Irish Go Cold, Lose in NIT Final
Frank Vitovitch
March 30, 2000

New York, NY - The Irish's NIT run came to a halt Thursday night in the final against the Demon Deacons.  Wake Forest fell down 7-2 early on, but owned the rest of the game.  They were winning by 17 with two minutes left in the first half before the Irish went on an 8-0 run to cut the lead to 9 going into the second half. 

The Irish went cold however in the second half and only scored five points in the first five minutes of the second half and found themselves trailing by as many as 20 points before they started hitting their shots again.   Notre Dame had many opportunities to get back into the game, but came up short on most of them. 

Notre Dame had the opportunity to cut the lead to seven with over two minutes remaining, but Jimmy Dillon's drive to the basket was way off and no foul was called.  From then on Wake was in total control.  The Irish made it interesting in the final minute, but Wake started hitting their free throws after missing early on and that was all she wrote.

Notre Dame had many chances to get back in the game, but Wake played some tenacious defense throughout the game and contested every shot the Irish put up.  Even when Notre Dame got open shots they seemed rushed since they knew that a Wake defender couldn't be far behind. 

The Deacons also were flat out on fire from behind the three point line.  Robert O'Kelley was especially on fire all night long after struggling the entire season and the previous games in the NIT Tournament.  O'Kelley had 19 points tonight against the Irish with 15 coming on three pointers as he went five for eleven in the game.

Jimmy Dillon played the majority of the game despite spraining his ankle on Tuesday night against Penn State. You could tell he was battling all night and that he was limited as to what he could do.  He still played like a warrior however and gave it all he had, just as he did all season. 

Tonight's game was the last for Jimmy Dillon and some think there's a chance it could have been for Troy Murphy.  I feel otherwise however.  Murphy said he was going to go to college for four years and I feel he will stick with it.  It is very tempting however since a lot of big name guys are staying for another year which would elevate his draft status. 

The aforementioned Murphy lead the Irish with 20 points tonight while Harold Swanagan lead the team with eight rebounds.   David Graves added 17 points, but no one else on the team scored more than six points.  The nice distribution they had against Penn State was missing completely tonight against Wake Forest. 

Notre Dame was plagued with turnovers this season, especially early in the season.  They had been doing a better job with handling the ball recently, but 17 Irish turnovers lead to numerous easy baskets for the Deacons. 

Wake Forest also owned the offensive glass down the stretch.  On three occasions during the Irish's late run, Wake Forest grabbed an offensive board after a missed shot.  If Notre Dame gets two of those and scores on them, the ending could have been different, but such was not the case.

The Irish killed themselves more so than Wake killing them this evening.  Five of 18 shooting from the three point line on top of 17 turnovers, and giving up offensive rebounds down the stretch did the Irish in.   Notre Dame did, however, shoot very well from the line hitting 22 free throws on 27 attempts.

Notre Dame ends the season at 22-15, a record that many people though Notre Dame couldn't reach.  Winning would have been sweet, but getting to the championship alone was a great accomplishment considering they had never had a winning record in the Big East and never won a Big East Tournament game prior to the 1999-2000 season.  The Irish will also benefit from the extra practice time that will really help next year for the younger guys such as Jere Macura, who is going to be a star, and the other freshman.

The team has nothing to be ashamed of since they gave Notre Dame fans a reason to watch college basketball again this season.   Jimmy Dillon is the only player who will graduated and have no eligibility left so you can expect more of the same next season from the Fighting Irish.

Go Irish!!!!!