Jan. 2, 2005
By TOM COYNE
AP Sports Writer
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – Jacqueline Batteast had 18 points and No. 6 Notre Dame held Seton Hall to a season-low 22-percent shooting, beating the Pirates 54-33 on Sunday.
It marked the fewest points allowed by the Irish (12-1) this season and fewest points scored this season by the Pirates, who had their six-game winning streak snapped.
The Irish dominated inside, outscoring Seton Hall 26-6 in the paint. The Irish converted 24 Seton Hall turnovers into 20 points. Notre Dame had eight turnovers, leading to just one point for Seton Hall.
Megan Duffy added 10 points for Notre Dame, which shot 36.4 percent.
Heta Korpivaara led Seton Hall (8-4) with seven points and Ashley Bush had six.
Seton Hall simply couldn’t penetrate Notre Dame’s zone defense. During one span in the second half, the Pirates put up air balls on three consecutive possessions, two of them on 3-point attempts by Korpivaara and Asia Carroll.
Seton Hall outrebounded the Irish 50-35, with Monique Blake pulling down nine rebounds.
After falling behind 5-2 when Seton Hall made its first two shots, Notre Dame took control. Batteast scored on a steal and layup to begin a 26-7 run in which Seton Hall made just 2-of-21 shots.
The Irish led 30-14 at halftime.
The Pirates scored 36 points against North Carolina State on Dec. 2.
— ND —
POST GAME NOTES: Notre Dame improves to 13-3 all-time against Seton Hall, including a 7-1 mark at the Joyce Center … the Irish are now 7-3 in BIG EAST Conference openers and have won five of their last six BIG EAST lidlifters since joining the league prior to the 1995-96 season … Notre Dame is now 21-7 (.750) all-time in its first game of the new year, including wins in 10 of its last 11 such contests … the Irish are 98-16 (.860) all-time when they are ranked in the Associated Press top 10, including a 47-3 (.940) mark at home … Notre Dame held Seton Hall to an opponent season-low 33 points, the fewest by an Irish foe since last year’s regular season finale (54-33 vs. Syracuse on March 2, 2004 at the Joyce Center) … the 33 points also represented the fewest by either team in the 16-game series history … in an ironic twist, the Pirates had no player score in double figures, after Notre Dame found itself in a similar predicament in last year’s 51-45 loss at Seton Hall … for the third consecutive game, Notre Dame limited SHU to an opponent season-low .222 field goal percentage, the third consecutive game the Irish defense has come through with its best field goal percentage defense mark of the season … Sunday’s game marked the eighth time in the past nine games Notre Dame has held an opponent under 60 points … during its current five-game winning streak, Notre Dame is winning by an average margin of 17.6 ppg., holding opponents to 45.2 ppg., a .276 field goal percentage (77-for-279) and a .202 three-point percentage (17-for-84) … the Irish committed a season-low eight turnovers, the fewest giveaways by Notre Dame since they had a school-record seven turnovers vs. Virginia Tech on Jan. 26, 2002 at the Joyce Center … conversely, Notre Dame caused 24 Seton Hall turnovers, marking the seventh time this season the Irish have come up with at least 20 takeaways … Fourteen of those SHU turnovers came via Notre Dame steals, the seventh time this year and fourth game in a row that the Irish have had double-digit steals … sophomore forward Crystal Erwin grabbed a career-high eight rebounds, one more than her previous best set on Dec. 11 vs. Washington … Sunday’s Joyce Center crowd of 6,188 was the second-largest of the season for the Irish, a scant two persons behind the Nov. 12 attendance of 6,190 for a season-opening victory over Illinois State in the first round of the Preseason WNIT.