DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Hosts Notre Dame
12/9/2002 12:00:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
DePaul (5-2) vs. Notre Dame (4-0)
Wednesday, December 11 - 7:00 p.m.
DePaul Athletic Center - Chicago, Illinois
Click here for the internet broadcast.
Demons and Irish
The DePaul Blue Demons host the ninth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish in their third home game of the season. DePaul opened the home portion of the schedule in grand fashion last weekend by winning the Moran Realty Classic. DePaul knocked off Loyola-Chicago, 87-59, on Friday night before defeating Montana State, 85-55, in the championship game on Saturday. The Blue Demons enter the game at 5-2 after winning four of their last five.
Notre Dame stands at a perfect 4-0 following a 81-52 win over Arizona State in the AstraZeneca Hoops for the Cure Classic on Saturday. Wednesday’s game will be the fourth straight road game for the Irish.
DePaul leads the series, 13-9, but lost last New Year’s Eve in South Bend. The 79-50 win for Notre Dame was the first meeting between the two programs since Jan. 16, 1995.
Noting the Blue Demons
DePaul’s roster features eight of the 12 players as either freshmen or sophomores... four players are averaging at least 10 points per game... DePaul is 23-7 all-time at the DePaul Athletic Center... the Blue Demons have started five of the seven games with a three-pointer... the club has made 55 three’s this season while opponents have attempted 75... they opened the Montana State game with five consecutive treys... the season-opening five-game road trip was the longest to start the season in program history... the 1980-81 campaign opened with four straight road games... the Blue Demons play four of the next six games at home... the Northern Illinois game on Dec. 18 will be the first appearance since 1996 at the Allstate Arena... the program is 18-4 all-time in Rosemont... after defeating Southern Illinois, DePaul is 21-8 all-time in season openers... head coach Doug Bruno is 12-5 in first games.
Irish Insider
Notre Dame enters the game a perfect 4-0 with wins over Cleveland State (107-65), USC (69-57), Valparaiso (74-68) and Arizona State (81-52). The Fighting Irish are ending a streak of four straight road games at the DePaul Athletic Center. Sophomore Jacquelin leads five players averaging in double-figures with 17.5 points and 8.0 rebounds. As a team, Notre Dame is shooting .559 from the field and are 10-for-30 from three-point range.
A year ago, Notre Dame tallied a 20-10 overall record and finished second in the Big East. They advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before losing at Tennessee, 89-50. Head coach Muffett McGraw is in her 16th season in South Bend and holds a 346-127 record with the Irish. Overall, she is 434-168 in 21 seasons after making a stop at Lehigh from 1982-87.
The Series
Wednesday will be the 25th all-time matchup between the two programs. DePaul leads, 13-9, while winning three of the last five meetings. The two teams met last season for the first time since Jan. 16, 1995. DePaul shot a miserable .237 from the field in the 79-50 loss at the Joyce Center on New Year’s Eve. The Blue Demons have won seven of the 11 meetings in Chicago and four of the last five.
Against the Top 10 at the DePaul Athletic Center
The month of December means top 10 teams at the DePaul Athletic Center. A year ago, the Blue Demons entertained No. 7 Purdue and No. 2 Tennessee in the span of three days. The Boilermakers escaped the Athletic Center with a 63-61 win after trailing, 30-22, at halftime. Two days later, the Blue Demons trailed the Lady Vols by eight with just over seven minutes left before Tennessee went on a late run to seal the victory, 80-66.
DePaul’s last win over a top 10 opponent was Dec. 14, 1996, when the Blue Demons toppled No. 3 Louisiana Tech, 70-67, in Alumni Hall.
Recapping the Moran Realty Classic
After a season-opening five-game road trip, the DePaul women’s basketball team returned to the friendly confines of the DePaul Athletic Center and convincingly won the Moran Realty Classic last weekend. The Blue Demons knocked off Montana State, 85-55, in the championship game after defeating Loyola-Chicago, 87-59, on Friday night. Redshirt freshman Khara Smith was named MVP and joined Charlene Smith and Ashley Luke on the All-Tournament team.
DePaul posted a season-best .508 shooting percentage in the championship game while going 10-for-27 from behind the arc. The Blue Demons led by as many as 19 points in the first half and took a 46-29 lead at the break. Montana State trimmed the deficit to 13 points on two occasions in the second half, but DePaul outscored the Bobcats, 33-16, over the final 15 minutes. All 12 players scored as the Blue Demons tallied 24 points off 22 Bobcat turnovers.
On Friday night, DePaul raced out to a 25-0 lead and coasted to a 87-59 win over Loyola-Chicago. Charlene Smith and Ashley Luke combined for the game’s first 20 points while the team was 20-for-36 from the field in the first stanza. Doug Bruno was able to give his freshmen their first significant minutes of the season as they newcomers combined for 21 points and 15 rebounds.
State Streak Ends
The Blue Demons streak of 14 consecutive victories against opponents from the state of Illinois ended on Dec. 4 at Illinois. With the win over Loyola-Chicago, the Blue Demons are 2-1 this season. Last season, DePaul knocked off Illinois, Loyola-Chicago, Northern Illinois and Northwestern. In 2000-01, the club went a perfect 6-0 against state programs.
Prior to Wednesday, DePaul’s last loss was Dec. 10, 1999, when Illinois posted a 74-64 win over the Blue Demons in Champaign.
DePaul has won 22 of the last 24 contests with state schools. Over the stretch of 24 games, DePaul has defeated Loyola five times, Northern Illinois four times and Illinois, Illinois-Chicago, Northwestern and Southern Illinois three times each. They have also knocked off Chicago State once. The lone two losses are to Illinois in Champaign.
Recapping the Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic
After a tourney-opening loss to No. 11 North Carolina, the Blue Demons bounced back and claimed fifth place in the eight-team event. DePaul defeated Fordham, 92-73, and Denver, 55-44, in the consolation bracket.
Sophomore forward Jenni Dant was named to the All-Tournament team after leading the Blue Demons with 13 points and five rebounds per game. She joined a host of the nation’s top players as a member of the eight-player squad.
In a rematch of last year’s national championship game, Connecticut defeated Oklahoma. UConn’s Diana Taurasi was named the tourney’s MVP.
Khara Smith Named Conference USA Player of the Week
Redshirt freshman forward Khara Smith was named Conference USA Player of the Week following her double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds at Southern Illinois last Saturday. The 6-2 forward scored 12 points in the second half and grabbed eight boards to lead DePaul in the come-from-behind win. She also added five steals while playing just 24 minutes.
She is the first league player to earn the honor this season. Lenae Williams was named C-USA Player of the Week twice last season for DePaul.
Nothing but the Best
The Blue Demons once again play one of toughest schedules in the nation. In Hawaii, the Blue Demons lost to No. 11 North Carolina. In Dec., they host No. 9 Notre Dame and 21st-ranked George Washington. In Jan., DePaul travels to Knoxville to take on Tennessee. The Conference USA slate includes top 25 programs TCU and Cincinnati.
Preseason Picks
In the annual Conference USA Preseason Poll, chosen by the league’s 14 coaches, the Blue Demons are picked to finish seventh. Prior to last season, Bruno’s squad was picked seventh, but entered the league tournament as the fourth seed. Houston’s Chandi Jones was named the league’s Preseason Player of the Year.
Taking Advantage From Beyond the Arc
In seven games, the Blue Demons have outscored their opponents by 69 points from three-point range. So far, DePaul is 55-177 (.311) from behind the arc while opponents are 32-75 (.427).
Including this season and the last three years, the squad has made 710 (7.2/gm) three’s compared to 330 (3.4/gm) for the opposition.
In ‘01-02, the Blue Demons averaged over four more three-point field goals per game than their opponents. As a team, the Blue Demons made 230 three’s compared to just 105 for the opposition. The team total was ranked first on the single-season chart and the team three-point percentage of .353 is third.
Home Cookin’
In just over two seasons, the DePaul Athletic Center has proven itself as one of the toughest venues in the Midwest. The Blue Demons have posted a 23-7 (.767) home record over the first 30 games. In their 29th season, the Blue Demons have an all-time home court record of 265-87 (.753). Over 26 seasons at Alumni Hall, the women’s basketball program won over 75 percent of their games with a 242-80 all-time record.
TV Time
At least five games will be televised this season, including three on the Conference USA Television Network. DePaul will appear on the league network in games against TCU and Marquette and at Louisville. The Charlotte game on Feb. 14 will be televised on FOX Sports Net Chicago. The C-USA Network will broadcast the tournament semifinals while the championship game will be carried live from The Pyramid in Memphis on ESPN2, Mar. 9. DePaul’s first televised appearance will be Dec. 11, when they play Notre Dame. The contest will be televised back in South Bend.
Giving to Charity
The Blue Demons consistently rank among Conference USA leaders and this season is no different. Currently, the squad ranks fourth with a .708 (102-144) season percentage. At Illinois, the Blue Demons posted a season-best .850 (17-20) percentage from the line. Jamie Smith is tied for 11th in the league at .778 (14-18), and Khara Smith is 15th at .762 (16-21).
DePaul was a combined 384-520 (.738) from the free throw line last season to rank first among Conference USA schools for the second straight season. The mark was also the second-best single-season percentage in league history. Over the final 15 contests, the squad shot a combined .770 (217-282).
In 2000-01, the Blue Demons led Conference USA with a .716 overall mark from the free throw line. In league play, DePaul shot .733 and were 241-326 (.739) over their last 19 games.
Looking Ahead
DePaul signed two players to a National Letter of Intent in the early signing period. Both newcomers next season are from the Chicago area. Head coach Doug Bruno signed 5-9 guard Ciara (pronounced Sierra) Johnson from Trinity High School and 6-1 guard Jenna Rubino out of Lincoln-Way East.
Entering her senior season at Trinity, Johnson was rated by the Chicago Sun-Times as one of the top 10 Underrated Players in the state of Illinois. As a junior, she averaged 11.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game while shooting over 60 percent from the field.
A McDonald’s All-American nominee, Rubino returns for her senior year at Lincoln Way-East after averaging 14.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.1 steals per game a year ago. Prior to this season, she was named to the “Tremendous 26” which recognizes the top 13 girls and boys players in Illinois.
