Loyola of Maryland took a much slower route to the NCAA lacrosse championship game than the Greyhounds are accustomed to.FORT WAYNE – Notre Dame has gone through three phases this basketball season.
The Irish were left for dead after an 8-5 non-conference record and the loss of leading returning scorer Tim Abromaitis to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
Then the Irish became a surprise team in the Big East with wins over Pittsburgh (72-59 Dec. 27) and No. 19 Louisville (67-65, 2OT Jan. 7).
Now Notre Dame is a legitimate contender for a double-bye in the Big East tournament and a spot in the NCAA tournament after reeling off six straight wins entering Wednesday’s home game against Rutgers (12-13, 4-8).
The Irish (17-18, 9-3) also entered the rankings for the first time this season Monday, landing at No. 23 in The Associated Press poll and No. 25 in the USA Today coaches poll.
“This team has come a long way from when we were dead in water in November and December to being a Top 25 team,” guard Jerian Grant said. “We are really excited.”
Notre Dame’s winning streak began by handing then-No. 1 Syracuse its first loss of the season, 67-58 Jan. 21 in Purcell Pavilion.
“What helped was, you could really flush the Connecticut, Rutgers thing because here comes Syracuse,” said coach Mike Brey, whose team lost at UConn and Rutgers before beating the Orange. “You know, hype. That worried me at times because if you don’t get it, you could really go into a spin. But you’ve got to go for it. We put all the chips into the middle. I said, ‘It’s not even a league game, this could be the greatest memory in your sporting career.’
“Thankfully you got it, because if you lost that one, I think you could be spinning for a while.”
The Irish followed the upset victory with wins at Seton Hall (55-42 Jan. 25) and Connecticut (50-48 Jan. 29) and another upset, beating No. 12 Marquette 76-59 on Feb. 4 at home.
Notre Dame then scored a 55-51 win Feb. 8 at West Virginia and an 84-76 home win over DePaul on Saturday.
“I think they are probably one of the top three teams in the league,” DePaul coach Oliver Purnell told reporters Saturday. “They do a great job of playing well together.”
The Irish face only one team in their final six games with a winning record in the league – No. 10 Georgetown (19-5, 9-4) – and a target on their backs as the third-place team in the Big East.
Eric Atkins said the team still feels like it’s overlooked even though it will likely be favored in five of its last six games. Plus, the Irish are motivated by their 65-58 loss Jan. 16 to Rutgers, which was the last time Notre Dame was defeated.
“We have to stay hungry,” Atkins said. “I think the way we lost to (Rutgers) we didn’t play as hard as we should have. We didn’t do the little things, and from there, we’ve been focusing on all those little things. From there, we have made a turnaround in the way we prepare and our focus.
“I still feel like we are underdogs in a lot of sense. Every single game is another big game for us, another potential big win for us.”
