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Notre Dame Basketball: Irish Prepare for Jacksonville in Second Midweek Game

By Chase Eyrich

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 15: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts against the Purdue Boilermakers in the first half of the Crossroads Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on December 15, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 15: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts against the Purdue Boilermakers in the first half of the Crossroads Classic at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on December 15, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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The Notre Dame basketball team will have a quick turnaround from Tuesday’s victory over Binghamton to Thursday’s game against Jacksonville.

The turnaround for Notre Dame basketball will be quicker than the two days off between Purdue and Binghamton. Whatever happened in those two days off derailed the Irish in the first half on Tuesday.

From an impressive offensive performance on Saturday to a head-scratching first half Tuesday, we were all confused by what we were seeing.

Notre Dame will be without senior leader Rex Pflueger for the rest of the season, but his absence couldn’t be to blame for the rough performance Tuesday night.

The Irish put away their early struggles to come out on top over Binghamton, but there was reason for uneasiness. One thing that will need to carry over not only into Thursday but the rest of the season is the level of play that we are seeing from Juwan Durham.

The transfer continues to have bigger games each time out, and Jacksonville will be another undersized opponent for him.

For the Dolphins, Jace Hogan, a former transfer himself, isn’t putting up the offensive numbers he was last season. Yet, his bigger frame has provided equal spacing on the court, as he averages 13.6 ppg.

While head coach Tony Jasick has been juggling his starting line up, one constant has been the play of JD Notae. He’s only started half of the Dolphins games this season, but has proven to be an issue for opponents, averaging 15-points, five rebounds and over three assists per game.

Notre Dame comes in with a younger team and the rotation continues to shrink as injuries continue to hit the Irish. Two players with experience are guards Temple Gibbs and D.J. Harvey, who both average double-digit points. They will also be relied upon on the defensive end for the Irish.

While the guards will be a matchup to watch, the clear advantage in this game will go to the bigs of Notre Dame. Durham and recently named captain John Mooney should be able to continue their strong performances.

Next. Irish brush off poor first half to beat Binghamton. dark

If those two take control early, Notre Dame will be able to avoid another closer-than-expected result in back-to-back games.