HOOPS Preview: Notre Dame Vs. Penn State

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NOTRE DAME (21-14, 8-10 ACC) VS. PENN STATE (22-14, 9-9 BIG 10)

Where: Purcell Pavilion (Notre Dame, Ind.)

Rankings: Both teams are unranked.

Time/TV: 12 p.m. ET/ESPN

Last Meeting: 67-59 Penn State on March 31, 2009 (NIT semifinals).

Series Info: Penn State leads the all-time series 3-1.

Notre Dame is set to host Penn State this afternoon in second round action of the NIT.

The Irish coasted in its first round matchup against Hampton while the Nittany Lions pulled out a close win over Temple.

Here is Blue & Gold Illustrated’s preview of both teams along with a prediction of the outcome.

Tuesday night went about how most expected assuming the Irish showed up ready to play. And they did.

It wasn’t the prettiest performance offensively for Notre Dame shooting just 41.8 percent (33-of-79) from the field and 25.9 percent (7-of-27) behind the arc.

But, the team’s defense got the job done allowing Hampton to hit 30 percent of its shots and create enough opportunities for the Irish to score 84 points.

Senior big man Martinas Geben led the way with 18 points while sophomore guard TJ Gibbs was the only starting perimeter player that performed well throughout scoring 17 points and grabbing six rebounds.

Senior forward Bonzie Colson finished with a double-double at 14 points and 12 rebounds to complement Geben’s strong play. Senior point guard Matt Farrell and junior guard Rex Pflueger combined for 12 points on 5-of-26 shooting including 2-of-13 behind the arc.

The Irish bench provided productive minutes with sophomore guard Nik Djogo posting seven points and rebounds, senior big man Austin Torres going for six points and sophomore forward John Mooney collecting five points and five rebounds.

Mike Brey certainly wasn’t worried about if his group would play with their typical energy, but had to be encouraged that he doesn’t need to address it moving forward.

The competition takes a step up today with Penn State walking into Purcell Pavilion. The Nittany Lions were close to an NCAA Tournament bid before a tough close hurt a resume which didn’t include a marquee non-conference win.

A better performance from the field will be needed this afternoon against a tough-minded Penn State group.

The Nittany Lions appeared destined for the NCAA Tournament at 19-9 and 9-6 in the Big 10 with three games remaining. But, Penn State lost those final three regular season contests (Purdue, Michigan and Nebraska) to fall on the outside looking in.

Two wins in the Big 10 tournament weren’t enough and Pat Chambers’ group found themselves in the NIT.

A 63-57 win over in-state Temple gives Penn State the Irish this afternoon in South Bend.

Sophomore guard Tony Carr is the key player to watch for the Nittany Lions as the leading scorer and assister at 19.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.7 assists. Fellow sophomore, forward Lamar Stevens, mans the frontcourt production (14.8 PPG, 6.1 RPG).

Joining the sophomores in the starting lineup against Temple were senior guard Shep Garner (11.0 PPG), junior guard Josh Reaves (10.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG) and freshman forward John Harrar (1.0 PPG).

An injury to sophomore forward Mike Watkins (12.1 PPG, 8.9 RPG) will likely cause him to miss today’s matchup after being ruled ‘likely’ out for the NIT before it began, which is why Harrar got the nod against the Owls.

Off the bench, sophomore guard Nazeer Bostick (4.9 PPG, 2.3 RPG) is the most productive while senior forward Julian Moore (2.0 PPG) is the top inside threat. Freshman guard Jamari Wheeler (2.2 PPG, 2.0 RPG) and junior forward Deividas Zemgulis (0.9 PPG) also provides a handful of minutes.

Defense is the strong suit of Penn State this season allowing just 66.6 points per contest, which ranks No. 42 in the country.

Per KenPom.com, the Nittany Lions rank No. 19 in adjust offensive efficiency, No. 49 in effective field goal percentage defense (48.3 percent) and No. 51 in two-point field goal percentage allowed (46.6 percent).

Offensively the group ranks No. 160 in the country at 74.3 points per game shooting 45.8 percent from the field and 38.3 (No. 42) percent behind the arc.

Today will be a challenge for the Irish on the offensive end given how well Penn State guards defensively. Slowing down Carr will be another task for Brey and company to figure out.

Notre Dame had a pretty easy outing to start while the Nittany Lions had to pull out a tough one against the Owls.

This one will likely come down to which team comes out with more energy. It was a very light crowd in South Bend in the opener, and if that is the case today then the Irish won’t have too much of a home court advantage.

The Irish guards will need to show up in this one to push their team to the quarterfinals.

Prediction

Notre Dame 72, Penn State 67

Definitely don’t expect the Irish to put up a ton of points in this one, but they did show good energy against Hampton to ease any concerns they would come out flat after missing out on the big dance.

With Watkins likely out for this one, I see the Irish being able to control the paint along with slowing down Penn State’s guards enough to win this one at home.

Bench production could also be a key factor with both groups not typically being much of a force. Notre Dame got 23 points from its reserves on Tuesday and that would be a huge boost in this matchup.

Notre Dame pulls out a close one to move one step closer to the Garden.

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