LHP Clayton Kershaw (mild disc irritation) will face hitte

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Had someone been foolish enough Wednesday night to tell Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw that the sun will still come up in the morning, she might well have reminded them that the wind chill will be in single digits when the sky does lighten in northern Indiana.There was no bright side to be found.There was no victory to be had in No. 2 Notre Dames 72-61 loss to No. 1 Connecticut.That much was frustrating enough for the one program that has in recent memory solved the Connecticut conundrum, just a few years ago winning seven of eight games between the two to make their rivalry the best the sport has to offer. Notre Dame has now lost six in a row.Worse, at least to hear McGraw tell it of a game that was entertaining to watch as a neutral, was how little chance the Fighting Irish gave themselves for the kind of performance that could end a rivals 82-game winning streak.The coach had barely taken a seat for her postgame news conference when she offered a few words of praise for the performance of freshman Jackie Young, a verbal nod to reserve Mychal Johnsons contributions and then spared few others.Just really, really disappointed in pretty much everything, McGraw said. Execution, inability to get the ball to [All-American Brianna Turner]. Just completely ineffective offensively.Heck, even the silver lining came with an ominous cloud attached after Young was helped from the floor having sustained an ankle injury that leaves the guard who showed off offensive and defensive skills doubtful for a trip to DePaul on Saturday.Every concern McGraw had about a team deep with talent but short on experience, especially in roles of accountability, came to light. Most notably and painfully in a sluggish first quarter that put the Irish behind by double digits and a disastrous third quarter that wiped out a comeback.I think we saw some of [the problems] coming, so its not a total surprise, McGraw said. But I dont think to that extent.The question for the country is: Did it expose what Notre Dame cannot be? Or just what it did not do Wednesday?Much of Notre Dames trouble had to do with talent -- not too little of it but too much.Only point guard Lindsay Allen and Turner are in the same roles as previous seasons. Marina Mabrey, Arike Ogunbowale and Kathryn Westbeld were around for the Connecticut game a season ago, but they had the luxury of supplementing Notre Dames core. Others, like Young and fellow freshman Erin Boley, werent around at all. So when Notre Dame struggled early, Ogunbowale took it upon herself to get the Irish back on solid ground. She didnt do poorly, either. Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma said the sophomores aggressiveness forced him to make defensive adjustments. He compared her to former NBA point producer Vinnie Johnson, nicknamed The Microwave for a penchant to get hot in a hurry.The one thing I see that they are doing is theyre playing a little more one-on-one, trying to take advantage of some of the talent they have, Auriemma said. Which I would, too, if I was them.Except that was Auriemma being diplomatic (yes, it happens). He knew in moments when it mattered in years past that he had Diana Taurasi or Maya Moore or Breanna Stewart to make points out of nothing. But there is a reason none of them ever led the nation in scoring. Even with some of the sports iconic individual talents, Connecticut didnt rely on one-on-one sets.Neither did Notre Dame. Neither will Notre Dame, if McGraw is to be believed.Its not our intention to play one-on-one, McGraw said. That was our problem; we played one-on-one. Our intention was to share the ball and to move the ball. I think our frustration showed early and it turned into one-on-one with our wings. That was another source of disappointment.When Ogunbowale cooled, the offense was even more broken. That isnt to pick on her. She was doing what has worked for her throughout her entire basketball life. And the Fighting Irish would have been in even more trouble without her points. McGraws ire fell on everyone.Notre Dame entered averaging assists on 60 percent of its field goals, the same as a season ago. It had assists on barely half its field goals against the Huskies.But at the same time, Auriemma wasnt just being magnanimous in saying Notre Dame was a headache to defend at all five positions.Notre Dame is going to give away something inside to some of its peers this season, Connecticut and South Carolina most notably. But spread some mix of Ogunbowale, Young, Mabrey and Westbeld around Turner -- while remembering to get her the ball -- and let Allen run the show, and a great many defenses will bend well beyond the breaking point. Connecticut nearly did at times Wednesday, which ought to be proof enough.Among Top 25 teams, everyone talks in terms of actual victories and not moral victories when it comes to the four-time defending champions. None are as convincing about it as Notre Dame. Partly it is that run of success from the spring of 2011 to the spring of 2013. Partly it is the sheer familiarity that at least the coaching staffs still share from each programs days in the Big East.Mostly its because in a world without Connecticut, Notre Dame of the past decade would be Connecticut. Even if Allen, 114-2 against everyone else as a starter, wasnt willing to concede as much about an opponent against whom she is now 0-5.I think its not getting over the hurdle, its being able to play well for 40 minutes and play our game, Allen said. Coach talked about being efficient offensively, and that was my fault, I think. I think we have to make sure that Im putting my teammates in a position where theyre going to be successful. ... I think at times we were sped up because of their defense. And at times, when we were on defense we just werent sticking to our assignments.Notre Dame really does want the measuring stick to be itself, not that team from Storrs. That is why McGraw was so dispirited.I think the challenge for any coach, whether its Muffet or myself or anybody else, is how to take the team you have in front of you and try to make it work ... Auriemma said. I think there are some things they do a little bit differently, but they havent changed that much. Its just that this team as its constructed right now hasnt played together long enough. ...Look, were not the team we used to be, Auriemma said. Neither are they.Both have about four months to work on it. But on this night, yet again, Connecticut was better. Wholesale Air Max Shoes . Michell Burger, a woman who lives on an estate next to Pistorius gated community, said she and her husband were awoken by the screams in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 14 last year, when Pistorius killed Reeva Steenkamp by shooting four times through a door in his bathroom. Cheap Air Max Online . 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LOS ANGELES -- The maturation of Julio Urias is coming along quickly for the Los Angeles Dodgers.The 20-year-old rookie from Mexico allowed one run over six innings, Corey Seager set a Dodgers franchise record for a shortstop with his 23rd home run and Los Angeles defeated the Chicago Cubs 3-2 on Saturday to even the series between NL division leaders.Urias (5-2) pitched better at home than the last time he faced the Cubs. The left-hander made his second career start in Chicago on June 2 and gave up six runs -- five earned -- and eight hits in five innings while serving up three homers.This time, he allowed six hits and tied a career high with eight strikeouts and two walks. He is 4-0 in six games (four starts) since the All-Star break.He kept getting stronger and executing better, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. Theres a quiet confidence. Hes being more aggressive. Early on, he was trying to understand the major league strike zone. He can trust his stuff and be more aggressive in the strike zone.The defense backed Urias with two double plays.It gives me a lot of confidence, he said through a translator. A couple starts ago I started picking up my confidence. In the beginning I felt strange. Now I feel like I belong here and thats the biggest difference.Kenley Jansen pitched a perfect ninth for his 38th save a day after allowing a run on a wild pitch in the ninth in a 6-4, 10-inning loss.I didnt have a lot of hours of sleep last night, letting my teammates down, Jansen said. I got to figure out how to be aggressive all the time out there.The Cubs four-game winning streak ended behind the shortest outing of the season from Jason Hammel (13-7). He gave up three runs and five hits in 2 1/3 innings.Jason wasnt happy when I took him out. He didnt want to go, but I didnt see things straightening out, Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. Im not concerned about him and its not a lack of confidence in him.Hammel was coming off a poor performance against Colorado, allowing a season-high 10 runs (six earned) in 3 1/3 innings of an 11-4 loss. He remained winless in nine career games (six starts) at Dodger Stadium.Joe and I talked after the game about it but its not a topic for discussion in the newspapers, Hammel said. Theres nothing wrong with me mechanically. Im fine.The Cubs rally in the seventh came up short. They got to 3-2 on pinch-hitter Jason Heywards RBI single off reliever Pedro Baez.Heyward got caught stealing, and Baez walked Dexter Fowler and Kris Bryant before getting Anthony Rizzo on an inning-ending grounder.Los Angeles took a 3-1 lead in the third on RBI singles by Chase Utley and Justin Turneer.ddddddddddddUtleys hit was the third straight given up by Hammel to start the inning.Seager tied the game at 1 in the first, giving him the most homers by a Dodgers shortstop in franchise single-season history. He broke the old mark of 22 set by Glenn Wright in 1930.TRAINERS ROOMCubs: RHP John Lackey (right shoulder strain) will throw a bullpen session on Monday in Chicago.Dodgers: OF Scott Van Slyke wont play again this season. Hes on the DL with right wrist irritation after being out nearly two months earlier in the season with low back irritation. He doesnt have the range of motion he needs to contribute, manager Dave Roberts said. ... LHP Clayton Kershaw (mild disc irritation) will face hitters in a simulated game on Tuesday in Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga or Arizona.ALMOST HOME ADVANTAGEChicago fans are making the Cubs feel almost like home at Dodger Stadium. They chanted MVP, MVP after Kris Bryants game-winning home run in the 10th inning Friday. They cheered when Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully rattled off statistics about the Cubs impressive August performance during a preview of Saturdays game shown on the videoboard. The team has seen similar partisan crowds around the country this season.Theyve been so loud that if we turned our backs to the crowd, Maddon said, we couldnt tell if it was a home game or an away game.HEARING VINCubs fans in Chicago will get a brief chance to hear Scully wax poetic on Sunday. Comcast SportsNet Chicago will carry the live audio of Scullys broadcast during the third inning of the series finale. The 88-year-old Hall of Fame announcer is retiring at seasons end after 67 years in the booth for the Dodgers.The people in Chicago are in for a treat, Maddon said. After we get done with our games, I watch the Dodgers and listen to Vin on my iPad. Hes one of the great ones, like Red Barber, Dick Enberg and Ernie Harwell. Hes transcended the memories of baseball.AT THE TURNSTILESThe announced attendance of 49,522 pushed the Dodgers over the 3 million mark for the fifth consecutive year and made them the first team in the majors to top that number this season.UP NEXTCubs: LHP Jon Lester (14-4, 2.81 ERA) is 1-1 with a 4.05 ERA in two career starts at Dodger Stadium. The team is 7-0 in his last seven starts.Dodgers: RHP Brock Stewart (0-2, 11.25) makes his third career major league start after being recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday. He last pitched on Aug. 19 against Albuquerque, allowing four hits in five scoreless innings. ' ' '