KU, Irish memories: Manning’s offense, Turgeon’s defense epic in all-time series
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kansas and Notre Dame renew rivalry in 2025 Players Era opener after 38 seasons.
- Notre Dame leads series 9-3 and recorded multiple classic, postseason wins.
- Danny Manning scored 40 in 1987; Mark Turgeon anchored defense to seal victory.
A men’s basketball rivalry between Kansas and Notre Dame appeared to be forming in the late 1960s through the mid 70s when the teams played seven times in a span of seven seasons. For whatever reason, however, regular nonconference competition between the schools never materialized following that barrage of entertaining games.
In fact, except for a home-and-home series in 1986-87 and ’87-88, the two programs have gone their separate ways, the gap between games now 38 seasons heading into Monday afternoon’s first-round Players Era tournament contest in Las Vegas.
The Fighting Irish (4-1) and Jayhawks (3-2) will tangle for the first time since KU’s national title season of 1987-88 in a 2:30 p.m. Central time, tipoff at MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Notre Dame, which was highly relevant in men’s hoops in compiling a 393-195 record during Digger Phelps’ 20 years at the South Bend Indiana school, holds a 9-3 advantage in the series between the teams.
KU coach Ted Owens’ squads went 2-5 versus the Irish (1-0 record against coach John Dee and 1-5 vs. Phelps). Larry Brown had a 1-1 record vs. the Irish while Phog Allen went 0-3. Phelps, who had a long career as a national TV analyst, went 6-2 against the Jayhawks.
What follows are memories from some special games, special moments between the two schools.
• KU 70, Notre Dame 60, Feb. 8, 1987, Lawrence: Kansas junior forward Danny Manning erupted for 40 points — the most points scored by KU’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder in a game played at Allen Fieldhouse in his four-year KU career.
The 6-foot-10, 230-pound Manning hit 16 of 21 shots and was 8-of-11 from the line. He also grabbed 11 rebounds, carrying the Jayhawks on offense with no other KU player scoring in double figures.
Kevin Pritchard and Jeff Gueldner finished with eight and five points respectively.
The hero on defense that day was KU senior guard Mark Turgeon, who was granted his wish by Brown to guard Notre Dame standout guard David Rivers. Turgeon was determined to step up in the absence of starting guard Cedric Hunter, who because of a stress fracture in his foot, was unable to play. Closely guarded by Turgeon, Rivers scored 13 points on 3-of-8 shooting (7-of-7 from the line).
The Jayhawks finished the 1986-87 season with a 25-11 record and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAAs. Notre Dame went 24-8, also advancing to the Sweet Sixteen.
• Notre Dame 80, KU 76, Jan. 23, 1988, South Bend, Indiana: In the return game of the two-year home-and-home series, KU squandered an 11-point lead with 10:39 left and ultimately lost by four points.
This coincidentally was the final game played between the teams prior to Monday’s matchup in Vegas.
Highly motivated from what happened the previous season, Rivers scored 29 points on 7-of-16 shooting. He hit 14 of 15 free throws on a day KU went 9-of-14 from the line. In all, Notre Dame converted 25 of 32 free throw attempts.
“Rivers today was a Joe Theismann at his best, a Joe Montana at his best,” Irish coach Phelps said of the 6-0 guard who scored 20 of his 29 points in the second half, including nine points from the free throw line in the final 3:05.
Manning — he later would lead KU to six victories and the NCAA title — scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting. He was 4-of-6 from the line with nine rebounds. Milt Newton had 15 points and seven boards; Pritchard 14 points.
“I really feel badly for Danny,” KU coach Brown said after the contest. “Danny only touched the ball once in the last 12 minutes and that was on a lob break. Our kids have to realize they have to get it into the star’s hands.”
KU led, 61-53, with 10:31 left. The Irish scored nine straight points to take a one-point lead with 8:04 remaining when forward Gary Voce converted a 3-point play.
Rivers scored five straight points before Pritchard answered with a 3 to tie the score at 72 with 1:13 left. Voce put the Irish ahead to stay, 74-72, on a layup at :50.
Rivers hit two free throws to make it 76-72 with :42 remaining. Manning scored at :31. Voce missed two free throws at :16. Manning was fouled while grabbing the rebound off Voce’s second miss.
Manning missed the front end of a 1-and-1 and Rivers, who was fouled, hit two free throws to make it 78-74 with 12 seconds left. KU’s Lincoln Minor hit a deep jumper to cut the gap to two points, but Rivers drained two free throws with three seconds left to conclude the scoring.
“Notre Dame got great execution in the last part of the game,” Brown said. “They were very patient. We were shooting very quickly when we needed to be patient.”
• Notre Dame 76, KU 74, Jan. 22, 1974, Lawrence: There was plenty of pre-game hype as Notre Dame arrived in Lawrence just three days after snapping UCLA’s NCAA-record 88-game winning streak with a 71-70 victory in South Bend.
Notre Dame won another close one, thanks to 23 points from John Shumate and 17 from Adrian Dantley. The two combined to convert 16 of 21 free throws.
KU, which battled back from a 14-point halftime deficit, was led by Rick Suttle, who had 27 points.
Just a freshman, Dantley converted a layup with 1:40 left to give the Irish a 76-72 lead. KU’s Suttle scored with 35 ticks remaining to cut the gap to two, but the Jayhawks never did regain possession.
The victory was the 11th straight for the Irish, who would finish the year 26-3, losing to Michigan, 77-68, in the regional semifinals of the NCAAs. KU that season went 23-7 and reached the Final Four where it lost to Marquette, 64-61, in the semifinals and to UCLA, 78-61, in the consolation game.
• Notre Dame 77, KU 71, March 15, 1975, Tulsa, Oklahoma: This marked the only game between the teams in the postseason. Dantley scored 33 points on 9-of-15 shooting (15-of-21 from the line), while Dave Baton scored 18 points in the first round regional game at Oral Roberts University. Baton went 8-of-9 from the line on a day the Irish hit 35 of 50 free throws to KU’s 9 of 13. Notre Dame was eliminated by Maryland in the Sweet 16.
Suttle scored 17 points with five rebounds while Danny Knight had 15 points. Clint Johnson and Norm Cook scored eight apiece.
• KU 88, Notre Dame 73, Dec. 8, 1971, Lawrence: KU coach Owens’ Jayhawks defeated first-year Notre Dame coach Phelps’ Irish behind the 34-point outburst of Bud Stallworth. Stallworth hit 14 of 29 shots and grabbed 10 rebounds. Wilson Barrow had 15 points and 15 boards, while Tom Kivisto and Aubrey Nash had 12 and 11 respectively for KU. Bob Valibus scored 14 points on 6-of-19 shooting for the Irish.
• KU 75, Notre Dame 63, Dec. 15, 1969, South Bend, Indiana: Owens’ Jayhawks prevailed in coach John Dee’s seventh and final season running the Irish program. Dave Robisch scored 28 points and grabbed 13 rebounds while Stallworth had 18 points and 12 boards. Nash had 15 points and Pierre Russell 11 for the Jayhawks. Notre Dame was led by Austin Carr’s 25 points and six boards. Collis Jones had 19 points.
• Notre Dame 75, KU 59, Dec. 9, 1974, South Bend, Indiana: Dantley, who had some huge games against KU in his career, scored 31 points with 16 rebounds. Billy Paterno had 19 points for Notre Dame. Suttle scored 18 points with six rebounds, while Norm Cook had eight points and eight boards,. KU’s Dale Greenlee and Johnson had eight points apiece.
• Notre Dame 72, KU 64, Dec. 8, 1975, Lawrence: Dantley scored 27 points on 11-of-13 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds. Cook had 19 points and six boards and Johnson 14 points, nine rebounds. Herb Nobles added 11 points and Rueben Shelton 10 for KU.
• Notre Dame 66, KU 64, OT, Jan. 7, 1973, South Bend, Indiana: Notre Dame, which opened the year 0-6, claimed its first victory in a 17-12 season against KU.
The Jayhawks, who trailed by two points after the first half and were outscored 5-3 in the extra session, were led by Barrow’s 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting. Marshall Rogers had 12 points and Suttle 10. Notre Dame went 14-of-24 from the line; KU 8-of-13. Gary Brokaw had 20 points for the Irish.
• The other three games in the series, the first three of the series, all were Irish victories over legendary coach Allen’s Jayhawks.
KU lost on back to back nights during the 1928-29 season. Notre Dame prevailed 32-21, on Dec. 28, 1928 and, 29-17, on Dec. 29, both games in Kansas City. KU also lost many years later, 51-49, on Dec. 23, 1947 in Hoch Auditorium in Lawrence.
