| GAME 19: | NOTRE DAME (10-8, 1-4) |
|---|---|
| OPPONENT: | #24/22 NORTH CAROLINA (14-4, 2-3) |
| TIP TIME: | 7 PM ET |
| WHERE: | CHAPEL HILL, NC | SMITH CENTER |
| WATCH: | ESPN2 |
| LISTEN: | NOTRE DAME RADIO NETWORK | CLICK HERE |
| TICKETS: | PURCHASE ONLINE |
| STATS: | Follow Here |
| SOCIAL: | @NDMBB | #GOIRISH |
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – This year’s ACC has been the Wild Wild West, as the league from top to bottom has vastly improved from a year ago. The Fighting Irish (10-8, 1-4) are finding their way without their floor general, Markus Burton, and now senior big man Kebba Njie; In addition to finding their way in this new ACC landscape. And there’s no time like the present, and what a statement it would be if Notre Dame could achieve something it’s only done once in its time in the ACC – knock off North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
The Irish are 1-10 in the Smith Center, with the lone win happening on Jan. 5, 2015. That ND squad won 71-70 and eventually went on to claim the program’s first ACC Tournament title.
The Irish are looking to avoid a five-game skid while the Tar Heels are coming off a 0-2 West Coast swing. UNC lost 90-95 to Stanford and 78-84 to Cal, and now boasts a 2-3 ACC record. They are 14-4 overall.
The Tar Heels are led by the three-headed monster of Caleb Wilson (19.7 ppg, 10.6 rpg), Henri Veesaar (17.2 ppg, 9.1 rpg) and Seth Trimble (15.0 ppg).
It’ll be a true battle on the boards between two of the top rebounding teams in the league. The Irish rank sixth in the ACC in rebound margin (6.7), while UNC ranks fourth (7.7).
Notre Dame enters the week with a NET of 78, while North Carolina’s NET sits at 29.
OFFENSE FINDING ITS WAY
With Burton
- 76.6 ppg
- 47.3% from field
- 35.9% from three
- 70.3% from stripe
- 13.5 apg
- 11.9 turnovers/game
- -0.9 turnover margin
Without Burton
- 69.4 ppg
- 43.4% from field
- 36.5% from three
- 68.8% from stripe
- 10.0 apg
- 12.5 turnovers/game
- -4.8 turnover margin
WHO’S HOT?
The ball has been put in the hands of freshman Jalen Haralson, and he has delivered. The Indiana native is averaging a team-best 14.8 ppg in ACC play.
Haralson’s 15-game double-digit scoring streak came to an end at Virginia Tech; however, the 6-7 guard has scored at least 17 points in three of the last four games. He has shot 53.8% over that four-game span.
Brady Koehler is coming off his best game in a Notre Dame uniform. The freshman scored 15 of his career high 17 points in the 2nd half. Overall, he was 5-7 from the field, plus 2-3 from three & 5-6 from the stripe. All were personal bests.
Ryder Frost came off the bench vs. Miami and recorded a stretch in which he scored seven straight points for the Irish. Frost drained two triples in that stretch.
HOT HAND TO START
Jalen Haralson has had a knack for starting hot. When looking specifically at the first 10 minutes of Cal, Clemson & Miami – Haralson was a combined 10-13 from the field for 27 points.
– Clemson on Jan. 10 – scored 11 of the team’s first 17 points. Finished with a team-high 18 points.
– Cal on Jan. 2 – scored the team’s first 10 points. Finished with 17 points.
MORE ON JALEN
Jalen is currently averaging 14.7 ppg, which ranks fifth amongst ACC freshmen. He’s just coming off a 15-game double-digit scoring streak, which came to an end at Virginia Tech on Jan. 17 when he scored eight points.
Jalen ranks 10th in the ACC in FG% in both overall games (.489) and conference games (.491).
He’s converting 69.1% from within 4.5 feet and shooting 51.5% overall from two-point range. In addition, he leads the team in FT attempts, averaging 5.9 per game.
SHREWSBERRY LEADING FROM THREE
Braeden Shrewsberry is leading the ACC in three-point shooting percentage, knocking down 42.7%. That number also ranks 23rd in the country. He’s converting 2.8 made threes per game which ranks fourth in the league.
Shrewsberry’s sweet spot? The corner three – where he’s draining 52.9%.
Against Miami on Jan. 13, Braeden reached the 200 career made threes milestone, becoming the 14th Irish player all-time to do so.
His best performance from beyond the arc came against Evansville when Shrewsberry scored a career-high 26 points behind a career-high 8 three pointers, shooting 80% from three (8-10). His 8 made triples tied for the 7th most in a game all-time in program history.
NOTRE NOTABLES
- The Irish are 12 wins away from 2,000 all-time. They would become the eighth program to achieve this feat.
- Cole Certa is 9-22 from three over the last four games, scoring a combined 46 points.
- Certa is averaging the 2nd most points in ACC play at 10.2 ppg.
- Brady Koehler is thriving in the midrange, where he’s shooting 53.8%.
- Sir Mohammed recorded his 2nd-highest scoring output of the season vs. Miami, in which he dropped 15 points.
- Mohammed thrives in the pain,t where he is shooting 51.9%.
- Certa started the season 27-27 from the FT line, as the streak ended at Cal on Jan. 2. He’s now 95.2% (40-42) on the season.
- NET is at 78 — 2-6 in Quad 1 // 1-1 in Quad 2// 1-0 in Quad 3 / 6-1 in Quad 4.
— ND —