After watching last year’s first-round loss in the NCAA Tournament from his couch, Notre Dame guard Kyle McAlarney was a nearly a lock to leave.
Serving a semester suspension for being arrested, McAlarney said today he was “99 percent sure I wasn’t going to come back here, just off my emotions alone.”
Talking during a break Friday to prepare for Saturday’s game against Washington State, McAlarney said he has become a “better person and a better teammate.”
The junior from Staten Island, N.Y., said a visit from coach Mike Brey changed his outlook.
“If he can come and set his emotions aside and stick his neck out for one of his players, I just felt like, if I set my emotions aside, what’s the best decision I can make for my future?” McAlarney said.
He was suspended Jan. 1, 2007, after being arrested for marijuana possession. He watched the rest of the season, as well as the Irish’s opening-round loss to Winthrop in the NCAA Tournament.
McAlarney was starting and averaging 10.3 points a game at the time, and just before the early-morning arrest near campus he had scored 21 points in a win against Rider.
“It was very tough to watch this team get bounced out in the first round knowing that, you know, if I was there, I could have helped them out a lot,” McAlarney said. “It was a tough time for me, my family. It’s amazing how far you can come in a year.”
Tempo. Something will have to give: Notre Dame averages 80.2 points a game, and Washington State has given up 80 points just once (an 81-74 loss to UCLA). The Cougars have the third-best scoring defense in the country, allowing just 56.5 points a game.
Notre Dame’s lowest point total this season is 64 in a four-point loss to Baylor early in the season.
“I think it’s important for us to run on makes and misses,” Brey said. “I feel our conditioning, we’ve been running all year, and certainly we’re plugged into this altitude thing now.”
Brey’s way. After eight seasons in South Bend, Brey fully embraces what Notre Dame football is all about. He’s not living in the shadow of the famed program but rather using the home games to his advantage.
“There’s nothing like those weekends to entertain recruits,” he said. “I think the energy and the passion of basketball and football go hand-in-hand. There’s no question that the football season usually jumpstarts our fan base.”
David Krause: dkrause@denverpost.com or 303-954-1893
