Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com SEPT. 10, 2022 47 MEN'S BASKETBALL BY PATRICK ENGEL N otre Dame men's basketball will be- gin the season with a home game- heavy nonconference schedule. The Irish will play five straight contests at Pur- cell Pavilion to open the campaign and eight of the first nine at home, they an- nounced Aug. 15 when unveiling the full non-league slate. The 11-game out-of- conference schedule includes nine home dates and two neutral-site contests. Notre Dame opens its season at home against Radford Nov. 10, followed by Youngstown State Nov. 13, Southern Indi- ana Nov. 16, Lipscomb Nov. 18 and Bowl- ing Green Nov. 22. They leave South Bend for the first time to play St. Bonaventure Nov. 25 at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. That's a neutral-site game and the head- line matchup of the Gotham Classic. Notre Dame returns home to play Michigan State Nov. 30 as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. It has a week off before hosting Boston University Dec. 7 and Marquette Dec. 11. The latter is the start of a home-and-home series that will end in Milwaukee next season. Marquette was originally scheduled to host the first leg, but the teams agreed to flip that order earlier this year. The Irish are off for a week again be- fore a Dec. 18 meeting with Georgia at State Farm Center in Atlanta. That's part of the annual Holiday Hoopsgiving event. The final nonconference game is Dec. 27 against Jacksonville. The ACC has yet to release its pairings and conference schedules for this sea- son. Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey said earlier this month the Irish will play three conference games in December, though, an increase from the usual two. The annual road game at Georgia Tech is a logical choice to follow the matchup with Georgia. Notre Dame plays the Yellow Jackets and Boston College — its two protected ACC home-and-homes — twice each season. Absent from the nonconference schedule, as expected, was the final game in a three-year series with Ken- tucky. It was supposed to be at a neu- tral site, but Brey and Wildcats coach John Calipari pushed it to a later date with the possibility it might not happen at all. The series began in 2020 with a 64-63 Irish win at Kentucky. Notre Dame also won last year's matchup, 66-64 at Purcell Pavilion. The Crossroads Classic doubleheader with Notre Dame, Purdue, Butler and Indiana also ended last season after 11 years. Further out on the calendar, Notre Dame has reportedly agreed to play in the 2023 Legends Classic in Brooklyn, N.Y., along with Auburn, Oklahoma State and St. Bonaventure. The Irish will play two of those teams. NOTRE DAME HIRES HAMLET TIBBS AS ASSISTANT COACH Mike Brey's staff for his 23rd year as Notre Dame men's basketball head coach is officially complete. The Irish announced Aug. 23 the hiring of Albany assistant Hamlet Tibbs to the same po- sition, finalizing a choice Brey made nearly a month ago. "I'm looking forward to working with all of the players and becoming a part of the community," Tibbs said in a univer- sity release. "This is truly an honor for my wife and I. We are excited to call South Bend our new home. I'm ready to work." Tibbs spent one season at Albany, which followed seven years on Ver- mont's staff. In that span, the Cata- mounts were four-time America East Conference regular-season champions and made three NCAA Tournament ap- pearances. In 2016-17, they went 16-0 in conference games and set a program record with 29 wins. Tibbs was a student manager at West Virginia and graduated from there in 2007. He is a native of Troy, N.Y. "Thrilled to have Hamlet Tibbs joining us," Brey said in a statement. "Tibbs is one of the true bright ones in our business who has paid his dues and proven himself." News of Tibbs' expected hiring was first reported by ESPN July 25. That was weeks earlier than Brey's previously stated hope of having someone in place by Labor Day. He said he was willing to consider up- and-comers for the position after hiring associate head coach Anthony Solomon last year for a third stint on staff. Brey also hired former Notre Dame guard Antoni Wyche, previously an assistant at Lehigh (2009-19) and Siena (2019-21). "A year ago, we came back with experi- ence with [Solomon and Wyche]," Brey said in July. "You can maybe come back a little younger. That has been on my mind." Tibbs replaces Ryan Humphrey, the former Irish forward who left to become an assistant at Oklahoma June 29 after six seasons at Notre Dame. He's the second new staff member this summer, joining former Northwestern guard Ryan Greer, who was hired as player development and recruiting coordinator in July. ✦ Nonconference Schedule Features A Heavy Home Slate Mike Brey will begin his 23rd season as Notre Dame men's basketball head coach with five straight home games. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS NOTRE DAME'S 2022-23 NONCONFERENCE SCHEDULE Date Opponent Times (ET) Nov. 2 Xavier (La.)* 7 p.m. Nov. 10 Radford 7 p.m. Nov. 13 Youngstown State TBA Nov. 16 Southern Indiana^ 7 p.m. Nov. 18 Lipscomb 7 p.m. Nov. 22 Bowling Green^ 7 p.m. Nov. 25 vs. St. Bonaventure# TBA Nov. 30 Michigan State$ 9 p.m. Dec. 7 Boston University 7 p.m. Dec. 11 Marquette TBA Dec. 18 vs. Georgia% 5:30 p.m. Dec. 27 Jacksonville 7 p.m. * Exhibition; ^ 2022 Gotham Classic in South Bend; # 2022 Gotham Classic at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y.; $ ACC/Big Ten Challenge; % at State Farm Center in Atlanta