Dec 11, 2002
CHICAGO (AP) – DePaul coach Doug Bruno wasn’t ready to celebrate just yet after his team defeated eighth-ranked Notre Dame 75-59 Wednesday night.
“It puts us on the map if we play well Friday and Sunday,” Bruno said. “The good news is that we played a great game tonight, but we have to prove ourselves Friday on the road and Sunday on the road.”
Jenni Dant scored 23 points, Charlene Smith added 19, and both keyed important runs for DePaul.
Dant scored six straight points for DePaul (6-2) in the second half to give the Demons a 48-36 lead with 16:41 remaining. Notre Dame (4-1) responded with nine straight points. Alicia Ratay hit two free throws to get Irish within three with 12:53 left.
Notre Dame had trouble guarding DePaul’s quick guards, especially Dant and Smith.
“I think there was a quickness mismatch difference on the perimeter,” said Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw. “We are not a very quick team and they were.”
But DePaul outscored Notre Dame 13-3 during a five-minute span. Dant had a 3-point play to give the Blue Demons a 51-45 lead, and Smith made layup for a 61-48 advantage with 5:57 remaining.
Jacqueline Batteast led Notre Dame (4-1) with 17 points.
The teams traded leads for most of the first half, but DePaul was able to go on an 8-0 run to the break. Sarah Kustok hit a 3-pointer to start the run and another 3 to close out the half and give DePaul a 42-33 lead. Dant had 13 first-half points.
Ratay finished with 10 points for Notre Dame. Kustok had 11 for DePaul.
DePaul’s last win over a top-10 opponent was Dec. 14, 1996, when the Blue Demons defeated Louisiana Tech.