Seniors prepare for last game
By KATHLEEN O'BRIEN
Assistant Sports Editor
After sky-diving from elation and excitement with wins over Connecticut and Seton Hall to disappointment and discouragement with losses to Provi-dence and Miami, the Notre Dame men's basketball team is looking for a life jacket to prepare it for a bumpy ride against Syracuse.
"I'm just telling them that we've bounced back before," Notre Dame head coach Matt Doherty said. "We lost two games in Pennsylvania and bounced back to beat Connecticut and Seton Hall. Hopefully we can bounce back from these two losses."
The Irish (23-2, 12-3) will need to be in top form to beat the No. 9 Orangemen (16-12, 7-7).
"It's been an emotional roller coaster throughout the year," sophomore forward David Graves said. "Every time we've hit a low spot, though, we've responded. I don't think we need to play a perfect game to beat Syracuse. I think we need to play a solid game."
In the two teams' first meeting of the season, Syracuse ran over Notre Dame, 80-57.
In their January victory over the Irish, the Orangemen jumped into the lead in the second half with a 19-1 point scoring spurt, led by six 3-pointers. Sophomore Preston Shumpert keyed the Orangemen's run with four 3-pointers en route to a 26 point outing.
"We just have to get out on their shooters, make sure that Shumpert doesn't get hot and try to contain Etan Thomas," sophomore forward Troy Murphy said.
Defending against outside shooting will be crucial for the Irish. Both Providence and Miami used long distance shooting to fire up game-deciding runs against Notre Dame.
"Against Miami, it was a mental breakdown," Doherty said. "Against Providence, it was a guy who was ridiculously hot and there's not much you can do against that.
"The problem with Syracuse is they have four guys who can step out and shoot that perimeter shot," Doherty added. "They're just good. We have to make some subtle adjustments in our zone."
Syracuse has five players who average in double digits —Thomas with 13.8 points per game, Jason Hart with 12.0, Damone Brown at 11.4, Ryan Blackwell with 10.6 and Shumpert at 10.4 points.
While Shumpert's shooting buried the Irish in the last meeting, Thomas has the potential to shut the Irish down defensively. Last season's Big East Defensive Player of the Year, the 6-foot-9 senior ranks second on the all-time list of block leaders in the conference.
"They have overall size and quickness and experience," Doherty said. "It's basically juniors and seniors on their team. They're taller at every position."
Notre Dame's go-to guy is Murphy, who is a potential All-American. Murphy leads the Big East in scoring with 23.1 points per game, as well as rebounds at 10.5 per outing. When opponents find a way to keep him down, the Irish usually sink as well.
The Orangemen are looking to lock up a Big East regular season championship, while the Irish hope to remain in the sights of the NCAA selection committee with an upset victory.
"We've put [the NCAA tournament] way in the back of our minds," senior point guard Jimmy Dillon said. "We'll worry about the postseason when the postseason comes. We want to get some momentum and that all starts tomorrow."
Tonight's game marks the final home game of the season for the Irish, who boast a 13-3 record in the Joyce Center. It will be the last time seniors Dillon, Skylard Owens and Todd Palmer take the floor on their home court.
"We want to send the seniors off the right way," Graves said. "It's going to be an emotional day for everybody. What a way to send them off, to close out the season — on our home court with another big win."
Dillon plans to stay focused on the goal at hand, rather than getting caught up in the emotions of his final home game.
"It's going to be running through my mind, my last time stepping on the court at the Joyce Center," Dillon said. "It's going to be an emotional night, and we're going to try to block it out as much as possible, and our goal is to get a victory against Syracuse."
All Sports Stories for Wednesday, March 1, 2000
