MEN'S BASKETBALL: Irish close out home season with Senior Day
By JOE LICANDRO
Sports Writer
Saturday will be an emotional day for seniors Ryan Humphrey, David Graves, Harold Swanagan and Charles Thomas as they play the final home game of their careers for Notre Dame.
This year's Senior Day will take on an added dimension for the Irish. With a victory over the visiting Providence Friars, Notre Dame will win its 20th game of the season for the second year in a row. More importantly, the Irish should solidify a bid to the NCAA Tournament with a victory.
"We want to send our seniors out with a victory. These guys have meant so much to this program," said Irish head coach Mike Brey. "They are responsible for rebuilding Irish basketball. They have a chance for two straight 20-win seasons and an opportunity for back to back trips to the NCAA tournament. I am very proud of these guys."
After already earning the Big East West Division title, last year's Notre Dame team struggled at the end of the regular season — dropping their final two games to Connecticut and Georgetown.
Last year's Senior Day loss to the Hoyas in front of a national television audience damaged the Irish's psyche as they entered the Big East Tournament. And Notre Dame's loss to Pittsburgh in the first round of the Big East Tournament hurt the team's seeding in the NCAA Tournament.
"We do not want a repeat of the end of last year where we lost three games in a row," said Brey. "We don't want to lose on Senior Day again. We need to learn from our mistakes in the loss to St. John's and come back strong on Saturday against Providence."
Although the Friars currently sit in fourth place in the Big East East Division and hold a mediocre record of 15-14 (6-9 in the Big East), the Friars will still present a formidable challenge to the Irish. The key to victory for the Irish on Saturday will be the point guard matchup between Notre Dame's Chris Thomas and senior Providence point guard John Linehan.
Although he stands only 5-foot-9, Linehan has been the most consistent point guard in the Big East Conference over the last two seasons. After struggling against the defensive pressure of St. John's excellent point guard Marcus Hatten, Thomas must find a way to protect the ball against the aggressive Linehan. In Providence's loss to Miami last Tuesday, Linehan broke former Friar Eric Murdock's NCAA record for career steals.
Another important matchup in the game will be Notre Dame forward Ryan Humphrey against Providence freshman Ryan Gomes. Gomes, the likely runner-up to Thomas for rookie of the year honors in the Big East, is second on the Friars in scoring with just under 14 points a game.
As Notre Dame's leading scorer, averaging almost 19 a game, and the leading rebounder in the Big East with 10.5 a game, Humphrey has been crucial to his team's success this season. Humphrey led the Irish with 29 points and 11 rebounds against St. John's last Wednesday.
"Ryan Humphrey has been fabulous," said Brey. "He's a real man out there. I don't even have to tell him what to do anymore. He just goes out there and gets the job done."
Notes:
u Saturday's 4 p.m. tip-off will be televised nationally on CBS. Notre Dame has failed to win a game on national television this season.
u Notre Dame currently sits third in the Big East West Division. The Irish have a slim chance of finishing second in the conference if Syracuse were to lose its final two games to Villanova on Thursday and Boston College on Sunday.
Contact Joe Licandro at Licandro.1@nd.edu.
All Sports Stories for Friday, March 1, 2002
