1996–97 Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's basketball team

1996–97 Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's basketball
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 5
APNo. 15
Record31–7 (17–1 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coachKevin McGuff (1st season)
Home arenaEdmund P. Joyce Center
Seasons
← 1995–96
1997–98 →
1996–97 Big East Conference women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Connecticut † 18 – 0   1.000 33 – 1   .971
No. 15 Notre Dame 17 – 1   .944 31 – 7   .816
Boston College 13 – 5   .722 16 – 12   .571
West Virginia 11 – 6   .647 19 – 12   .613
Georgetown 9 – 9   .500 17 – 11   .607
Miami (FL) 8 – 10   .444 15 – 14   .517
Villanova 8 – 10   .444 14 – 14   .500
Providence 8 – 10   .444 13 – 14   .481
Rutgers 8 – 10   .444 11 – 17   .393
Seton Hall 7 – 11   .389 10 – 17   .370
Syracuse 4 – 14   .222 6 – 21   .222
Pittsburgh 3 – 15   .167 8 – 22   .267
St. John's 3 – 15   .167 5 – 22   .185
† 1997 Big East Tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

The 1996–97 Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's basketball team represented the University of Notre Dame during the 1996–97 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Fighting Irish, led by tenth-year head coach Muffet McGraw, played their home games at Edmund P. Joyce Center as members of the Big East Conference. The Irish finished the season 31–7, 17–1 in Big East play to earn second-place in the regular season standings. They defeated Rutgers and Georgetown before losing to UConn in the Big East Women's Tournament championship. Notre Dame received an at-large bid as the No. 6 seed in the East (Columbia) region. They defeated Memphis and Texas to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. There they defeated Alabama and George Washington to advance to the first Final Four in program history. The Irish were beaten by Tennessee, the eventual National champion, 80–66.[1]

Roster

[edit]
1996–97 Notre Dame Fighting Irish women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
F/C 12 Katryna Gaither 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Sr    
G 21 Beth Morgan 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Sr Bloomington South Bloomington, IN
G 33 Niele Ivey 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr Cor Jesu Academy St. Louis, MO
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 17, 1996*
 No. 20 vs. No. 6 Iowa W 61–50  2–0
  
 
Nov 19, 1996*
 No. 20 vs. No. 3 Tennessee L 59–72  2–1
  
 
Nov 21, 1996*
 No. 20 vs. No. 8 NC State W 64–53  3–1
  
 
Feb 9, 1997
 No. 15 at No. 1 Connecticut L 49–72  20–5
(12–1) 		Gampel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
Feb 25, 1997
 No. 14 at West Virginia W 80–67  25–5
(17–1) 		WVU Coliseum 
Morgantown, West Virginia
Big East tournament
Mar 1, 1997*
 (2) No. 14 vs. (7) Rutgers
Quarterfinals 		W 86–58  26–5
 Gambel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
Mar 3, 1997*
 (2) No. 13 vs. Georgetown
Semifinals 		W 83–43  27–5
 Gambel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
Mar 4, 1997*
 (2) No. 13 at (1) No. 1 Connecticut
Championship game 		L 68–77  27–6
 Gambel Pavilion 
Storrs, Connecticut
NCAA women's tournament
Mar 14, 1997*
 (6 E) No. 15 vs. (11 E) Memphis
First round 		W 93–62  28–6
 Frank Erwin Center 
Austin, Texas
Mar 16, 1997*
 (6 E) No. 15 vs. (3 E) No. 14 Texas
Second round 		W 86–83  29–6
 Frank Erwin Center 
Austin, Texas
Mar 22, 1997*
 (6 E) No. 15 vs. (2 E) No. 8 Alabama
Regional Semifinal – Sweet Sixteen 		W 87–71  30–6
 Carolina Coliseum 
Columbia, South Carolina
Mar 24, 1997*
 (6 E) No. 15 vs. (5 E) No. 22 George Washington
Regional Final – Elite Eight 		W 62–52[2]  31–6
 Carolina Coliseum 
Columbia, South Carolina
Mar 28, 1997*
 (6 E) No. 15 vs. (3 MW) No. 10 Tennessee
National Semifinal – Final Four 		L 66–80[1]  31–7
 Riverfront Coliseum 
Cincinnati, Ohio
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East Region.
All times are in Eastern.

Source[3]

Rankings

[edit]
Main article: 1996–97 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Tennessee Ends Notre Dame's Cinderella Story". The Washington Post. March 29, 1997. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  2. ^ "Sixth-Seeded Irish Will Represent the East". The New York Times. March 25, 1997. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  3. ^ "1996–97 Women's Basketball Schedule". Notre Dame Athletics. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
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