Life will go on
by KATHLEEN O'BRIEN
Associate Sports Editor
The terse replies and gloomy looks of the Irish players following Sunday's loss to Seton Hall didn't match the upbeat message coming from their mouths.
David Graves, Matt Carroll, Troy Murphy and Ryan Humphrey talked about controlling their own fate in the race for a regular season Big East title. They pointed to their first-place standings in the Big East West Division. They said that losses happen.
Let's hope they were listening to their words, not their body language.
Murphy appeared as comfortable as someone about to undergo a root canal. The normally chatty junior was lucky to string together an "I don't know — they had depth" as to what Seton Hall did and "yeah, I did" when asked if he took offense to Darius Lane dunking at game's end with the win already in hand. After the post-game press conference, the All-American slipped out the door faster than an Andre Barrett drive.
Murphy, who did everything possible to secure the win — except hit his free throws — with 16 board-crashing rebounds and 24 points, had good reason to be upset by his team's loss. Notre Dame's 32 percent shooting percentage, including two for 23 from behind the arc, brought the Irish eight-game winning streak to a skidding halt.
But more important than the game Notre Dame lost Sunday are the eight they won before that. All teams lose, and winning eight out of the last nine is far better than most NCAA Tournament-bound schools can claim to have done.
As Carroll said, "We've got a game or two lead. It's still our league, and we're going to think of it that way."
The Irish are still two games ahead of both Georgetown and Syracuse in the Big East West. The top two teams in each division earning a first-round bye in the Big East Tourn-ament, and with just four games remaining, it would take a total collapse by Notre Dame to drop beyond the top two.
So the Irish lost.
Big deal. Every team — yes, every team — in the top 25 has lost at least once since Jan. 13, the last time Notre Dame lost before Sunday. 15 of those best-in-the-nation schools lost last week, five of them multiple times.
Sixth-ranked Kansas lost twice, at Baylor and Ohio State. Iowa has dropped four in a row since losing star Luke Recker to a broken kneecap. Even No. 1 North Carolina lost on Sunday, to an 11-14 Clemson squad.
Suddenly, Notre Dame's loss yesterday doesn't sound so bad.
Seton Hall's 13-10 record isn't as sparkling as Notre Dame's 17-6 standings, but the Pirates are much more talented than their loss column shows. It took some time for a team with three freshmen playing megaminutes to find its way, but Eddie Griffin, Andre Barrett and Marcus Toney-El aren't just any newcomers — they're three of the best in the nation. If they stick around the college game for long, which I wouldn't bet a nickel on, the Pirates will find themselves in the Final Four very soon.
Speaking of the Final Four, Notre Dame's a talented enough squad to get there, if the Irish don't let yesterday's loss cloud their confidence.
Graves, though doubtless disappointed with the loss, came off as convinced that the shooting slump was just a fluke.
"We can't hang our heads with this loss," said the junior guard. "We've got something much bigger than just losing to Seton Hall. We're still two games ahead in the West. We've still got a lot to accomplish this year."
Notre Dame should hold its heads high after the way it's been playing since mid-January. The Irish have broken school record upon school record, assuring themselves of a first-ever winning record in the Big East and more than doubling Notre Dame's previous best three consecutive league wins to eight in a row.
One loss doesn't change what Notre Dame's accomplished, and Irish coach Mike Brey knows it.
"I'm not looking for any buildings to jump off of," said Brey.
The Irish just have to avoid settling too long on the loss. Dwelling on a loss is only useful when a team's not trying. The Irish tried, winning the battle of the boards over a taller Pirates team. They just couldn't find the hoop.
Thinking too much about the disappointment will only perpetuate the slump.
As Brey said, "A lot of how we play Wednesday will be how we handle it this afternoon, this evening, tomorrow, and move on."
Notre Dame needs to turn forward quickly, since Wednesday brings the best team in the East Division of the Big East to town — Boston College.
Fitting that the Eagles are up next, because they just accomplished the trick the Irish are looking to replicate. After reeling off six wins in a row, BC dropped a road game to Connecticut, but bounced back to win Saturday against red-hot Providence.
The one time Murphy managed a smile after Sunday's loss was when Graves said, "It wasn't our day, and it happens. The sun will rise tomorrow."
A bit corny perhaps, but he's got the right idea. Notre Dame's still one of "the hottest teams in the country," according to Seton Hall coach Tommy Amaker, and last I checked, the sun rose this morning.
The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Sports Stories for Monday, February 19, 2001
