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| INSIDE THE NUMBERS |
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2000-01 record: 22-11;
10-6 in Big East (2ndt/West)
Postseason: Lost to Duke 84-77 in second round of NCAA South Region.
RETURNING LEADERS
Points: Thomas 14.9
Rebs: Carroll 6.4
Assists: Thomas 2.1
FG: Carroll 40.1%
3pt: Carroll 36.5%
FT: Thomas 88.9%
01-02 Stats:
Notre Dame | Big East
KEY LOSSES
David Graves | 14.4 ppg
Ryan Humphrey | 18.9 ppg
Harold Swanagan | 8.1 ppg
PROJECTED STARTERS
G | Chris Thomas | Soph
G | Matt Carroll | Senior
F | Jordan Cornette | Soph
F | Danny Miller | Senior
C | Torin Francis | Fresh
Player to Watch
Chris Thomas
Sophomore Guard
Set Irish season records for assists and steals as freshman.
DATE TO REMEMBER
Who makes the schedule, anyway? The Irish visit Washington D.C. to play Maryland, a chance for Miller to play his former coach (and tormenter), Williams.
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NOTRE DAME
FIGHTING IRISH
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Last season Notre Dame wasn't supposed to win 22 games the year after losing Troy Murphy to the NBA, so who's to say the Irish can't win another 22 the year after losing Ryan Humphrey to the NBA ... and fellow starters David Graves and Harold Swanagan to graduation? Not us, especially not with Notre Dame returning one of the most dynamic point guards in the country, Chris Thomas, whose first career game produced Notre Dame's first career triple-double (24 points, 11 assists, 11 steals). Thomas is joined by senior shooting guard Matt Carroll while McDonald's All-American Torin Francis, a 6-10 freshman, should hold down the fort in the paint. If Coach Mike Brey's third Notre Dame team does repeat as an NCAA Tournament entrant, he'll have a couple ACC coaches to thank, if indirectly. Former Irish coach Matt Doherty, now at North Carolina, recruited not only Thomas to South Bend, but also projected starting power forward Jordan Cornette. Meanwhile, the Irish's other starter at forward should be 6-8 Danny Miller, who played three seasons for Maryland coach Gary Williams.
TOUGH ENOUGH..............................
Thomas and Carroll give Notre Dame a backcourt that can compete with anyone -- and might score more than any in the Big East. They combined to average roughly 30 points per game last season, but that number could sky to the 40 range this season. Defensively, Thomas is quick enough to hang with any guard, while the 6-6 Carroll has size to spare.
TOUGH ENOUGH?..............................
The bad news is, the Irish must replace all three starting frontcourt players with a bunch of end-of-the-bench reserves and freshmen. Humphrey, Graves and Swanagan combined to average 41.4 points and 22.6 rebounds per game. Brey might be lucky to get half that production from the talented (but skinny) Francis, Cornette and Miller.
BOTTOM LINE..............................
Depending on the development of Francis and the scoring ability of Cornette and Miller, Notre Dame could be a bubble team in March - if things go well. Without consistent production from its frontcourt, though, Notre Dame would be a fun team to watch (wow, Chris Thomas is fast!) and an even more enjoyable team to play.
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