Jan. 30, 2016
No. 25 Notre Dame (14-6, 5-3) vs. Wake Forest (10-10, 1-7)
Date: Sunday, Jan.31
Site: Notre Dame, Ind. – Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center
Game Time: 1 p.m. (ET)
TV: ACC Network
Talent: Tim Brando (play-by-play); Mike Gminski (analyst)
Radio: Notre Dame Basketball Radio Network; WatchND; Sirius/XM 81
Talent: Jack Nolan (Play-By-Play); Jordan Cornette (Analyst)
NOTRE DAME – WAKE FOREST BY THE NUMBERS
1 – Notre Dame’s ranking in the Pomeroy Index for adjusted offensive efficiency (122.8).
3 – Irish players in the top 10 for free throw percentage in ACC games – junior guard Steve Vasturia (1st, .952), sophomore forward Bonzie Colson (3rd, .889) and junior guard Demetrius Jackson (7th, .857).
5 – Sunday marks just the fifth meeting between Notre Dame and Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons won the first three meetings until Notre Dame’s 88-75 win on Feb. 17, 2015 in Purcell Pavilion.
9.3 – Turnover average per game for Notre Dame this season, ranked both second in the country and the ACC behind Virginia.
10 – Consecutive ‘bounce-back’ games in which the Irish have earned a victory. Notre Dame has not lost consecutive games since the end of the 2013-14 season. In 2015-16, the Irish have answered all five previous losses with a victory in the next game, including wins over Iowa, Illinois and Georgia Tech.
10.1 – Average rebounds per game for senior forward Zach Auguste – good for fourth in the ACC and 22nd in the country. Auguste also is fifth in the ACC in field goal percentage (.534).
17 – Points per game average over the last four contests for Steve Vasturia (17.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 4.3 apg since Jan. 16).
22 – Points scored by junior forward V.J. Beachem at Syracuse on Thursday, a career-high for the Fort Wayne, IN, native.
24 – Minutes played by current Notre Dame Director of Basketball Operations Harold Swanagan in the 2000 Postseason NIT Final game vs. Wake Forest. Swangan posted six points and eight rebounds in the 71-61 Demon Deacon victory.
25 – Minutes per game average for freshman Rex Pflueger over the past four games, culminating with his first career start at Syracuse on Thursday. Prior to the four game run (started at Duke on Jan. 16), Pflueger was averaging six minutes per game.
62 – Games in a row played by Demetrius Jackson before being sidelined on Thursday at Syracuse with a hamstring pull. Jackson’s status for the Wake Forest game has yet to be determined.
SUITS AND SNEAKERS:
The Notre Dame basketball coaches, along with the Wake Forest staff, will be wearing basketball sneakers for today’s game in support of the Coaches vs. Cancer ‘Suits and Sneakers Awareness Week.’
Irish head coach Mike Brey is a strong supporter of the Coaches vs. Cancer initiative, helping raise over 2.6 million dollars since since arriving on campus for the 2000-01 season.
For more on Coach Brey’s history with Coaches vs. Cancer, visit the men’s basketball page at und.com.
NOTRE DAME – WAKE FOREST SERIES HISTORY:
- All-time series: Notre Dame trails 1-3.
- Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest at Purcell Pavilion: 1-0
- First meeting: March 30, 2000, a 71-61 Wake Forest victory in the Postseason NIT Final.
- Most recent meeting: Feb. 17, 2015, an 88-75 Notre Dame victory in Purcell Pavilion.
- Mike Brey vs. Wake Forest at Notre Dame: 1-2
THE LAST TIMEââ’¬¦ VS. WAKE FOREST:
Notre Dame earned a 88-75 victory in the first visit by Wake Forest to Purcell Pavilion. Jerian Grant led the Irish with 24 points, while current Wake Forest senior Devin Thomas posted 26 points and 11 rebounds. Current Irish junior Steve Vasturia scored 12 points on four three point field goals in the contest.
SUCCESS IN THE TAR HEEL STATE:
Notre Dame joined the ACC at the start of the 2013-14 basketball season. The Irish ended up 0-3 in the state of North Carolina that year (65-58 loss at Wake Forest, 63-61 loss at North Carolina, 81-69 loss to Wake Forest in the ACC Tournament in Greensboro).
Since breaking through for the program’s first win in Chapel Hill, 71-70, at North Carolina on Jan. 5, 2015, the Irish have won six of the last seven games they have played in the Tar Heel State.
AUGUSTE REACHES 1,000-POINT MARK:
Zach Auguste became the 57th player in Notre Dame men’s basketball history to surpass the 1,000 point milestone with his seventh point at Duke on Jan. 16. Auguste now has 1,042 points in 112 career contests.
IRISH IN THE ACC:
Notre Dame is 25-19 in ACC regular-season play after two-plus seasons in the conference. After going 6-12 in its first season in 2014-15, the Irish finished 14-4 in 2014-15.
Notre Dame’s 14 wins a year ago (+8.0) marked the second-best improvement from the previous season in ACC history.
For more news and notes, please visit: Link