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SOUTH BEND – Notre Dame’s basketball teams enter this season from two distinct angles.
The Irish men are hoping upperclassmen with limited experience can step into bigger roles, while the women have two highly regarded freshmen to mix into a veteran group.
But both teams will be approaching the season inside a refurbished home as Notre Dame tips off its first season in Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center. The teams start practice today at Purcell.
“That is energizing,” men’s coach Mike Brey said of Purcell during Thursday’s media day. “(The players) are really excited to get into this place.”
The Irish are also excited to have forward Luke Harangody return for this season.
After considering entering the NBA draft, the 6-foot-6, 246-pound senior returned with his 23.3 points and 11.8 rebounds a game.
“The biggest thing is to come back and lead this team into the NCAA tournament,” said Harangody, who is a captain along with senior guards Tory Jackson and Jonathan Peoples.
“Coming off last year and the disappointment, it’s time to make some noise again.”
The Irish will be replacing four graduated players with upperclassman who have waited for their chance to play increased roles and with transfer guard Ben Hansbrough, who sat out last year after coming from Mississippi State.
“It’s going to surprise guys left and right,” Jackson said of the players who are expected to have increased roles. “We got guys like (junior forwards) Carlton Scott and Tim Abromaitis that have played awesome. Ben Hansbrough coming from the SEC knows how to play the game. Those guys are going to step in and have some fun.”
Irish women’s coach Muffet McGraw will not have to wait for players to develop with larger roles as she returns all 12 players from last season.
McGraw’s biggest challenge will be finding enough playing time for her players while integrating freshmen Skylar Diggins, the 2009 national girls high school player of the year, and Kaila Turner.
“I think definitely the issue of our depth is going to be a really good thing,” McGraw said. “I think that we will really look to scrimmage against ourselves and really expect that someone is going to beat somebody out for playing time.”
Even with a team loaded with veterans, Diggins has attracted the most attention going into the season.
The women’s program has sold more than 7,000 season tickets, and many of those fans want to see how the South Bend Washington High School product plays in college. Diggins, who averaged 25.8 points and 5.6 assists as a high school senior, said she is ready to begin her career at Notre Dame.
“I’m so excited to actually put a jersey on,” Diggins said. “It’s starting to get real, and I’m ready to play a game tonight.”
The women’s team opens the season at home against Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7 p.m. Nov. 15, and the men’s season tips off at home against North Florida at 7 p.m. Nov. 14.
