What we know (and don’t know) about Notre Dame Basketball
By Chase Eyrich
The start of a new season comes with a certain level of uncertainty. Here’s what we know about Notre Dame going into the season.
The season is officially here. Notre Dame basketball is back and will get things kicked off Saturday vs. Depaul to open up the brand new Wintrust arena for the Blue Demons.
Notre Dame comes into this season with some high expectations. Pre-ranked 14th in the nation and the team is setting the standard for success with a vision of a Final Four appearance.
These expectations come rightfully so. Two Elite Eight and ACC tournament championship game appearances the bar has been raised for Notre Dame basketball.
The backcourt
The hype around this season comes from the noise seniors Bonzie Colson and Matt Farrell bring.
Last year Colson was the walking double-double with that being his season average. Throughout the three exhibition games, Colson hasn’t skipped a beat racking up a double-double in all three.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Basketball
The 6’6″ “big man” is one of the best in the nation this year. Placed as preseason ACC player of the year, Colson has also been in plenty of talks for National Player of the Year.
But, he can’t do it without his partner in crime, Matt Farrell.
Farrell comes in as the quarterback of the Irish on the hardwood. Making the ACC All-Tournament First Team last year, Farrell exploded onto the scene catching some teams off guard. That won’t be the case this time around. This is a senior combination that is hard to prepare for.
Farrell compliments Colson very well. When in need of a clutch bucket, you can be confident that the guard has ice water in his veins. Where this duo becomes extremely dangerous is his ability to get the ball into scoring position. If there’s an even more “for sure” bucket on the team, that’s in the hands of Colson,
Rex Pflueger
It’s no secret what Rex Pflueger brings to this team. His defense is top notch. Playing a pivotal role in Notre Dame’s run to the ACC championship game, Pflueger pulled down 14 rebounds and four steals. He’s that pesky player you don’t want to actually have to face.
He is Mr. Efficient too. The Cali native started out the season without committing a turnover for the first 11 games of the season.
What’s special about this season for Pflueger is his offensive production. With the loss of VJ Beachem and Steve Vasturia, Pflueger will be asked to increase his role offensively. Something that he mentioned he was working on this offseason.
So far, its shown. Posting 17 points in the Cardinal Stritch exhibition, he came out as the games second highest scorer just behind Colson.
Questions remaining?
Last season, Notre Dame looked like they were going to live or die by the three at times. What set it up so well was the ball movement. The Irish had some of the best ball movement in the country. Well known for their team chemistry, Notre Dame would exhaust your defense by making you chase the ball all around until there was an open shot.
Through the exhibitions, it seems like the ball movement will be just as good. The question this year is if the three-ball will fall and if the Irish will rely on it.
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With the other possibilities on offense, Notre Dame shouldn’t have to rely on the three, but it would open up things if they could. As far as if the deep shots will fall, that’s where we’re hesitant.
Against Bethel, the Irish only hit 10% (2-20) from beyond the arc. Those two that fell came from TJ Gibbs who had 18 points on the night. In the last exhibition, things got a little smoother but not enough to be comfortable. The Irish went 9-27 shooting 33.3% from downtown.
Not a huge deal, but something to watch this season.
Nevertheless, we will get our answers and confirmation soon enough. College Basketball is back!