CHICAGO – The No. 1 Notre Dame women’s basketball team emerged with its first road and ranked win of the season on Saturday, downing No. 15 DePaul, 101-77, inside Wintrust Arena. The Fighting Irish (3-0) limited the Blue Demons (1-1) to 30 second half points and were powered by Jackie Young’s double-double of 28 points and 12 rebounds.
“I thought Jackie Young was outstanding, especially on the boards. She was a very efficient 8-for-14 from the field,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw said. “I thought Danielle Patterson and Abby Prohaska really turned the game for us. When they came into the game our defense picked up. Danielle had a career high three blocks and Abby had four steals. I’m really excited for that this early in the season.
Senior Arike Ogunbowale netted her third straight game over 20 points with 24 on Saturday afternoon. Senior Jessica Shepard achieved her first double-double of the season with 15 points and 16 rebounds. Sophomore Danielle Patterson came off the bench to earn a career high 14 points.
How It Happened
The Irish were plagued by 10 turnovers in the first quarter as DePaul’s Aston Millender and Chante Stonewell combined for 24 points to push the home team ahead 29-22 after the opening period.
Yet, Notre Dame quickly regrouped, outscoring DePaul 16-8 over the first 4:22 of the second quarter, recapturing the lead at 38-37, which prompted a DePaul timeout. Ogunbowale later capped a 14-2 run spanning nearly four minutes to push the Irish ahead 46-39 at the 3:03 mark.
The Irish took a 54-47 lead into the locker room thanks to big first halves from Ogunbowale and Young. The pair each tallied 19 points on six made field goals, as both also went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. The duo was a major reason the Irish shot 64.5 percent (20-of-31) in the first half.
After a DePaul bucket to start the second half, the Irish went on a 6-0 run courtesy of buckets from Turner, Shepard and Nixon. The Irish defense would not allow a DePaul field goal from 8:45 to 4:28 and kept them to 4-of-15 shooting for the third quarter. In addition, Shepard hit the double-double mark by 1:35 in the third.
Notre Dame kept pushing forward in the fourth, outscoring the Blue Demons, 22-12, which included a 14-2 scoring stretch. By the time the final whistle blew, the Irish had outrebounded the Blue Demons, 48-23, outscored them in the paint, 58-26, and recorded 29 fast break points.
Player of the Game
Young totaled 28 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. The junior reeled in 12 rebounds for her first double-double of the season and sixth of her career. Young also converted a career best 11-of-12 from the free-throw line.
Stat of the Game
Notre Dame’s 101 points against DePaul were the most against the Blue Demons in their series against each other, which spans 39 years and 45 games.
Notes
- Notre Dame now leads the all-time series, 26-19, against DePaul with a 10-11 mark in Chicago.
- The win marked the first against a ranked opponent this season and first road victory for the Irish. Last season, Notre Dame earned a nation leading 13 ranked wins.
- Counting the past seven seasons, Irish are now 88-15 against ranked teams.
- Coach McGraw earned career win No. 891.
- Ogunbowale started the year 21-for-21 from the free-throw line until a missed free throw in the fourth ruined the streak. Ogunbowale went 7-of-8 from the charity stripe today.
- Young’s double-double was the first this season and the sixth of her career.
- Ogunbowale has recorded three straight games with 20-plus points. Last season, she shattered the Notre Dame single-season record for 20-plus scoring games with 25.
- Young made 11 free throws in the game marking a new career best.
- Shepard earned her first double-double with 15 points and 16 rebounds. It marked the 41st of her career.
- Patterson recorded career highs in points (14), made field goals (5) and blocks (3).
- Prohaska led the Irish in assists this afternoon with a career high of four.
- Notre Dame has recorded 62 fast-break points through the first three games, averaging 20.7 per game. The Irish had 29 on Saturday.
- Big Game Jackie – Young averaged 16.6 points on 51.8 percent shooting, along with 6.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists against ranked opponents last season, spanning 16 games. Young led the Irish today with 28 points.
- Notre Dame has recorded 156 total points in the paint through three games, averaging 52 per game. The Irish had 58 on Saturday.
Up Next
The Irish will spend its Thanksgiving in Canada for the Vancouver Showcase, competing against three teams in three days. The eight-team bracket kicks off on Thursday, Nov. 22, at 3 p.m. ET.
Notre Dame clashes with Gonzaga in the first round, and if successful, will clash with the winner of Drake/Rutgers. The bottom half of the bracket features No. 8 Oregon State and No. 10 South Carolina.
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