Notre Dame hammers St. Ambrose

By Dan Tomlin
from: The Dispatch - Rock Island Argus

Friday, November 2nd, 2007

SOUTH BEND -- Charlie Weis might do good to take a look at what the Fighting Irish have on the hardwood.

Notre Dame showed St. Ambrose a little different look than they had the night before at Bradley, but the outcome was the same, a loss, this time 109-53 Irish.

The difference between the two games was the way it was officiated. On Thursday, whistling came early and often, sometimes anticipatory it seemed. On Friday, the men in stripes were more than willing to let the teams play on, despite obvious violations on both ends of the court.

Down 35-5 after the first seven minutes, it only got worse.

The Irish defense was so stifling in the first half, there were times when fans wondered if the Bees were going to make it to double digits. They finally did, with 4:32 left in the first half with a Reggie Shipp trey.

"To be honest, we didn't anticipate the level of being manhandled," SAU coach Ray Shovlain said. "They were just bigger, quicker and stronger than Bradley's players, and we weren't ready for that."

It was a rough turnaround for the Bees, too, who left Peoria Thursday night at 10, got into South Bend around 1:30 a.m., and had to tip off Friday night.

"I'm grateful to coach (Mike) Brey and athletic director Kevin White for the opportunity to play, and not to make excuses, but I think we were a little tired from (Thursday)," Shovlain said. "Overall, they just came out and stuck us."

Only one Bee was in double digits, Adam Fahrenkrog for the second straight night. He scored 10. Six Irish scored more than 10.

Senior guard Brett Cole kept control of the court for the most part for the Bees, and is aware that this experience will pay off down the road.

"Our offense was taken out of sync almost immediately," Cole said. "It'll be a memorable experience. I'd rather have it this way than playing someone and winning by the same amount."

Just when you thought it got easier for the Bees, they have to go to Northwestern College to take on the 2nd-ranked NAIA D-II team in the country in Northwestern. Both Cole and Shovlain hope that after Bradley and Notre Dame, the road gets a little easier.

"Hopefully that's the best team we see all year," Shovlalin said. "If not, it could be a long year."

Always jovial, Shovlain's record speaks for itself, and, as he nears the 500-win plateau, another 20-win season isn't out of the question.

"We got a lot out of these two days," said Shovlain. "We're further along than I thought we would be, and there are a lot of positives to work with. Of course, we've got a ways to go too, but we're doing OK."