Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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48 SEPT. 23, 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED WOMEN'S BASKETBALL BY LOU SOMOGYI T here are only two freshmen on Notre Dame's 2019-20 roster, but you could have fooled head coach Muffet McGraw based on what she has gleaned from this year's summer sessions. That's what happens when you lose all five starters to the WNBA Draft, plus two other potential starters in ju- nior Danielle Patterson (Indiana) and Jordan Nixon (Texas A&M) to transfer. "It seemed like they were all fresh- men," McGraw said of her 10-woman roster, including walk-ons. "It was kind of a feeling among everyone, 'I've really got a shot to play — and in fact I have a shot at starting.'" There were at least two takeaways this summer from McGraw. One was the chemistry was better than she anticipated, in part because of the internal knowledge that the massive makeover will require buying in to- gether as a team. "For as diverse as they are, they just meshed really well," McGraw noted. "We had a lot of fun together." Second is the Notre Dame audience at home games (sixth in the NCAA last year at 8,434 per game) better not bring their appetite for more free Big Macs at the local McDonald's when- ever the team reaches 88 points. The Fighting Irish scoring average last year ranked No. 1 nationally at 88.6 per game — with Mississippi State second at 86.2, and only two other Power Five teams finished in the 80s. It might more routinely be "60s Night" at the games. "We're nowhere near the offensive capabilities that we had in the past. I'm hoping we can play really good defense because we're not going to score that many points," McGraw said. "It's going to be a complete reversal." Whereas the 2018 national champs and 2019 national runners-up knew they could outscore 99.5 percent of the competition without emphasiz- ing defense, this group recognizes it will have to lean heavily on it. "I did talk about defense a lot," McGraw said of the 2018 and 2019 juggernauts, "It just wasn't a buy- in from the team. This summer we already had at least three or four people who took charges. "Last year it was going to be Abby [Prohaska], and the year before it was going to be Kathryn Westbeld and Koko [Nelson]. I feel like in that way there is more team defense." STARTING FIVE Two certainties in the starting five are Stanford graduate transfer Marta Sniezek at point guard and junior Mikayla Vaughn in the post. A 50-game starter for the power- ful Cardinal, Sniezek was sidelined last season because of ulnar collateral ligament surgery on her elbow, plus torn ligaments in her right thumb. "Marta is just a natural leader and always has played the point. She's always been in charge," McGraw said. "What makes her a really good leader is she's a collaborator. She did not come in and immediately try to take over. "She allowed everybody to have her own voice." The 6-3 Vaughn — the top returning scorer (3.3 points per game) and re- bounder (2.4) from last year — shined off the bench as a freshman early in 2017 during hard-fought road wins versus Oregon State and Western Kentucky before tearing her ACL. On occasion she has battled some tendini- tis, but remains highly active. "Last year I don't think she ever re- Reconstruction Era A role reversal in identity will be part of the 2019-20 team Muffet McGraw, who is entering her 33rd season with the Fighting Irish, knows her squad will need more of a defensive mindset than in recent years. It will be difficult to come anywhere close to the offensive production of last year's team, which led the nation at 88.6 points per game. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND 2019-20 NOTRE DAME NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE The biggest rebuilding work in Muffet McGraw's 33 seasons will include a pretty salty 12-game non-conference schedule that includes eight NCAA Tournament teams from last year and five league champions. Nov. 5: at Fordham — Reigning Atlantic-10 champs Nov. 8: Loyola Maryland — Natalie Achonwa to be inducted into Ring of Honor at this game Nov. 11: Tennessee — "Big Monday" matchup on ESPN, with the Vols under a new regime Nov. 14: Michigan State — Lost to Notre Dame 91-63 in second round of 2019 NCAA Tournament Nov. 20: Toledo — Finished 21-12 last year, with a 72-56 loss to the Irish Nov. 23: at Michigan — Advanced to second round of NCAA Tournament Nov. 28: Florida Gulf Coast* — Reigning Atlantic Sun champion Nov. 29: South Dakota State* — Summit League champion that advanced to Sweet 16 Nov. 30: South Florida* — Defeated Ohio State, Oklahoma and UCLA prior to major injury last year Dec. 4: Minnesota — ACC/Big Ten Challenge; Golden Gophers were 21-11 last year Dec. 8: at Connecticut — Perennial team to beat as Final Four fixture Dec. 11: DePaul — Reigning Big East champ Notre Dame also will host Guelph in an exhibition game Dec. 21 before going on Christmas break. * Cancun Challenge on Thanksgiving weekend in Cancun, Mexico