| PLAYERS ERA FESTIVAL: | NOTRE DAME (4-1) |
|---|---|
| WHERE: | LAS VEGAS | MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA |
| OPPONENT 1: | RUTGERS (4-1) |
| WHEN GAME 1: | TUESDAY, NOV. 26 | 10:30 P.M. ET // 7:30 P.M. PT |
| WATCH GAME 1: | TBS |
| OPPONENT 2: | #6 HOUSTON (3-1) |
| WHEN GAME 2: | THURSDAY MORNING FOR EASTERN TIME ZONE - 12:30 AM // WEDNESDAY LOCAL TIME OF 9:30 PM PT |
| WATCH GAME 2: | TBS |
| OPPONENT 3: | TBD - BASED OFF RESULTS |
| WHEN GAME 3: | SATURDAY, NOV. 30 - TIME TBD |
| WATCH GAME 3: | TBD |
| LISTEN: | NOTRE DAME RADIO NETWORK | CLICK HERE |
| LIVE STATS: | STATBROADCAST |
| TICKETS: | PURCHASE ONLINE |
| SOCIAL: | @NDMBB | #GOIRISH |
| TOURNAMENT WEBSITE: | CLICK HERE |
LAS VEGAS – What an opportunity for the Notre Dame men’s basketball team this Thanksgiving week, both on the court and in NIL opportunities. The Players Era Festival – its first of its kind – debuts on Tuesday with plenty of hoops for fans to feast on. Eight teams have been separated into two groups of four. The Fighting Irish will compete in the Impact Division with a Tuesday night game against Rutgers, followed by a late Wednesday (Thanksgiving morning for those in Eastern Time) matchup against top-10 Houston squad. Saturday’s opponent is TBD and will be based on group-play results.
The Fighting Irish (4-1) and Scarlet Knights (4-1) will tip off at 10:30 p.m. ET on TBS on Nov. 26. Both teams are coming into Las Vegas looking to avenge their respective first losses of the season. Rutgers was ranked 24th in the A.P. Poll but just slid out after the Kennesaw State upset this past Sunday afternoon.
Notre Dame leads the overall series with Rutgers, 21-13, with a 6-2 record on neutral courts. The last meeting between the two was a memorable one – an 89-87 double-overtime victory at the First Four round in Dayton to propel the Irish into the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Next, Notre Dame and Houston are tied 4-4 in the overall series. The two haven’t clashed on the hardwood since Feb. 10, 1990. The Cougars are 3-1 on the year and ranked sixth in the country in the latest AP Poll.
Now, the last time the Irish earned a top-10 neutral site victory – it was against No. 6 Wichita State to win the Maui Invitational in 2017.
Following Wednesday’s games, each group will be ranked first through fourth, and after head-to-head record, seeding will be determined by total point differential in group games (capped at 20 points per game), then total points scored and fewest points allowed. The top seeds from each division will face off in the championship game, with the rest of the standings filling out the third, fifth and seventh-place matchups.
IMPACT DIVISION
Tuesday, November 26
Houston vs. Alabama – 8:00 PM (EST) | TBS, Max
Rutgers vs. Notre Dame – 10:30 PM (EST) | TBS, Max
Wednesday, November 27
Rutgers vs. Alabama – 10:00 PM (EST) | TBS, Max
Notre Dame vs. Houston – 12:30 AM (EST) | TBS, Max
BURTON HEATING UP
Burton enters the Vegas tournament on back-to-back games with 20+ points. In fact, he totaled 54 points last week on a combined 23-for-38 shooting aka 60.5 percent. He went 6-for-11 from deep, including a career-best four made triples against Elon.
In Notre Dame’s 75-58 victory over North Dakota, Burton was a bucket shy of a career-high and rebound shy of his first career double-double. Burton dropped 29 points and also tied his career-high in rebounds with nine.
He’s currently the only player in the country averaging 20+ points, 5+ assists, and 5+ rebounds. His 21.4 ppg rank 19th nationally and second in the ACC.
NOT LAST YEAR’S OFFENSE
Despite the Elon hiccup, it’s quite evident that this is not last year’s offense, and the player development/offensive progression is there. Case in point, Notre Dame has now scored 75+ points in each of its first five games for the first time since the start of the 2009-10 season. .
The Irish are shooting 51.9 percent from the field which ranks 14th nationally and leads the ACC. They are also shooting a hot 61.0 percent from two, which ranks 17th in the country.
Diving deeper – Notre Dame is one of the best mid-range jump-shooting teams in the country. They are converting 62.9 percent from the mid-range which ranks fourth nationally.
CBB Analytics has Notre Dame’s offensive rating at 122.3 which ranks 34th in the nation. KenPom’s offensive efficiency ranking puts the Irish at No. 51.
BRAEDEN’S OFFENSIVE GAME
We know what Breaden is capable from three. Last season, he drained 55 three-pointers in conference play which set a new program record for ACC threes. This season, he’s averaging a team-best 2.4 made threes per game. He’s shooting a hot 54.5 percent in corner threes and 37.5 percent overall from deep.
But Braeden has been attacking the basket and driving more in year two. He’s shooting 68.2 percent from two-point range. Thus, he’s shooting 50.0 percent from the field overall. Lastly, his 14.8 ppg ranks second behind Burton.
TAE-KING OVER
Tae Davis is the third and final Irish averaging double figures at 12.4 ppg. He’s shooting 56.7 percent from two, including 65.0 percent at the rim.
In the Buffalo victory, he poured in a career-high 27 points on 7-of-13 shooting. Plus he drained a career-best 12-of-13 from the ree-throw line. Davis got it done in crunch time as well, scoring 13 of Notre Dame’s final 15 points. He followed that up with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the Georgetown road win. He grabbed a team-high eight boards.
Tae’s numbers are also up due to his yearly improvement from the free-throw line. This year he’s shooting 84.6 percent (22-26). A season ago Tae was 72.3 percent from the stripe.
— ND —