Jan. 21, 2001
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. (AP) – Third-ranked Notre Dame was not about to rest on its accomplishments.
Following the biggest win in school history, the unbeaten Irish scored the first 11 points of the game and got 17 overall from Erika Haney in a 72-47 win Sunday over Seton Hall.
Notre Dame, which beat No. 1 Connecticut 92-76 last Monday, showed no signs of a letdown. The Irish (18-0, 7-0 Big East) limited the Pirates to just two free throws over the first 10:58 while opening a 15-2 lead.
“Coming off that big win it might have been a little hard for us to get back on track,” Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. “In fact, I think we came out a little tentative.”
Asked about the possibility of being ranked No. 1 in Monday’s poll, McGraw said, “We’ve worked so hard to get to where we are that it would be a nice pat on the back. But our work right now is far from over.”
After Seton Hall (12-6, 5-2) got its first field goal on a jumper by Arminda Moreno with 9:02 remaining, the Irish went on a 10-2 spurt that included four points each by Haney and Ruth Riley to open a 25-6 lead. Haney also scored the first seven points of the game.
“The first 10 minutes weren’t much fun,” Seton Hall coach Phyllis Mangina said. “We felt like the Minnesota Vikings. We just didn’t play very well offensively.”
Moreno led Seton Hall with 17 points.
The Irish defense, ranked first in the country in field goal percentage allowed, limited Seton Hall to just 26.9 percent (7-for-26) shooting in the first half and 30.9 percent for the game.
Riley, Notre Dame’s 6-fot-4 senior center, finished with 13 points while playing on a sore ankle. Niele Ivey added 11 points and Monique Hernandez had 10.
“They were double-teaming me every time the ball came into the post, so I knew someone must be open so I just looked to kick the ball out to an open teammate,” said Riley.
Senior forward Kelley Siemon, who broke her left hand a week ago in a win over Virginia Tech, sat out the game for the Irish but is slated to return to action by the end of the month.