Nov 13, 2001
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Defending NCAA champion Notre Dame scored the first 17 points of the game in under seven minutes and never looked back, routing Christian Brothers, 87-39, in an exhibition game Tuesday night at the Joyce Center.
Junior guard Alicia Ratay led the 15th-ranked Irish with a game-high 20 points, connecting on seven of nine shots from the floor, including four three-point field goals. Freshman forward Jacqueline Batteast put together a superb all-around effort, tallying 17 points, six rebounds, four steals, three assists and two blocked shots, all in just 18 minutes of action. Classmate Katy Flecky came off the bench to add 13 points, while freshman center Teresa Borton chipped in with 12 counters. For the second consecutive game, freshman guard Kelsey Wicks led the Irish on the glass, collecting a game-high 10 rebounds.
Sarah Condra scored 12 points to lead Christian Brothers, a NCAA Division II school located in Memphis, Tenn.
Notre Dame took advantage of some early jitters by the Lady Buccaneers, scoring seven quick points in the first 1:31 of the game and forcing CBU head coach Todd Schaefer to burn an early timeout. That only prolonged the Lady Buccaneers’ problems, as the Irish piled 10 more points on their lead, the last coming on a layup by Wicks with 13:14 to go in the first half.
After missing its first eight shots and turning the ball over six times, Christian Brothers finally broke through when Condra knocked down a six-footer on the left baseline at the 12:54 mark. However, Notre Dame continued to show balance on both ends of the floor, converting several CBU turnovers into transition layups while building up a 41-12 halftime lead. The Lady Buccaneers didn’t help their cause by shooting just 13.8 percent (4-29) from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
Ratay heated up in the second half, hitting a trio of long-range shots, two from beyond the arc, to spark a 32-11 run which gave Notre Dame its largest lead of the night at 73-23 with 9:22 to play. As a team, the Irish were especially sharp from the floor in the second half, hitting at a 61.3 percent clip (19-31) to finish at a solid 52.2 percent for the game. All 11 Notre Dame players in uniform saw action in the contest with nine of them denting the scoring column.
The Irish will open the 2001-02 regular season Sunday, Nov. 18 at 1 p.m. (EST) when they play host to Valparaiso at the Joyce Center. Prior to the game, Notre Dame will raise its 2001 NCAA championship banner to the rafters and the first 1,500 fans in attendance will receive a replica championship banner.
— ND —