fifth Notre Dame player to reach that mark. She ranks 12th nationally with a 6.7 assist-per-game average and has dished off eight or more assists in nine of Notre Dame’s last 14 games. Ivey is averaging 7.1 assists in those contests and has dished off 10 or more assists in four games this season.

GREEN APPROACHING 1,000 POINTS – Danielle Green needs just 27 points (she has 973) to become the 16th player in Irish women’s basketball history to score 1,000 points. She would become the second player this season to reach the milestone. Earlier in the season, junior Ruth Riley reached the 1000-point mark.

RILEY IN DOUBLE FIGURES – Ruth Riley has failed to score in double figures in just three games this season – Toledo (0 points), West Virginia (nine points) and Providence (eight points). 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 leads the team in scoring as she is averaging 14.6 ppg. Riley has scored in double figures in 63 of 83 career games.

RILEY’S DOUBLE-DOUBLES – Ruth Riley, who led Notre Dame and the BIG EAST Conference with 12 double-doubles last season, registered her third double-double in four games as she scored 12 points and grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds against PIttsburgh on January 18. She posted back-to-back double-double performances in in early January against Georgetown and Seton Hall. Riley had 18 points and 13 rebounds versus the Hoyas which marked her first double-double of the season, and then followed that with a 17-point and 13-rebound performance in a win over Seton Hall. She has 24 career double-doubles and has grabbed 10 or more rebounds 25 times in her career

FRESHMAN FOLLIES – Freshman guard Alicia Ratay is second on the team in both scoring (14.4) and rebounding (4.9). Ratay, a three-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 eighth time this season against Pittsburgh on January 18 as she scored a game-high 17 points. She has reached double figures in 12 contests this season.

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 fifth (an all-time high) in the Associated Press and sixth in the ESPN/USA Today rankings this week. The Irish have been been ranked in the top 10 of the AP poll 26 of the last 29 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 29 consecutive weeks in the top 10 of the ESPN/USA Today ranking. Notre Dame has earned a top 25 ranking for a school-record 31 consecutive weeks, breaking the old mark of 24 weeks set from February 5, 1996 thru March 10, 1997.

ASSOCIATED PRESS
(Week of Jan. 31)

LW
1. Connecticut 1
2. Louisiana Tech 2
3. Georgia 3
4. Tennessee 4
5. NOTRE DAME 5
6. Penn State 7
7. LSU 12
8. Iowa State 6
9. Texas Tech 14
10. Rutgers 13
11. North Carolina State 8
12. Duke 9
13. Auburn 11
Santa Barbara 15
15. UCLA 10
16. Old Dominion 16
17. Purdue 17
18. Boston College 19
19. Arizona 18
20. Mississippi St. 20
21. Tulane 22
22. Oklahoma 23
23. Illinois 21
24 Virginia 25
25. Kansas NR

ESPN/USA TODAY
(Week of Jan. 31)

LW
1. Connecticut 1
2. Georgia 3
3. Louisiana Tech 2
4. Tennessee 4
5. NOTRE DAME 5
6. Penn State 7
7. Texas Tech 10
8. North Carolina State 8
9. Iowa State 6
10. Duke 9
11. LSU 13
12. Rutgers 12
13. Auburn 11
14 Santa Barbara 16
15. Arizona 15
16. Old Dominion 17
17. UCLA 14
18. Boston College 18
19. Mississippi State 21
20. Purdue 19
21. Illinois 18
22. Tulane 20
23. Virginia 20
24. Kansas 23
25. Oklahoma NR

NOTRE DAME POLL WATCHING
(Week By Week)

Date AP ESPN/USA Today
Preseason 8 9
Nov. 15 7 9
Nov. 22 6 6
Nov. 29 11 8
Dec. 6 7 6
Dec. 13 11 7
Dec. 20 12 8
Dec. 27 10 8
Jan. 3 8 6
Jan. 10 6 6
Jan. 17 5 6
Jan. 24 5 5
Jan. 31 5* 5*

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 279-112 (.714), and in 17-plus campaigns overall, her teams have registered a 367-153 (.706) 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 February.

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 16th 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.

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 205-65 mark for a .759 winning percentage since that first season. Currently, the Irish are 9-0 at home and have won 17 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 55-4 (.932) at the Joyce Center.

SERIES RECORD VERSUS BOSTON COLLEGE – Notre Dame owns a 4-3 advantage in the series and is 4-2 versus the Eagles since joining the BIG EAST Conference. Boston College is winless in three visits to the Joyce Center, including last season’s 74-59 loss. The two teams met twice last season and split the series with the home team winning both times.

LINEUP SHAKEUP – In the 20 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. The lineup of Julie Henderson, Ruth Riley, Danielle Green, Alicia Ratay and Niele Ivey has been what Coach Muffet McGraw has used the last seven games.

  • Haney, Siemon, Riley, Ratay and Ivey – (1-0)
  • Haney, Ratay, Riley, Green and Ivey – (0-1)
  • 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)
  • Henderson, Riley, Green, Ratay and Ivey – (7-0)

HOT SHOOTING – Notre Dame is hitting 49.9 percent of its shots from the field this season (579-1160), including a seaosn-high 63.3 percent (31-49) against Georgetown last Saturday night. The Irish shot better than 60 percent in one other game this season – Liberty (62.7 percent). In 10 of its 20 games, Notre Dame has shot better than 50 percent from the field.

COLD SHOOTING – No opponent has shot better than 50 percent against the Irish this season as Notre Dame has limited its 20 foes to just 34.6 percent from the field. Four of those teams have shot under 30 percent – Butler (.265), West Virginia (.265), St. John’s (.239) and Georgetown (.269). Illinois, a team the Irish faced in the second game of the season, shot 47.5 percent (the hightest of any opponent). In 17 games, Notre Dame’s opponents have shot under 40 percent.

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 1,174 career points in 83 career games for a 14.1 career scoring average. Currently, Riley is 13th on the Irish career scoring list. She needs just 20 points to move to 12th on the list ahead of Krissi Davis who played for the Irish from 1987-91 and scored 1,194 points during her four-year career.

RILEY GRABS 600TH REBOUND – Ruth Riley reached another milestone against Syracuse on January 15 when she grabbed her 600th career rebound. She is the 10th player in Notre Dame history to have achieved that mark. She currently is ninth on the all-time Irish rebounding list with 629. Riley is one of just nine Irish players to score 1,000 points and grab 600 rebounds.

IRONWOMAN – Against St. John’s, Ruth Riley made her 77th consecutive start in an Irish uniform. The Irish junior has played in all 82 games throughout her career. Her first career start came in the seventh game of her freshman season at Wisconsin in Madison, Wis., on December 8, 1997.

A PERFECT 10 – Ruth Riley, who has made 60 of her 72 free throw attempts this season (.833), 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. Riley’s free throw shooting percentage has improved dramatically from a year ago a she made just 69.0 percent of her attempts.

MANDY IS DANDY AGAINST HOYAS – Freshman Amanda Barksdale had her best outing in an Irish uniform as had personal bests of eight points, eight rebounds and five blocked shots against Georgetown on Saturday night while playing a career-high 17 minutes against the Hoyas. Barksdale was three-of-four from the field and two-of-four from the charity stripe.

A BLOCKING PARTY – Amanda Barksdale, averaging just 5.4 minutes of playing time per game, has blocked 30 shots this season, second best on the team. She had a personal best seven blocks against Providence. In Notre Dame’s last three games, she has blocked 16 shots and is averaging 5.3 blocks in those contest.

GREEN GAINS STARTING ROLE – Senior guard Danielle Green, who had come off the bench earlier in the season, had started the last eight games for the Irish and has been in the starting lineup in nine of the 17 games she has played. She is the team’s third leading scorer averaging 12.1 ppg., and has scored in double figures in 11 of the last 13 games she has played. Green has scored in double figures in 12 games overall.

DOUBLE DIPPER – Guard Niele Ivey had her fourth double-double of the season in Notre Dame’s win over Seton Hall on January 11 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 134 for a 6.7 average.

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).

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.

QUICK PLAYER BIOS

Amanda Barksdale has averaged 7.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 6.0 blocked shots in Notre Dame’s last two games … blocked personal best seven shots and scored seven points in win at Providence after scoring eight points, grabbing eight rebounds and blocking five shots versus Georgetown while playing a season-high 17 minutes … has seen action in 19 contests … has blocked 16 shots in last two games… has blocked nine shots in last two games, including four versus St. John’s … second on the team with 30 blocked shots.

Imani Dunbar earned starts against Butler, North Carolina, Liberty, Purdue and Marquette and has played in 19 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 … third on the team in assists with 41.

Danielle Green has started the last eight games and has been in double figure scoring in 11 of the last 13 games and in 12 games overall … scored a season-high 22 points against Miami while adding six rebounds and a personal best six assists … had a stretch in which she scored in double figures in six consecutive games … has socred 16 points in three different games – Toledo, St. John’s and Providence … scored 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds coming off the bench in the season opener at Toledo … also had 16 points and tied her personal best with six assists against St. John’s … 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 12.1 points and 3.6 rebounds.

Ericka Haney has started eight games this season and has played in all 20 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 13 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 6.9 points and 4.0 rebounds.

Julie Henderson has been in the Irish starting lineup in 16 of 20 contests … recorded her first career double-double scoring a season-high 13 points and grabbing a personal best 11 rebounds … prior to Miami, she had scored season-high six points on five different occasions (North Carolina, Liberty, Michigan State, USC and Seton Hall) … grabbed eight rebounds against Purdue … also 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 … scored seven points, grabbed six rebounds and dished off four assists against St. John’s … averaging 4.7 points and 4.3 rebounds.

Monique Hernandez played in the first seven games of the season and has seen action in 19 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 has been in the starting lineup for 19 of 20 games … 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 11.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 6.7 assists … led the Irish with 18 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and five steals in win over Georgetown in second meeting between the two teams … 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 11 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 20 games …?averaging 2.7 points and 2.7 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 the second leading scorer and rebounder averaging 14.4 points and 4.9 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 11 games and has been the team’s leading scorer in eight 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 … 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 … one of two players who has started all 19 games.

Ruth Riley has been in double figures scoring in 17 of 20 games and has three double-doubles this season … her most recent double-double was against Pittsburgh as she scored 12 points and grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds … posted back-to-back double-doubles against Georgetown (18 points, 13 rebounds) and Seton Hall (17 points, 13 rebounds) … has 24 career double-doubles … 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 … leads the team in scoring and rebounding averaging 14.9 points and 7.1 rebounds … one of just two players who has started all 19 games … one of just nine players at Notre Dame who has scored more than 1,000 points and grabbed more than 600 rebounds.

Kelley Siemon scored a career-high 23 points (the second 20-point outing of her career) against Providence as she hit 10-of-12 shots from the field and was three-of-six from three-point range … it marked the third time this season that she has scored in double figures … she also scored 14 points against Pittsburgh and 12 versus North Carolina …?has been in the starting lineup in three of the 20 games she has played … grabbed a season-high nine rebounds against St. John’s … had seven rebounds against Toledo … averaging 6.9 points and 4.6 rebounds.

Karen Swanson is a walk-on freshman who has played in 16 games … tallied her first career basket against USC … registered her first career three-pointer against Vaparaiso.

Irish Record

By Day

On Sundays: 3-0 On Mondays: 1-0 On Tuesdays: 3-0
On Wednesdays: 4-1 On Thursdays: 0-0 On Fridays: 0-0
On Saturdays: 7-1

By Time

Night Games: 9-1
Day Games: 9-1

By Location

Home Games: 9-0
Road Games: 7-2
Neutral Games: 2-0

By Halftime Score

Lead at halftime: 18-0
Trail at halftime: 0-2
Tied at halftime: 0-0

By Rebound Margin

Outrebounding opponents: 16-0
Outrebounded by opponents: 2-1
Same number of rebounds 0-1

By Field Goal Shooting

Shoot better from field: 18-1
Shoot worse from field: 0-1
Shoot same from field: 0-0
Shoot 50% or better: 10-0
Shoot less than 50%: 8-2
Keep opponents under 50%: 18-2
Keep opponents under 40%: 15-0

By Free Throw Margin

Hit more free throws: 12-0
Hit fewer free throws: 5-2
Same number of free throws: 1-0

By Turnovers

Commit fewer turnovers: 8-0
Commit more turnovers: 9-2
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: 9-0
21-30 point games: 7-0
31+point games: 1-0

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 9-0

By Month

In November 1-1
In December 7-1
In January 9-0
In February 1-0
In March 0-0

1999-2000 BIG EAST STANDINGS
(through games of Feb. 4)

BIG EAST Overall
Record Record
NOTRE DAME 9-0 18-2
Connecticut 8-0 19-1
Boston College 7-1 18-4
Rutgers 6-2 14-4
Villanova 5-3 12-7
Georgetown 4-4 11-8
Providence 4-5 9-10
Pittsburgh 3-6 12-8
St. John’s 3-7 8-12
Miami 2-6 8-11
Syracuse 1-6 8-10
Seton Hall 1-6 7-10
West Virginia 1-8 6-14

1999-2000 BIG EAST WEEKLY AWARDS

Player 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)
Jan. 17 Jenea Skeeters (VU)
Niele Ivey (ND)
Jan. 24 Beth Record (SU)
Jan. 31 Latasha Thompson (SJU)
Alissa Murphy (BC)

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)
Jan. 17 Alicia Hartlaub (UM)
Jan. 24 Shannon Perry (SU)
Jan. 31 Aiysha Smith (SJU)