Matt Farrell, Martin Geben Ready To 'Role' For Notre Dame Basketball

If Notre Dame is to return to the NCAA Tournament — never mind an unprecedented third straight Elite Eight in its history — replacing the productive tandem of guard Demetrius Jackson and center Zach Auguste will be imperative.

Second-team All-ACC pick Jackson led the team in scoring (15.8 points per game) and assists (4.7) before signing a lucrative NBA deal. Third-team All-ACC Auguste finished second in the league and tied for ninth nationally in most double-doubles with 22 (14.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game).

Their designated replacements as the starters are juniors Matt Farrell and Martin Geben, joining the returning Big 3 of senior wings Steve Vasturia and V.J. Beachem, plus junior forward Bonzie Colson.

By no means will Farrell and Geben be asked to produce similar numbers to Jackson and Auguste. Picking up that slack will be the Big 3 — just like veterans Jackson and Auguste did when the dynamic tandem of Jerian Grant and Pat Connaughton graduated after the 2014-15 campaign.

Farrell and Geben are the “role starters,” or complementary pieces. The 6-10, 255-pound Geben knows exactly who he is and is expected to be.

“I’m going to help Steve and V.J. get their shots,” Geben said. “I’m going to be the dirty-work guy who will be defending down low, rebounding, just trying to help all my teammates play better.”

Born in Lithuania, Geben appeared in only 16 of Notre Dame’s 36 games last season, almost all in mop-up roles. He seriously contemplated transferring before head coach Mike Brey explained to him how “the devil you know is better than the devil you don’t.”

Geben took it to heart and rededicated himself physically, going on a high protein, low-carb diet that saw him shed 20 pounds and vastly improve his stamina. The improvements were noticeable during summer workouts, and then in August he and Farrell traveled to Italy with the East Coast All-Star Team to compete against European professionals. While posting a 3-1 record, Geben averaged 15.5 points and 11.3 rebounds per game, finishing with a double-double three times.

“We were playing against men who played for a living,” Geben said. “It was really good to see that I could compete — and not only compete but play well against them. It definitely gave me a lot of confidence going into this year.”

“That was huge for both of us,” said Farrell, who averaged 11.5 points and 4.3 assists per game during the tour. “Marty played unreal over there. It’s all about confidence for him. He’s going to surprise people this year.”

Going against new assistant and former Irish star Ryan Humphrey, who played 12 years in the professional ranks (NBA and overseas) before retiring in 2014, has been a bonus in practices that opened this month.

“That’s what makes me better,” Geben said. “I don’t get to have it easy in practice. He challenges me a lot physically and mentally.”

Like big-man predecessors Auguste and Jack Cooley, Geben struggled mightily his first two seasons. He might not become an all-league player like those two eventually did, but he is on track to continue the culture of development under 17th-year head coach Brey.

“The first two years are kind of a tough transition period for most of his players,” Geben said. “That’s one of the things that helped me decide to stay here. Choosing Notre Dame wasn’t just a basketball decision; it was a lifetime decision. I love the team, love my teammates., I wanted to stay here and make something happen here.

“I’ve been able to watch all my teammates compete at the highest level and seen what it takes to win and how hard you need to work. I know that, and now I have to put that into practice.”

“There is maybe not a more important player that needs to take a step forward for us than Martin,” Brey said. “… I love his basketball I.Q. He is a very intelligent player, underrated as an athlete who can be active on the boards for us.”

New Jersey native Farrell, who originally committed to Boston College, typifies the culture of the program. In a 17-game stretch right before the NCAA Tournament last year, he totaled 60 minutes of action, and never made an appearance in eight of the contests.

Then, voila! To take some of the ball-handling onus off Jackson, Brey inserted the 6-1, 178-pound Farrell as the starting point guard in all four games in The Big Dance. Farrell responded well enough as the floor general to average 26.8 minutes in those elimination games

“It’s funny because when they told me I was starting, it was nothing big,” Farrell said. “People came over, tapped me on the shoulder and said, ‘Alright let’s go, it’s your time.’ It speaks volumes about the culture of our program. It’s just staying patient and then trusting the system.

“The way we play really helped me in that situation — not overthinking things. Coach Brey really lets us go out there and play freely. That run last year was important for me just confidence wise, being in a rhythm with these guys, especially guys that were returning. It’s helped me a lot so far.”

Overlooked is that in the Tournament, Farrell shot 10-of-17 from the floor, including 4-of-7 beyond the arc.

“The biggest improvement he needs is that when he has an open shot he can’t turn it down,” Brey said. “He is a great shooter and we want him taking a shot when he has it.”

With such a powerful, forceful personality like Jackson last year, Farrell also said he must improve his assertiveness with teammates.

“It wasn’t my team,” said Farrell of last season. “I have to run this team now and that’s something I am trying to take ownership of and getting better at it every day, talking with the guys on the court and off the court.”

Freshman standout T.J. Gibbs will challenge Farrell all season for the starting job, but Farrell is undaunted about his own role, whether it’s replacing Jackson or vying for minutes with Gibbs. He will assist him just like Jackson did with Farrell.

“It’s not going to change the way we play or the culture that we have,” Farrell said. “Every year it’s somebody else’s turn to come in and play the right way, so we’re going to do what we do, stay focused on what we do, get better every day and just play Notre Dame basketball.”