Irish Ready To Battle Blue Demons

After making the short 110-mile bus trip from campus to Rosemont, Ill., the Notre Dame men’s basketball team (17-4 overall, 5-3 BIG EAST) checked in at the hotel before departing for Allstate Arena, the site of tomorrow’s matchup with DePaul (10-10, 1-6).

The Irish spent about 45 minutes shooting around, getting acclimated with the arena and going over some final preparations for the conference showdown. The game will be the 103rd meeting all-time between Notre Dame and DePaul, with the Fighting Irish leading the series, 58-44.

Last February, Notre Dame won, 84-76 at Purcell Pavilion.

The Blue Demons have played at Allstate Arena since it opened in 1980. The 17,500-seat venue is also home to the WNBA’s Chicago Sky, the AHL’s Chicago Wolves and the Arena Football League’s Chicago Rush.

In 2003, the basketball floor was dedicated as the Ray & Marge Meyer Court, in honor of the legendary coach who led DePaul from 1942 until 1984. Meyer, who passed away in 2006 at the age of 92, was a 1938 Notre Dame graduate. During two seasons as a guard with the Irish, Meyer helped lead Notre Dame to a 62-8-1 record and the 1936 Helms national championship.

Fans might already be thinking about the big road test ahead on Monday at #6 Syracuse, but for now, the Irish are focused on their BIG EAST neighbor and fellow Midwestern Catholic university. If you can’t catch the game on ESPN2, make sure to tune in at 2 pm ET to the live radio broadcast on UND.com or on Sirius/XM Ch. 85.

Just arrived at Allstate Arena. Getting ready for tomorrow’s game against DePaul. 2 pm ET on ESPN2. twitter.com/NDmbb/status/2…

— Notre Dame MBB (@NDmbb) February 2, 2013

DePaul home court named after Demons legendary coach Ray Meyer, a 1938 @notredame graduate. twitter.com/NDmbb/status/2…

— Notre Dame MBB (@NDmbb) February 2, 2013