Notre Dame Preview
January 09, 2007 02:59 PM | General
January 9, 2007
GAME NOTES
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – John Beilein is interested in seeing how his team reacts to the names Notre Dame’s students will call them tonight just as much as he wants to see how they perform against the nation’s No. 22-rated basketball team.
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| Senior forward Frank Young leads West Virginia in scoring averaging 14.6 points per game.
AP photo |
“There is a curiosity as to how we’re going to do,” Beilein said. “That Notre Dame crowd is clever; they’re loud and it’s one of the few places where our guys are being harassed and still have smiles on their faces at the same time.”
The Joyce Center has always been a place where the students can get under your skin if you let them. Several years ago former West Virginia forward Chris Moss let his emotions get the best of him in a tough loss to the Irish.
“They are an interesting bunch and I don’t know if all of their students are back yet but it would be a terrific win for this team if we could upset Notre Dame there,” said Beilein.
It’s been 10 years since the last time West Virginia has won in the Joyce Center when Gale Catlett’s Mountaineer team knocked off the Irish, 69-59 on Jan. 27, 1996. Since then West Virginia has lost seven straight at Notre Dame including lopsided losses in 2001, 2002 and 2003.
“The first two times I’ve gone there the games have been anywhere from 10 to 20 points so it’s one of those games on the road where we have not been able to win yet,” said Beilein.
Notre Dame coach Mike Brey is 9-1 against West Virginia, suffering his first loss to the Mountaineers, 71-70 in Morgantown last year.
In that game, Chris Quinn missed a running jumper with a second left as the No. 11-rated Mountaineers escaped with their 16th win of the season. Notre Dame shot 53.8 percent from 3-point range (14 of 26) against West Virginia.
Colin Falls made 6 of 12 from 3 and finished with 18 points. Falls also scored 19 in a Notre Dame 70-57 victory over West Virginia two years ago in Morgantown, and hit the winning 3 to knock the Mountaineers out of the 2004 Big East tournament.
“Colin Falls has been a big-time presence there for four consecutive years,” Beilein said. “He beat us in the Big East tournament on a 3-pointer my second year here.”
Falls has been slowed by a foot injury that kept him out of two games earlier this year, but he has still managed to average 12.7 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.
Russell Carter is Notre Dame’s leading scorer averaging 17.5 points per game. The 6-4 senior guard has a streak of 15 straight games scoring double figures.
“Russell Carter has waited patiently to play and really emerged last year,” Beilein said. “While Colin takes 80 percent of his shots from behind the 3-point line Russell has a game of about half and half.”
Six-nine junior forward Rob Kurz is averaging 14.8 points and a team-best 8.7 rebounds per game. The Irish are averaging 85 points per game which ranks them third nationally.
Notre Dame is missing one key contributor to its lineup with the indefinite suspension of 6-1 sophomore guard Kyle McAlarney. The Staten Island, native was averaging 10.3 points per game at the time of his suspension.
“They are similar to us in that they are catch-and-shoot, drive it and they will throw it into the clock more than we do,” Beilein said. “They also rebound very well.”
Notre Dame’s most impressive victory of the season came on Dec. 7 when the Irish knocked off No. 4 Alabama, 99-85 at home. Notre Dame (13-2) also won its conference opener against Louisville at home, 78-62 before falling by 18 at Georgetown last Saturday.
No. 21 West Virginia (13-1), meanwhile, is off to its best start since the 1981-82 season. The Mountaineers have won three straight conference home games against Connecticut, Villanova and St. John’s and sit atop the Big East standings.
However, West Virginia is making just its second appearance this year in an opposing team’s gym having defeated Duquesne, 85-54 in Pittsburgh on Dec. 9.
“There is not a team that has opened up with three home games in the league and for whatever reason in our non-conference schedule what should have been tough games … teams were rebuilding that we were playing,” Beilein said. “I don’t know if we’re a good team yet.
“I would think in a couple of more weeks we’ll be able to judge who we are,” Beilein said.
Tip off for tonight’s game is set for 7 pm. ESPN2 (Dave Pasch and Len Elmore) will televise the game nationally. MSN radio’s pre-game coverage begins at 6:30 pm with The Mountaineers Today. Fans can access the broadcast via Sirius Satellite Radio channel 159 or through the Internet on CSTV All Access.
