March 3, 2017
Irish Access Extra | Postgame Press Conference | Quick Play: Mabrey Quick Release
By Leigh Torbin
CONWAY, S.C. – On a day when Lindsay Allen was destined to break both the Notre Dame and ACC career assist records, the senior point guard did not stop there, recording her second career true double-double with 12 points and 10 assists to lead the No. 3 Notre Dame women’s basketball team past Virginia, 76-59, in the ACC quarterfinals on Friday afternoon.
With the win, Notre Dame (28-3) advances to a matchup with No. 14/13 Louisville (26-6) on Saturday at noon in the ACC semifinals as the Irish look for their fourth tournament title in their four years in the ACC. Allen was one of four Notre Dame players in double figures on Friday, joining Arike Ogunbowale (19), Brianna Turner (16) and Marina Mabrey (13).
Allen Sets Two Records
Lindsay Allen entered the day tied with Mary Gavin for Notre Dame’s career assist record at 778 and eight short of breaking Virginia’s Sharnee Zoll’s ACC career record of 785. Allen wasted little time getting the Irish mark, setting up the team’s first basket of the game as she fed Arike Ogunbowale for a 3-pointer 1:45 into the contest.
After collecting six first half assists, Allen did not let the conference record chase extend deeply into the second half, assisting on each of Notre Dame’s first two buckets of the third quarter. At the 9:08 mark, Allen set up Brianna Turner for a layup to tie Zoll’s mark and then Allen fed Marina Mabrey for a triple from the corner at 8:28 to break the mark.
Virginia called timeout less than a minute later after an Ogunbowale layup as the Irish opened the half on a 7-2 spurt. During the break, Allen was recognized before the HTC Center crowd with an announcement and graphic on the video board.
Allen had her second true double-double of the season on Friday, both coming against Virginia. Allen had 11 rebounds and 10 assists against the Cavaliers on Jan. 29 in what is believed to be the first pointless double-double in Irish lore. Allen had a triple-double on Dec. 27 at Chattanooga.
Today marks Allen’s seventh double-digit assist game of the year and the first among them in which she had fewer than two turnovers. In fact, combining Sunday’s win over Florida State, Allen now has 19 assists and one turnover in her last two outings.
Boley Honored
Prior to the start of the quarterfinal games on Friday morning, freshman Erin Boley was named to the ACC’s All-Academic team. The honor is bestowed upon student-athletes who have a minimum of a 3.0 grade point average and meet certain competitive benchmarks on the court as well.
On Friday, Boley started her seventh game of the season in place of Kathryn Westbeld. The freshman scored eight points in her 19 minutes of action, grabbed a pair of rebounds and recorded a steal.
Up Next
Notre Dame faces No. 14/13 Louisville, the tournament’s fifth-seed, on Saturday at noon in the semifinals. ESPN2 will broadcast the game nationally with Beth Mowins and Debbie Antonelli on the call. Louisville has advanced tot his matchup with wins over Clemson in the second round and No. 4-seed NC State in Friday’s quarterfinals. During the regular season, Notre Dame claimed an 85-66 win over the Cardinals on Feb. 6 at Purcell Pavilion although all-ACC selection Myisha Hines-Allen was ailing for Louisville that night and her absence proved significant.
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Leigh Torbin, athletics communications associate director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since 2013 and coordinates all media efforts for Notre Dame’s women’s basketball and men’s golf teams. A native of Framingham, Massachusetts, Torbin graduated from the University of Massachusetts in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in sports management. He has previously worked full-time on the athletic communications staffs at Vanderbilt, Florida, Connecticut and UCF.