Graves, Irish enhance team efforts, gain confidence
KATHLEEN O'BRIEN
Assistant Sports Editor
The Irish proved that their roster runs deeper than Troy Murphy.
With a balanced team effort at home Wednesday night, they dismantled West Virginia 79-64.
Four Irish players scored in double digits, led by sophomore David Graves and freshman Matt Carroll with 17 apiece.
"It was nice to see some guys chipping in and stepping up," head coach Matt Doherty said.
In the first stanza, Notre Dame (14-8, 5-3 Big East) trailed West Virginia (12-7, 4-4) by as many as 17 points before going on a 19-5 explosion.
Graves and Carroll sprung back from shooting slumps to pace the Irish as high scorers.
"When you're off, it seems like you're never going to get back," Graves said of ending his slouch with 4-for-6 shooting night. "It was a big boost for me. I think the timing of the 3s was big. It made my confidence soar."
At half time, Carroll was 1-for-6 from the field with just two points in the books.
"Outside shooters, you just have to keep on shooting," Carroll said. "If you're off, the only way you're going to get back on is to keep on shooting."
In the second period, Carroll came out with 15 points for the Irish, including two 3-pointers during a 15-0 Irish run.
"I get more confidence as the game goes on," Carroll said.
It was the players who sometimes get overlooked who put the Irish over the top. Although Murphy had16 points, he did not score during a 13-minute stretch in the second period. In that span, Notre Dame surged from a 51-44 deficit to a 69-61 advantage.
"We all huddled up with about 14 minutes to go," Graves said, "And we just said, this is the time that we need to start chipping back at the lead."
A little extra shooting practice Monday may have been just what the Irish needed. Doherty held an optional shoot-around that every player on the team showed up for.
But Graves, Carroll, junior point guard Martin Ingelsby and freshman Mike Monserez did more than just show up. They stayed for around two hours, playing shooting games and two-on-two.
It paid off, as each of the four nailed at least one 3-pointer against the Mountaineers. Carroll hit four treys, while Graves and Ingelsby added two each.
"I'm very proud of Martin Ingelsby," Doherty said. "Martin Ingelsby didn't play in the second half the other night, and he didn't sulk, didn't complain."
The team production went beyond just scoring.
A trio of sophomores — Graves, Murphy and Harold Swanagan — grabbed nine rebounds apiece.
"I thought David was excellent, and grabbed some tough rebounds," Doherty said. "Harold as well. We were very active on the boards."
Bringing down the boards boosted the Irish past the Mountaineers, as the Irish held a 36-26 rebounding advantage.
Starting senior Jimmy Dillon split time with Ingelsby at the point guard position. Dillon dished off six assists in 27 minutes of play, while Ingelsby added three in 24 minutes on the court. Monserez, who played only four minutes, handed out four assists as well.
"It's a well-balanced team, and it was a great day today," Murphy said. "We extended a lot, and we had a lot more energy."
The Irish kept their turnovers to a minimum Wednesday, with just 12 in the entire game. They also stayed out of foul trouble, only fouling the Mountaineers 11 times total.
Notre Dame continued its advance in the Big East with the victory. At 5-3 in the conference, Notre Dame stands locked in a three-way tie for fourth place with St. John's and Connecticut.
The views expressed in this column are thoes of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Sports Stories for Thursday, February 3, 2000
