Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 14, 2016 49 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL A fter not signing a frontcourt post player in the 2015 and 2016 recruiting classes, head coach Muffet McGraw and her staff made landing two in 2017 a priority. The mission was accomplished with the Nov. 2 verbal pledge from Brooklyn (N.Y.) Mary Louis Acad‑ emy's 6‑3 Danielle Patterson, who took her official visit with her par‑ ents to Notre Dame's football game against Miami Oct. 29. Patterson, the nation's No. 28 player according to Prospects Na‑ tion and No. 30 per ESPN Hoop‑ Gurlz, chose the Irish over traditional power Tennessee (former Volunteers star Candace Parker was her idol), Virginia and local school St. John's. She averaged 22 points per game last year and reportedly has a 3.8 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. Patterson joins Virginia's 6‑3 Mi‑ kayla Vaughn as the second com‑ mitment for Notre Dame in the 2017 class prior to the early signing period in college basketball that runs from Nov. 9‑16. Current frontcourt players Bri‑ anna Turner (a preseason Associated Press first‑team All‑American), Kath‑ ryn Westbeld and maybe Kristina "Koko" Nelson, all will be in their final year of eligibility in 2017‑18, if Nelson in invited to return for a fifth season and opts to do. The final two prospects left on the Notre Dame board are guards who are ranked the top two players in the nation, depending on what service you go by: Virginia product Megan Walker and Oregon native Evina Westbrook. Both visited for the football game against Duke Sept. 24, and both will announce Nov. 10. Landing one of the two would round out what likely would be considered another top‑ five class. Look for a signing day summary in the next edition of Blue & Gold Il- lustrated, when McGraw will also be permitted to comment on prospects once they sign. ASSISTANTS TO JOIN RING OF HONOR Current Notre Dame assistant coaches and former star players Niele Ivey and Beth (Morgan) Cun‑ ningham will be the next to join Notre Dame's Ring of Honor at the Purcell Pavilion. Ivey's presentation will come dur‑ ing the Dec. 5 home game against Valparaiso. Cunningham's is set for Jan. 29 when the Irish play host to Virginia. Their numbers will join two other former Irish women's luminar‑ ies — Ruth Riley and Skylar Diggins — above the Purcell Pavilion court. Ivey, a three‑time All‑Big East pick, co‑captained the 2001 national cham‑ pionship team along with Riley and earned All‑America accolades that season. Now in her 10th year on head coach Muffet McGraw's staff, Ivey has helped Notre Dame to five Final Four berths and was recently pro‑ moted to the title of associate head coach and recruiting coordinator. Cunningham graduated in 1997 as the program's all‑time leading scorer with 2,322 points although Diggins has since passed her (2,357). The two‑time All‑Big East pick helped the Irish to their first Final Four ap‑ pearance in 1997. Cunningham returned to her alma mater in 2012 as an associate coach and has helped guide Notre Dame to three Final Four appearances. ✦ BIG GET Post player Danielle Patterson commits to 2017 recruiting class The 6‑3 Patterson is effective off the dribble along the perimeter, but she can also help the Irish in the front court with her length and scor‑ ing ability. PHOTO COURTESY DANIELLE PATTERSON BENCH SHINES IN EXHIBITION VICTORY Preseason Associated Press No. 1 Notre Dame took the court for the first time on Nov. 3 in an ex- hibition matchup against reigning National Christian College Athletic Association champion Roberts Wesleyan and quickly demonstrated the talent disparity in the 129-50 victory. The top competition for 30th-year head coach Muffet McGraw's Fighting Irish for a good percentage of this season might be in the daily practices. Nine players split 17 to 28 minutes of action, with fresh- men and former national players of the year Erin Boley and Jackie Young providing instant scoring and energy off the bench. The 6-2 Boley ended up with the most minutes (28) while tallying 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting (4 of 6 beyond the arc) and grabbing six rebounds. Young — a guard who plays much taller than her listed 6-0 height — stuffed the stat sheet with 15 points, a game-high 10 rebounds, five assists and strong pressure defense. "Exceptional," McGraw summarized of the frosh. Yet the top story probably was the continued progress of 6-4 senior Kristina "Koko" Nelson, whose conditioning and confidence this year is night and day from previous ones. She tallied 24 points on 12-of-17 shooing while asserting herself in the post. Sophomore point guard Ali Patberg, sidelined last year with a torn ACL, also is gradually working her way back, finishing with six assists and four rebounds in 17 minutes. Meanwhile, the starting lineup was paced by sophomore wing Marina Mabrey's 28 points on 11-of-16 shooting (4 of 6 from three), six assists and four steals, while classmate Arike Ogunbowle and preseason AP first-team All-American junior Brianna Turner each had 18 points. Senior point guard Lindsay Allen had 10 assists, and forward Kathryn Westbeld contributed four apiece in points, rebounds, assists and steals. — Lou Somogyi