Blue and Gold Illustrated

January 2019

Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football

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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com JANUARY 2019 49 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL the first half, although she kept the offense flowing with six first-half as- sists. Williams more than compensated for that temporary slump, and Au- riemma said the game plan centered on the rookie driving hard to the bas- ket to counter Notre Dame's own aggressiveness. A three by Walker pushed UConn's lead up to 55-46, and Notre Dame's best run of 7-0 pulled it within 55-53 in the third quarter before the Irish gradually began to unravel and then lost the fourth quarter, 24-12. Young paced the Irish scoring with 18 points. Irish senior guard Arike Ogunbowale led the Irish in rebounds (10) and assists (five) while tallying 17 points on 6-of-18 shooting (missing all six of her shots from three-point range). She also was called for a technical foul late in the contest while jawing with Au- riemma as the game slipped away in the fourth quarter. "He said some words, and I fed right into it and said something back," Ogunbowale said. "As a se- nior leader, I definitely can't do that. I have to keep my composure in times like that." Ogunbowale later apologized via Twitter for her actions, as did Mc- Graw. The Irish head coach wrote: "I apologize to all the Irish fans and alums for my team's lack of poise on Sunday. We set a high bar for what we expect from these young women, and we did not meet those expecta- tions. As an educator it is my job to use this as a teachable moment and help them see that it's not always about whether you win or lose, but it IS ALWAYS about how you play the game. We will continue to strive to be a team you can be proud of." WHERE TO FROM HERE? December games are not make-or- break situations, and the loss might serve as the slap in the face the pro- gram needed, not unlike the 100-67 crushing it received at Louisville last January that helped set it on the right path. The defeat also did not come as a surprise to McGraw, who had harped all preseason on defensive maladies that would eventually cost the Irish. It almost did earlier in the year ver- sus No. 9 Oregon State when the Irish fell behind by 14 points. "A lot of the problems we've been having all year long really surfaced again, and this time the team we played was good enough to take ad- vantage of it," McGraw said. "… Then we lost our poise, and that was unexpected. I was really dis- appointed to see the veterans that we have not rise to the occasion. We're a better team than we showed." Offensively, the Irish have had trouble getting the ball inside to fifth- year senior Brianna Turner, but were also only 26 of 94 (27.7 percent) from three-point range through the UConn game, 1 of 12 versus the Huskies. "It starts tomorrow," Young said of playing with more pride and ur- gency, particularly on defense. "We have a lot of things we have to fix." Notre Dame will improve as the season progresses, as will UConn, and several other national title con- tenders such as Baylor, Oregon, Lou- isville and Stanford. Expect Notre Dame and UConn to meet again sometime April 5-7 in Tampa, Fla., where the Final Four will be held. The two have faced each other six times in the Final Four since 2011 and have split 3-3. Consider this season the "best of seven" — with Connecticut the fa- vorite again despite Notre Dame's edge in experience. ✦ Three-Point Play 1. Learning To Play With Brianna Turner Again: Last year, the Irish had to adjust to playing without All-American forward Brianna Turner. This year, there is an acclimation period on how to play with her and what the identity is going to be on offense. Notre Dame believed it could attack UConn inside with her, but she had only seven field goal attempts (and made four) in 33 minutes. In the next game, a 72- 56 win at Toledo, Turner was limited to 3 of 8 from the field. "I thought we had the advantage inside, but we weren't able to have the discipline to execute," head coach Muffet McGraw said of the UConn game. "I thought she was open. We just didn't get her the ball. … They're packing it a little bit more against Bri and she's having a little trouble finding her spot." 2. Marina Mabrey Working Back Toward Playing Shape: One of the reasons for the subpar three- point shooting is senior guard Marina Mabrey was sidelined the first five games while recovering from a quadriceps injury. Three days before the loss to UConn, she scored 18 points in only 23 minutes, converting three treys, during a 105-71 romp over No. 14 Iowa. Her conditioning threshold was conspicuously tested when she played almost all 40 minutes in the loss to UConn. As her stamina returns, so should her stellar shooting capabilities while playing some in the off guard role. She was 3 of 5 beyond the arc in the 72-56 win at Toledo on Dec. 8. 3. Katlyn Gilbert To Take Medical Redshirt: The freshman guard, who missed a few weeks in the preseason with a shoulder problem, had her right shoulder pop out during the Nov. 29 Iowa game. She will undergo surgery and take a medical redshirt for a fifth season of eligibility. Classmate/point guard Jordan Nixon returned to action Dec. 8 at Toledo after missing two weeks because of a concussion. — Lou Somogyi 2018-19 NOTRE DAME WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Oct. 30 Lewis University! W, 107-65 Nov. 9 Harvard W, 103-58 Nov. 12 Penn W, 75-55 Nov. 17 at DePaul W, 101-77 Nov. 22 vs. Gonzaga# W, 81-65 Nov. 23 vs. Drake# W, 82-64 Nov. 24 vs. Oregon State# W, 91-81 Nov. 29 Iowa% W, 105-71 Dec. 2 Connecticut^ L, 89-71 Dec. 8 at Toledo W, 72-56 Dec. 16 Binghamton (ACCN) 1:00 pm Dec. 19 Western Kentucky (ACCN) 7:00 pm Dec. 22 at Marquette (FS1) 1:30 pm Dec. 30 Lehigh (ACCN) 1:00 pm Jan. 3 Pittsburgh (ACCN) 7:00 pm Jan. 6 at Georgia Tech (RSN) 3:00 pm Jan. 10 Louisville (ESPN) 7:00 pm Jan. 13 Wake Forest (ACCN) 1:00 pm Jan. 16 at Virginia Tech (ACCN) 7:00 pm Jan. 20 Boston College (ACCN) 1:00 pm Jan. 24 at Tennessee (ESPN/2) 7:00 pm Jan. 27 at North Carolina (ACCN) 2:00 pm Jan. 31 at Clemson (ACCN) 7:00 pm Feb. 3 Georgia Tech (RSN) 12:00 pm Feb. 7 at Miami (ACCN) 7:00 pm Feb. 10 Florida State (ESPN) 12:00 pm Feb. 13 at Boston College (ACCN) 7:00 pm Feb. 18 at NC State (ESPN2) 7:00 pm Feb. 21 Duke (ACCN) 7:00 pm Feb. 25 at Syracuse (ESPN2) 6:00 pm Mar. 3 Virginia (RSN) 12:30 pm Mar. 6-9 ACC Tournament TBA ! Exhibition; # Vancouver Showcase; % Acc-Big Ten Challenge; ^ Jimmy V Classic

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