Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com DECEMBER 2017 41 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL quette was the lone team that eclipsed 70 points against Oregon State. BASELINE BITS • Four players averaging double figures is generally the norm under McGraw, and through the first three games this season the Irish had five: Ogunbowale (19.0 points per game), Young (16.3), Shepard (14.0), Vaughn (11.3) and Mabrey (10.3). Thompson is at 8.3, while handing out a team-high 19 assists and com- mitting only six turnovers. Freshman forward Danielle Patterson is averag- ing 6.5 points per game off the bench. • Shepard paced the rebounding with a 10.7 average — 5.7 on offense, which was 10th in the country as of Nov. 22 — with Young next at 7.7. Overall, Notre Dame ranked fifth na- tionally in offensive rebounds with 21.7 per contest. • While Notre Dame is crashing the offensive glass, McGraw has not been pleased about the work on the defensive side, where it has allowed 16.3 offensive rebounds per game by the opposition. • Senior Kathryn Westbeld's time is being managed judiciously by Mc- Graw because of the ankle injury that continues to inhibit the 6-2 forward's play. McGraw is trying to keep it at about eight minutes per half for who she refers to as the glue of the team. "When she's in the game, every- thing looks better," McGraw said. "She facilitates, she's great against the press, and she's going to rebound." ✦ 2017-18 NOTRE DAME WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Nov. 1 Indiana (Pa.)! W, 108-40 Nov. 11 Mount. St. Mary's W, 121-65 Nov. 14 at Western Kentucky W, 78-65 Nov. 19 at Oregon State W, 72-67 Nov. 24 vs. ETSU# 7:30 p.m. Nov. 25 vs. USF/Washington# TBA Nov. 26 vs. TBD# TBA Nov. 29 at Michigan& (BTN) 6 p.m. Dec. 3 at UConn% (ESPN) 4 p.m. Dec. 6 Michigan State (ACCN) 7 p.m. Dec. 9 at Penn 1 p.m. Dec. 17 DePaul (ACCN) 1 p.m. Dec. 20 Marquette (ACCN) 3 p.m. Dec. 28 Syracuse* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Dec. 31 at Wake Forest* (ACCN) 1 p.m. Jan. 4 Miami* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 7 at Georgia Tech* 2 p.m. Jan. 11 at Louisville* (ESPN) 7 p.m. Jan. 14 Boston College* (ACCN) 1 p.m. Jan. 18 Tennessee (ESPN) 7 p.m. Jan. 21 Clemson* (ACCN) 1 p.m. Jan. 25 at Pittsburgh* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 28 at Florida State* (ESPN2) 4 p.m. Feb. 1 North Carolina* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Feb. 4 at Duke* (ESPN2) 1 p.m. Feb. 11 Georgia Tech* (RSN) 1 p.m. Feb. 15 at Virginia* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Feb. 18 at Boston College* (ACCN) 1 p.m. Feb. 22 Virginia Tech* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Feb. 25 NC State* (ESPN2) 2 p.m. ! Exhibition; # Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.; & ACC-Big Ten Challenge; % Jimmy V Wom- en's Classic; * ACC game; BTN — Big Ten Net- work; ACCN — ACC Network; RSN — Regional Sports Network The Waiting Is Over Many times during Jackie Young's freshman season, Irish head coach Muffet McGraw had to urge her to be more assertive and less deferential to the veterans. Those days are winding down. The 2016 Naismith Player of the Year in the high school ranks, and the state of In- diana's all-time leading scorer, opened this season with three straight double-digit scoring ef- forts for the first time in her ca- reer (she had 11 overall last year). She was the spark that rallied the Irish from an 11-point second-half defi- cit at No. 18 Oregon State Nov. 19 with a game-high 21 points, 17 in the second half on 8-of-12 shooting. "I know she's been waiting on it," Young said of McGraw. "The second half I was able to just get comfortable and attack the basket. We've had plenty of conversations about that, being more assertive. "I put in the work to be more confident and know that I can't defer to the older players because they're expecting me to have a big- ger role on the team." McGraw believes Young could be one of the greatest athletes she's ever coached in more than three decades at Notre Dame, the type who could average a double-double and still guard the opponent's best player. "Jackie was exactly what we needed her to be and what we thought she could be — and she still has some more that she can do," McGraw said. "She's just scratching the surface of her potential, but she took the game over. … She's doing great things on both ends of the floor." Because there were so many scoring options last year, Young concentrated more on defense and rebounding. "That's what really makes my game different," Young said. "I try to do the other things and not worry about scoring all the time, take pride in my defense, make sure I'm talking on D and communicating with my teammates. "It makes all the difference because everybody at the college level can score, but you have to make sure you're doing all the other things, too. "I think I was already comfortable with the defensive aspect of things, and now I'm more comfort- able on the offensive side." She especially displays an instinctual knack on rebounds. "I'm able to read which way the ball is able to come off," Young said. "I can just tell off the release if it's going to be short or long. It's something I've been able to tell for a while." Ankle and thumb injuries as a freshman slowed her, but with health and a year of work in a college strength and conditioning program, she is expected to display her slashing drives to the basket more often this season. "I know last year I could get to the basket, but it was a little harder for me to finish … I was a little hesitant," she said. "I've gotten a lot stronger." Which should keep the Irish strong in years to come. — Lou Somogyi Sophomore guard Jackie Young contributed a career-high 21 points and eight rebounds in Notre Dame's 72-67 win at Oregon State Nov. 19. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND