2011-‐12 Notre Dame Women's Basketball
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2011-12 NOTRE DAME WOMEN’S BASKETBALL SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES 2011-12 ND Women’s Basketball: Game 6 Junkanoo Jam — Freeport DivIsIon Championship Game #4/3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-1 / 0-0 BIG EAST) vs. #7/6 Duke Blue Devils (4-0 / 0-0 ACC) • DATE: November 26, 2011 • TIME: 8:00 p.m. ET • AT: Freeport, Bahamas St. Georges High School (1,200) • SERIES: ND leads 4-1 • 1ST MTG: ND 74-67 (3/22/86) • LAST MTG: ND 76-65 (11/17/04) • WEBCAST: America One Sports (PPV-live) americaonesports.com • RADIO: Pulse FM (96.9/92.1) (live) UND.com Bob Nagle, p-b-p • TWITTER: @ndWbbsid StorylInes • Notre Dame faces its second top-10 opponent in six days, With both games coming aWay from the friendly confines of Purcell Pavilion. • The Fighting Irish are 75-for-96 (.781) from the free throw line in the past three games, including a season-high .818 (27-of-33) effort in Friday’s Win over USC. Tournament Title At Stake As #4/3 Notre Dame Battles #7/6 Duke After each posting dominant victories on Friday, No. 4/3 Notre Dame and No. 7/6 Duke are set to meet for the Junkanoo Jam Freeport Division championship at 8 p.m. ET Saturday at St. Georges High School in Freeport, Bahamas. The game will be webcast live on a pay-per-view basis by America One Sports (visit americaonesports.com for more information), While Notre Dame’s official athletics Web site, www.UND.com, Will carry a free live audio broadcast and in-progress updates also Will be available on the Fighting Irish Women’s basketball neWs TWitter feed (@ndWbbsid). Notre Dame (4-1) rode a pair of significant runs during each half to take control and roll past USC, 80-58 in Friday’s first-round Freeport Division game at the Junkanoo Jam. The Fighting Irish took the lead for good With a 17-5 run midway through the first half and then put the Trojans aWay for good with a 14-1 run in the second half, going to post its largest Win in 10 all-time meetings With USC. Junior guard Skylar Diggins chalked up a game-high 22 points and senior guard Natalie Novosel added 17 points to pace Notre Dame to the Win. All 11 Fighting Irish players in uniform Wound up scoring in the contest, With Notre Dame forcing 21 USC turnovers (11 coming on steals, led by Diggins’ five thefts) and holding the Trojans to a single field goal for the final 7:34 of the first half while opening up a double-digit lead. Duke (4-0) posted its fourth Win in as many outings this year With a dominant 97-31 Win over Gardner-Webb in Friday’s other first-round matchup in the Junkanoo Jam’s Freeport Division. The Blue Devils jumped out to a 22-5 lead and never looked back, shooting 52.2 percent from the field and 47.6 percent (10-of-21) from the three-point line While forcing 34 GWU turnovers. Sophomore forWard TrIcIa LIston came off the bench to lead Duke in scoring for the second game in a roW, leading four double-figure scorers with 23 points on near-perfect shooting (7-9 FG, 3-5 3FG, 6-6 FT) and adding a game-high six rebounds. RankIngs • Notre Dame is No. 4 in the current Associated Press poll and No. 3 in the latest ESPN/USA Today poll. • Duke is No. 7 in the current Associated Press poll and No. 6 in the latest ESPN/USA Today poll. Web SItes • Notre Dame: www.UND.com • Duke: www.goduke.com • BIG EAST: www.bigeast.org • ACC: www.theacc.com The Notre Dame-Duke SerIes Notre Dame and Duke Will square off for the sixth time on Saturday night, With the Fighting Irish holding a 4-1 series edge on the Blue Devils. The teams have not met since the 2004-05 season, When No. 11/10 Notre Dame defeated sixth-ranked Duke, 76-65, in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT at Purcell Pavilion. Saturday’s game also is the second in the series to be played on a neutral court, With the Fighting Irish knocked off the Blue Devils, 74-67 in the teams’ first-ever matchup on March 22, 1986, at the old postseason National Women’s Invitation Tournament (NWIT) in Amarillo, Texas. The Last Time Notre Dame and Duke Met Senior All-America forWard Jacqueline Batteast scored 17 points, including 10 during a decisive three-minute run in the second half, to lead No. 11/10 Notre Dame to a 76-65 victory over No. 6 Duke in the semifinals of the Preseason WNIT on Nov. 17, 2004, at Purcell Pavilion. Batteast, Who got into early foul trouble and had just four points in the first half, Was 6-of-12 shooting in the second half. With Duke ahead 56-55, Batteast made tWo free throws, then hit four straight shots and assisted on freshman guard Charel Allen's basket in a 12-2 run that put the Fighting Irish ahead 67-58. Allen added 16 points, and junior guard Megan Duffy had 15 for the Fighting Irish, Who advanced to the Preseason WNIT championship game for the first time (they Would Win the title three days later With a 66-62 Win over No. 10/9 Ohio State, also at Purcell Pavilion). Monique Currie led Duke With 14 points and 11 rebounds, but made just 2-of-9 shots for seven points in the second half. Alison Bales had 11 points and seven blocked shots, and Mistie Williams added 10 points. Duke, Which led 28-26 at halftime, opened a 41-33 lead less than five minutes into the second half. But Batteast, Allen and Duffy each hit three-pointers as the Fighting Irish Went on a 17-9 run to tie the game at 50 When junior forward Courtney LaVere, Who had 13 points and 11 rebounds, hit a 10- foot shot from the baseline. The teams then traded leads four times until Batteast took over. She started the run With a pair of free throWs, then made a 10-foot baseline jumper and hit an 18-foot shot from the top of the key. She added a rebound basket and a 15-foot jumper before dishing off to Allen to cap the spurt. Other Notre Dame-Duke SerIes TidbIts • Notre Dame fifth-year senior forWard Devereaux Peters and Duke sophomore guard TrIcIa Liston were high school teammates during the 2006-07 season at FenWick High School in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, leading the Friars to a 36-2 record, the Illinois Class 2A state title and a No. 6 ranking in the final USA Today Super 25 high school poll. Peters Was the Illinois Miss Basketball runner-up that season and Most Outstanding Player of the 2007 Illinois Class 2A Tournament (averaged 15.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.7 blocks per game With a .621 field goal percentage and tWo double-doubles in the three-game run to FenWick’s first state title since 2001), while also garnering McDonald’s All-America honors. • Notre Dame sophomore guard Kayla McBrIde, Duke sophomore forWard Richa Jackson and Blue Devils’ sophomore guard/forWard Haley Peters were among those invited to try out for the 2010 USA Basketball Under-18 National Team in Colorado Springs. McBride ultimately was named (and Peters Was one of 16 finalists) to the USA U18 Americas Championship Team that Won the gold medal With a 5-0 record during the tournament that also Was held in Colorado Springs (McBride started all five games, averaging 8.2 points and 3.8 rebounds per game With a .500 field goal percentage and .846 free throW percentage in the event). • Notre Dame associate head coach Jonathan Tsipis got his first taste of coaching as a student/volunteer assistant for legendary Duke men’s basketball coach Mike KrzyzewskI during the 1995-96 season. • Prior to her appointment to the Blue Devils’ staff this summer (and betWeen several stints With WNBA teams), first-year Duke assistant coach Joy Cheek had spent the past feW years on the staff of Notre Dame’s summer basketball camps. • Duke vice president/director of athletics KevIn WhIte spent eight years (2000-08) in a similar role at Notre Dame, and was at the helm when the Fighting Irish women’s basketball team won the 2001 national championship. Several of White’s lieutenants on the Duke athletics administration staff also have Notre Dame ties, including deputy director of athletics Stan WIlcox (same post at Notre Dame from 2005-08; four-year monogram Winner in men’s basketball at Notre Dame from 1978-81 under head coach Digger Phelps including 1978 Final Four berth; earned bachelor’s degree in economics from top-ranked Mendoza College of Business in 1981) and associate director of athletics/administration and chief of staff Nina KIng (director of rules education at Notre Dame from 2005-08; graduated from Notre Dame in 2000, earning bachelor’s of business administration degree from Mendoza College of Business; served as head student manager for Fighting Irish Women’s sWimming & diving program as a senior in 1999-2000). • Duke assistant track & field (throWs) coach B.J. LInnenbrInk spent four seasons in a similar role at Notre Dame, helping taking the Fighting Irish throwers to neW heights, most notably 15 NCAA regional qualifiers, 17 all-BIG EAST selections, Notre Dame’s first-ever female throWer in the NCAA Championships and the first Fighting Irish men’s throWer to reach the NCAA Outdoor Championships since 1945.