Notre Dame Basketball: Bonzie Colson Picked Player of the Year, Irish To Finish Third
By Andrew Hall
Many people are starting to notice Mike Brey and the Notre Dame basketball program.
It is the time when players receive preseason accolades that do not amount to anything. However, they are fun to discuss and review after the dust of the regular season settles.
Notre Dame received some praise at ACC Media Day. ACC voters selected Senior Forward Bonzie Colson as the preseason player of the year. 49 of the 69 voters picked Colson as the player of the year. He also made the Preseason 1st Team All-ACC team with 64 of the 69 possible votes. He joined Duke’s Grayson Allen, North Carolina’s Joel Berry II, Duke newcomer Marvin Bailey and Georgia Tech’s Ben Lammers. Surprisingly, Point Guard Matt Farrell did not make either the first team or second team.
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Last season, the Senior from New Bedford, Massachusetts finished with 17.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. This season, Colson looks to continue to expand his game with more shooting from behind the arc. During an open practice at the Purcell Pavilion last Saturday, he looked extremely comfortable with his three point shooting. His ability to bring certain defenders out to the perimeter will help both the team and him.
As for the team, voters predicted that Notre Dame would finish third in the league. The Fighting Irish received 4 first-place votes. Tobacco road regulars Duke and North Carolina were selected as the top 2 teams in the league, respectively.
The Notre Dame basketball program clearly is gaining respect from the rest of the ACC. The 4 first places votes clearly demonstrate that media members believe in the Irish talent and Head Coach Mike Brey.
How will Notre Dame handle these expectations? Brey and the Irish always perform better when there are low expectations. Typically, Notre Dame begins the season outside of the Top 25 then works its way up into a decent seed.