While Chattanooga and Notre Dame have no history, their head coaches do.
Jim Foster hired a young high school coach, former professional player and former St. Joe’s student-athlete, to be his assistant after the departure of his first assistant, Geno Auriemma.
Muffett McGraw learned from Foster for the next two years before taking her knowledge and experience out on her own.
Now the two coaches, the tops in their game, will meet again on the hardcourt.
The Mocs (2-1), ranked fourth in the preseason Mid-Major Top 25, dropped to ninth this week after falling to South Florida in the final game of the UTC Tip Off Challenge.
Chattanooga is led in scoring by sophomore Jasmine Joyner (Southaven, Miss.) with 14 points and 12 rebounds per game. She has six steals and five blocked shots. Freshman Keiana Gilbert (Columbia, Tenn.) is second on the team in scoring with 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. She has seven assists and five steals.
The Mocs are averaging 60.7 points per game and shooting 38.3 percent from the field. UTC is 18-of-54 from beyond the arc and is averaging 37.7 rebounds per game.
The Irish, NCAA finalists last year, losing just one game, will host the Mocs at Purcell Pavilion Friday night. Notre Dame is ranked third in the AP Poll and second in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll with wins over UMass Lowell (105-51) to start the season and Michigan State (71-63) on Wednesday.
Jewel Lloyd leads the team in scoring with 24 points per game and Brianna Turner is second with 23 an outing. Both have 16 rebounds this season while Turner has seven blocked shots. Lindsay Allen leads the team with 10 assists through two games while three lead the team with four steals apiece.
The Irish are shooting 47.5 percent per game and 34.8 percent from beyond the arc.