November 13, 1998
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – Wally Szczerbiak scored 17 of his game-high 19 points in the second half as Miami of Ohio beat Notre Dame 76-65 on Friday in the season opener for both teams.
Szczerbiak, who led the USA Goodwill Games team to the gold medal this summer, was held to 1-of-3 shooting in the first half by Irish freshman David Graves, who was recruited by the RedHawks.
But then he came alive in the second half, hitting a 3-pointer four minutes into the period that sparked a 10-0 run and put the RedHawks in control the rest of the way. Notre Dame would pull no closer than five points.
The RedHawks followed Szczerbiak’s lead, registering 10 second-half steals as the more athletic RedHawks stymied the Irish offense.
Notre Dame jumped out to a 22-13 lead in the first half after Graves blew past three Miami defenders for a layup and seemed on the verge of pulling away from the RedHawks until Jason Stewart took over for the Miami offense. He hit four straight 3-pointers over a three-minute period to give Miami its first lead of the game, 25-24, with 2:24 left in the half.
Notre Dame’s heralded freshman class passed its first test, led by Troy Murphy, who scored 19 points in his debut after missing his first shot in an Irish uniform and muffing a fast break opportunity. Graves finished with nine points, while Antoni Wyche scored 16 and Phil Hickey had 10.
For Miami, Stewart scored 12 points, and Damon Frierson added 11.
By JR ROSS
Associated Press Writer