It’s Valentine’s Day, and it’s a good thing I’m not a woman.
Besides the abundance of facial hair and a low voice that would raise some eyebrows, I don’t have a date for this evening. While the prospect of some Valentine’s lovin’ is always nice, as any man will tell you, being alone on this “holiday” isn’t as big of a deal for us as it often is for members of the fairer sex.
No, that’s not a tear in my eye . . . I have a cold. Just drop it, OK?
Those tears, however, may have turned to gentle sobbing had Notre Dame not been able to pull out a home win against Seton Hall today. But the Irish did hang on, 71-68. They picked up their second biggest win of the season, the first coming earlier this week versus number five UConn.
An NCAA Tournament resume that featured an early season win at DePaul as its main attraction has now received some backup from two triumphs over teams near the top in the RPI rankings.
For the second straight game, the Irish did it without 6’11 sophomore forward Torin Francis, the team’s second leading scorer. Francis is now out indefinitely because of the lower back injury that limited him in the Connecticut and Pittsburgh games.
The very real possibility of that tournament bubble floating away for good seems to be all the motivation Notre Dame has needed. Like Monday night versus the Huskies, the Irish shot a lower percentage than their opponents from the floor (43.9% to 44.8% for the Pirates), from the line (69.6% to 84.6%), and this time around, even from deep (29.4% to 38.5%).
Once again, Notre Dame didn’t win the way we’d come to expect, namely by shooting the lights out in an offensive display that no team could maintain consistently. That might get you victories from November through February, but both those offensive Picassos tend to run out of fresh paint come March.
No, the Irish were, dare I say it again, gutsy. They imposed their will on the Pirates. The last time Seton Hall had the lead coming with 3:54 to go in the first half. This despite a close game throughout, with the biggest Notre Dame lead being just eight points.
The team continued to take on the persona of the newly assertive Torrian Jones. Jones, a 6’4 guard and one of just two seniors on the team, has begun to dismantle defenses by repeatedly taking it to the rack and either finishing strong himself or finding open teammates.
I think I speak for a majority of Notre Dame fans when I say I don’t know where that’s coming from, but I’m glad it got here. Jones scored thirteen against the Pirates and handed out a team-high six assists. But the two plays that were the most indicative of his day, and Notre Dame’s week, were two blocked shots.
The first came as Jones hustled back on defense in the closing minutes and came out of no where to swat a Seton Hall layup attempt into the first row. After making the play, Jones wore a cold, blank stare and made like a football referee indicating a missed field goal.
With five seconds left and Notre Dame leading 71-66, the Pirates’ J.R. Morris went to put up a three from the right wing to draw his team within two. Again, Jones soared and knocked that ball out of the air and out of bounds.
There was no love in his eyes on this Valentine’s Day, just focus.
That same focus and cold stare beamed out from Chris Thomas’ eyes as he streaked to a game high twenty-six points, nineteen of them coming after the break. He missed his first four three-point attempts, including two tries in one ill-advised sequence in the first half, before canning one with 8:16 remaining to extend a one-point lead to four.
Then, with just over three minutes to go, ND leading 62-58, a man on him on the right wing, and me sitting in a chair—all alone (sniffle), mind you—thinking: “Boy, they could use a three here,” Thomas struck again.
There was the stare as number one shook his head and jogged back down the court, 65-58. ESPN’s Doris Burke noted this and said Thomas was letting the Hall’s defender know he couldn’t play him that loosely and hope to get away with it.
But for a basketball player, especially a scorer, that small gesture means so much more. It’s not just: “You better guard me tighter.” It’s also: “It doesn’t matter if you grab my jersey or sucker punch me in mid-shot, have your best defender chase me around the court or run me off screens for forty minutes. I don’t care if I’m tired and haven’t made a shot from this deep all day. You couldn’t stick me on my worst day. You don’t even belong on the same court as me, Chump-Zilla.
“So do whatever it is you gotta do. Because as far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t make a damn bit of difference.”
Those blocked shots. Those stares. That head shake. They sum up how Notre Dame played this week, and that’s why they picked up their first two really significant wins of the season.
Those two wins moved the Irish to 12-9 on the season and 6-5 in Big East play. For them to continue on this upward swing, they must beat ranked opponents in their next three games. The first two of those games come on the road, where they will meet UConn for a rematch only after traveling to Syracuse. The Orangemen already beat Notre Dame 81-70 in South Bend, and Irish wins at the Carrier Dome come to fruition about as often as one of Nostradamus’ predictions.
Speaking of which, where is that guy with something useful, like Powerball numbers?
With only six regular season games left, a loss to Central Michigan hanging around like that “questionable” hookup back in college, and the team tied for sixth in the conference, every game becomes, you guessed it, a must win.
However, judging by their expressions this past week, the Irish haven’t given up on being invited to the dance just yet.
But given all the trash talk and cold stares going around, I should end this with something a little happier. After all, it is Valentine’s Day, and that means love, or at least those little candy hearts with things like “You’re my emotional bling-bling” written on them.
And I’d like to show some love to the aforementioned Doris Burke, who is usually stuck as the sideline reporter but sounded great as an analyst. ESPN should use her in that role more often.
I know what you’re thinking: “He’s just kissing up and making a last ditch effort to get a date.”
To which I’d have to say you’re wrong. She had a lot of Bill Raftery’s style, and he’s probably my favorite broadcaster.
But just in case: Doris, I’m in the book.
A graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Ted Fox delivered play-by-play of Irish football and men's basketball for three years as a student. He wrote a weekly sports column for the Notre Dame student newspaper for over three years and has been a contributing writer to "The Wolverine", the official publication of University of Michigan athletics. Ted recently finished working in production at ESPN and is currently pursuing an on-air and writing career.
