Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1044500
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 5, 2018 49 MEN'S BASKETBALL feeling it like halfway through, but I feel great." Harvey scored double-digit points in four of his 19 games a year ago, in- cluding a career-high 17 points against North Carolina State. Notre Dame has to replace more than 40 points of pro- duction with the losses of Bonzie Col- son, Matt Farrell and Martinas Geben. After junior guard T.J. Gibbs, Har- vey is the most talented offensive player on the Irish roster and could give Gibbs a run for his money in that regard. The Irish need scoring, and Harvey has the skill set to make a major impact if his health holds up. PRENTISS HUBB LIKELY TO PLAY HUGE ROLE If Harvey was the top story from Notre Dame's open scrimmage, freshman point guard Prentiss Hubb was not far behind. The former Rivals100 recruit fin- ished tied for second in points with 12 on 4-of-10 shooting (2 of 6 from three-point territory). Even after Hubb signed and had suffered an ACL injury prior to his senior high school season, Brey and the Irish staff spoke of how crucial the point guard would be to their success in 2018-19. With Gibbs expected to shoulder more of the load offensively, Brey and company wanted to take some of the point guard responsibilities from him. Enter Hubb. The rookie's value was shown when he walked out with the first team during the scrimmage. "I definitely see how important I am to the team," Hubb stated. "It's not just me that's important. My teammates are just as important. … They're the ones that have to bring me up and [help] me step into the shoes that Matt Farrell left. He was a great point guard here. "… I feel like I'm ready for it. I'm following T.J. right now and he's leading me down the right path." Hubb displayed a natural ability to run an offense and not only create his own shot, but, more importantly, to do so for others. Freshmen typically don't play ma- jor roles for Brey, but it appears Hubb will be doing that — and then some. FRESHMEN STILL MAKING WAVES Hubb will not be the lone freshman expected to contribute. Shooting and scoring off the bench was lacking at times a year ago, especially with the injuries suffered. The Irish could be in a better spot this season, depend- ing on how quickly the freshman class gets acclimated to the speed of the college game. During the three-game Bahamas trip in August, the rookie trio of for- ward Nate Laszewski (15.7 points per game), guard Robby Carmody (13.0) and wing Dane Goodwin (8.0) com- bined to average 36.7 points while connecting on 10 three-point attempts. Laszewski continued to show he will be on the court no matter what due to his scoring ability, making 4 of 6 shots from behind the arc during the Oct. 14 scrimmage. It was a little bit more of a rough outing for Car- mody (six points) and Goodwin (three points), but both still showed flashes. Carmody will be valued due to his ability to guard multiple spots, while also aggressively attacking the basket on offense and knocking down open jumpers. Goodwin is known as a bet- ter shooter, but shows toughness on defense as well. It was expected the trio would earn minutes in the rotation this year, but their performances over the summer and early fall have shown they may be even more vital to the rotation and ultimately the team's success. FRONTCOURT EMERGING BUT CONSISTENCY IS NEEDED Replacing an All-America candi- date in Colson and a near double- double figure in Geben will not come easily for the Irish. Senior forward Elijah Burns and ju- nior forward John Mooney will likely begin the year in the starting unit, while Laszewski, junior forward Ju- wan Durham and freshman forward Chris Doherty comprise the rest of the rotation. Though it was a small sample, Burns appeared much more comfortable of- fensively in the post to go with some extra athleticism. Mooney is looking to be more active down low offensively while remaining a threat from deep. Durham continues to search for his rhythm on offense, but did display an ability to hit mid-range jumpers and score with his back to the basket. Doherty may go the five-year route, but he could fill the Austin Torres role of bringing energy off the bench and rebounding. The production of the frontcourt could be the difference in the team's push for a NCAA Tournament bid. ✦ IRISH PICKED NINTH IN ACC Not surprisingly, expectations for Notre Dame are not high heading into the 2018-19 season after the losses of Bonzie Colson, Matt Farrell, Martinas Geben and Austin Torres. When the ACC preseason media poll was re- leased Oct. 25, the Irish were picked to finish ninth among the 15 teams. Duke received 52 first-place votes to en- ter the year as the favorite, while Virginia claimed 47 to come in second. North Caro- lina was picked third with 20 first-place votes. Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Clemson, Florida State and NC State rounded out the eight programs ahead of the Irish, respectively. Miami, Louisville, Boston College, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Pittsburgh were picked behind head coach Mike Brey's program, in that order. The media selected North Carolina forward Luke Maye as the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, while Duke wing RJ Barrett nabbed Freshman of the Year over teammates Zion Williamson and Cam Reddish. Irish forward Nate Laszewski received one vote. No Irish players were recognized on the Pre- season All-ACC teams. The last two times Notre Dame was predicted to finish fifth or lower in the ACC (2014-15 and 2016-17), the team averaged 29 total wins and 13 ACC victories while securing at least a top- three spot in the league both years. — Corey Bodden Head coach Mike Brey and his Fighting Irish have made a habit of overachieving after being picked to finish fifth or lower. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND