Hoops Preview: Louisville At Notre Dame
LOUISVILLE (12-2, 0-1 ACC) at NOTRE DAME (12-2, 1-0)
Where: Purcell Pavilion (9,149)
Rankings: Louisville is ranked No. 9 in the Associated Press poll; Notre Dame is 23rd
Time/TV: 9:05 p.m./ACC Network. In the South Bend area, it will be on channel WMYS — MyTV, which is broadcast over-the-air on channel 69, AT&T U-Verse channel 69, Xfinity channel 15 and Dish Network channel 69.
* For viewers outside the South Bend area, here is the complete list of channels carrying the game in your area.
Matchup History: This is the 35th all-time meeting between Louisville and Notre Dame. The Cardinals lead the series 20-14, but Notre Dame won the last meeting 71-66 Feb. 13 of last season.
Notre Dame Notes
The No. 23 Irish moved to 1-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play with a 78-77 overtime victory at Pittsburgh this past Saturday, but in order to get to 2-0 Notre Dame has to go through No. 9 Louisville.
What would a 2-0 start in the ACC mean to the Irish?
“It’d be unbelievable,” head coach Mike Brey said. “To get to 2-0 in this league after what happened on Saturday would be huge. It’d be unbelievable to get to 2-0. After what we saw happen Saturday across the board in our league, what we thought is going to happen.”
The first weekend of ACC action was marked by upsets across the league. No. 5 Duke fell to unranked Virginia Tech. No. 9 North Carolina lost to unranked Georgia Tech and No. 12 Virginia lost to No. 20 Florida State at home.
Even Boston College, which finished 0-18 in ACC play last season, got off to a 1-0 start by beating Syracuse.
And with the last-second win over Pittsburgh, Notre Dame was able to build some confidence, which had taken a hit after the Fighting Irish blew double-digit leads in losses to No. 1 Villanova and No. 15 Purdue.
“It was a big confidence booster for us and we had a lot of game pressure against us and we stayed together and we stayed strong,” junior forward Bonzie Colson said. “Especially when it got to OT we were really confident because we really excel in that department.”
Brey echoed Colson’s comments.
“Our guys needed some confidence in a big-time game atmosphere,” Brey said. “The two that we had we couldn’t finish — Purdue and Villanova. Mentally, that was a big thing for us to get that one and be up against the wall in regulation and overtime to do it.
“We’re a good team and I love our group, but we needed one of those to maybe kind of believe a little bit because we lost two opportunities before Christmas.”
The Notre Dame-Louisville series has featured a number of overtime battles, including the 104-101 five-overtime Notre Dame victory that ended up as the longest regular-season game in Big East conference history on Feb. 9, 2013.
In the 34 meetings, nine have gone to overtime. Louisville won the first five OT games in the series, but the Irish have claimed wins in three of the four most recent overtime contests (Feb. 9, 2011; Jan. 7, 2012; and Feb. 9, 2013).
“We’ve had some great games with them and it’s great to be 1-0 in this league,” said Brey, who is 7-8 against the Cardinals, including 5-0 at Purcell Pavilion. “To come back home and hold serve against a great defensive team. It’s hard to score 60 points on them. They just really guard you. They’re big and long as usual. They’re going to pound the offensive board. We’re going to probably have to make some shots over the top because that thing is jammed in and they block a lot of shots. It’d be nice to get out in transition and get some stops so you don’t have to play against their set defense. They’ll play a little bit of their matchup zone.
“They’ve been great matchups, and I get in the frame of mind like I did before Pittsburgh that every game is going to come down to game situations. Embrace them, and let’s love them and have fun in them.”
Senior guard Steve Vasturia is also expecting a tightly contested matchup.
“Definitely a close game, a game that’s going to come down to game situations,” Vasturia said. “They’re coming off a big win [against Indiana] and they obviously are having a very good season. We’re going to have to bring our best game and be really tough. We have to take care of the ball because they do a good job pressuring and playing different defenses.”
Matt Farrell — Recorded an assist on the game-winning basket against Pittsburgh.
Steve Vasturia — Despite foul trouble, made several clutch shots against Pittsburgh, including the go-ahead three-pointer with 2.5 seconds left.
V.J. Beachem — Had a potential game-saving block near the end of regulation against the Panthers.
Bonzie Colson — Recorded his eighth double-double of the season against the Panthers, tallying 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Martinas Geben — Played a career-high 28 minutes against Pittsburgh.
Louisville Overview
The Cardinals enter tonight’s matchup on the heels of a 77-62 victory over No. 16 Indiana. Head coach Rick Pitino’s team also has wins over No. 15 Purdue and No. 6 Kentucky.
Louisville’s two losses this season have come against ranked opponents: a 66-63 defeat against No. 20 Baylor and a 61-53 loss to No. 12 Virginia in its ACC opener.
This is the fourth straight ranked opponent for the Cardinals, marking the first time in program history they have ever faced four straight ranked opponents in the regular season. Louisville has won its first conference road game in each of the last nine seasons.
Tonight’s game is a clash of offense and defense. Notre Dame is averaging 83.2 points per game, shooting 47.7 percent as a team, including a 39.6-percent mark from three-point range.
Louisville’s pressure defense is holding opponents to 36.7 percent from the field and 27.3 percent from three-point range. The Cardinals are allowing just 60.4 points a game, which ranks 16th in the country.
During a press conference Tuesday, Pitino called Vasturia and Beachem “terrific athletes” and highlighted Colson as a difficult matchup underneath the basket.
“They just shoot the hell out of the basketball,” Pitino said.
Louisville’s leading scorer is 6-3 sophomore guard Donovan Mitchell, who averaging 12.4 points a game. Fellow guard, 6-2 junior Quentin Snider, averages 11.3 points, while 6-7 sophomore forward Deng Adel is averaging 10.7 points.
On his radio show Monday, Pitino said he would Mitchell back into the starting lineup against Notre Dame (6-6 freshman wing V.J. King started alongside Adel against Indiana).
“They’re a tough team,” Colson said of Louisville, which is ranked 53rd in the country in turnovers forced, averaging 15.6 a game. “[They have] athletic guards that can rebound.”
Mitchell is tied for the ACC lead and is 34th in the nation in steals (2.1 per game).
Louisville will hold a strong edge on the glass: the Cardinals have a plus-6.4 rebounding margin, while the Irish are at just plus-2.7.
“It is a rivalry,” Pitino said of the series against Notre Dame. “You want to win rivalry games certainly. It’s back to the Big East in its prime with the ACC.”
Outlook
Notre Dame and Louisville have squared off in some extremely close games over the years. Expect this one to be no different. The Cardinals have fared well against their top competition this season and come in with momentum from the Indiana win.
Prediction: Louisville 75, Notre Dame 71
Vegas Spread: Louisville -2.5
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