Marquette University Athletics
Marquette and Notre Dame To Renew Basketball Rivalry
4/26/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
April 26, 2002
Milwaukee -- Marquette University and the University of Notre Dame, two programs steeped in basketball tradition, have agreed to play a home-and -home series starting in 2002-03. Next season's game, the 104th contest between the two schools, is scheduled to be played on Dec. 2 at Notre Dame.
This year's meeting will mark the first time the Golden Eagles and Fighting Irish have met since Nov. 21, 1997, when they met in Milwaukee.
"In my three-plus years here at Marquette, one of the questions I get asked most is, "Is Notre Dame is going to be on the schedule,"' said MU Head Coach Tom Crean. "I am happy to report that the answer is yes. I know that our fans have looked forward to this and it promises to be a great college basketball game.
Both teams are coming off solid 2001-02 seasons. Marquette finished with an overall record of 26-7, the most wins by the program since 1975-76, and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1997. Under Head Coach Mike Brey, who completed his second season in 2001-02, Notre Dame posted an overall record of 22-11 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
"I have great respect for Mike Brey and the Notre Dame program and appreciate the effort they put forth in helping rekindle this great rivalry," said Crean.
"We're very excited to be renewing our rivalry with Marquette," said Brey. "After two years of being the head coach at Notre Dame, I've found out how much this series means to everyone. There are many similarities between Notre Dame and Marquette right now; both have are up-and-coming programs with a tremendous amount of young talent leading those teams. This game will generate a lot of interest nationally because of the great history of the rivalry."
