Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 5, 2022 49 MEN'S BASKETBALL guy [from the portal], because there's a chance we lose Paul and Nate. I really thought Nate was gone for a while. I think he felt that way, too. "Once you got him back, now we have to invest in Ven, Dom, Zona and let them see what they do." Lubin quickly emerged as the best of that trio. Notre Dame won't ask him to fit in Atkinson's role as a post-up for- ward. Atkinson posted up on 41.3 per- cent of his offensive possessions, which ranked in the 92nd percentile among Division I players, per Synergy Sports. L u b i n , a s k e d to describe his game, called himself more of a slasher. He has an off-the-dribble game of a wing. He can drive and kick. He can make standstill three-pointers. "I like to attack from everywhere around the perimeter," Lubin said. Notre Dame will let him continue to do what he does best instead of foist- ing a traditional center's duties on him. Brey and staff are asking him to meet them halfway, though, by expanding his post capabilities. "That's something we've tried to em- phasize," Brey said. "There's nobody like Paul, but Ven has potential. We tried to do some things where we get him a low-post touch. He's a very good passer." Posting up was part of the 6-foot-8, 226-pound Lubin's repertoire in high school at Orlando Christian Prep in Florida, but mainly because he was big- ger and stronger than most other play- ers on the court. That won't be the case in the ACC. Notre Dame just needs him to hold his own as a rebounder and inte- rior defender. Anything he provides as a post-up scorer is a bonus. "I like to score around the basket, because it's an easy two points," Lubin said. "Here, it's more of a challenge, but I feel I can get my points and make plays out of it." There will be days where the assign- ment is difficult — namely two match- ups with North Carolina's 6-foot-11 forward Armando Bacot, a preseason Associated Press first-team All-Ameri- can. His perimeter skills can create mis- matches, though, by pulling bigger centers away from the basket. Expect to see a lot of Lubin, even if he's not an offen- sive focal point. Atkinson averaged 27.6 minutes per game last year, sixth most on the team. That feels on the higher end of what's realistic for Lubin. But counting on him to average 12.5 points per game like Atkinson did would be unfair. This is a roster that will go where its five graduate students and freshman guard JJ Starling take it. Brey calls the fifth-year trio of Laszewski, guard Cor- mac Ryan and guard Dane Goodwin the "Big 3." He dubbed graduate student Marcus Hammond — a transfer from Niagara — the Irish's best guard through the first 13 preseason practices. Gradu- ate student guard Trey Wertz is back as a rotation player. Starling, a former five-star recruit, is in line to start as well. He's a dynamic lead guard who has already appeared in some 2023 NBA mock drafts. His im- portance to the Irish's 2022-23 outlook is akin to freshman guard Blake Wesley's last year. Lubin, then, shouldn't feel an un- bearable weight on his shoulders. His job is to stabilize a frontcourt spot that was in a precarious position when sum- mer workouts began. Lubin didn't build his compelling case by learning how to be a center overnight. He did it by prov- ing the skill set that Notre Dame liked during the recruiting process deserved minutes right away. "Position is just a label," Lubin said. "It doesn't determine how I'm going to play. I'm going to play my game, whether I'm in the post, mid-post or at the perimeter." Notre Dame has liked what it has seen so far. ✦ 2022-23 NOTRE DAME MEN'S BASKETBALL ROSTER No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown (High School) 1 JJ Starling G 6-4 200 Fr. Baldwinsville, N.Y. (La Lumiere School [Ind.]) 2 Ven-Allen Lubin F 6-8 226 Fr. Orlando, Fla. (Orlando Christian Prep) 3 Trey Wertz G 6-5 193 Gr. Charlotte, N.C. (Providence Day School) 4 Alex Wade G 6-0 170 So. San Diego (Cathedral Catholic) 5 Cormac Ryan G 6-5 195 Gr. New York (Milton Academy [Mass.]) 10 Marcus Hammond G 6-4 188 Gr. Queens, N.Y. (Cardozo) 12 Tony Sanders Jr. G 6-7 215 Jr. Miami (Gulliver Prep) 13 Dom Campbell F 6-9 268 Fr. Scarborough, Maine (Phillips Exeter Academy [NH.]) 14 Nate Laszewski F 6-10 230 Gr. Jupiter, Fla. (Northfield Mount Herman [Mass.]) 20 J.R. Konieczny G 6-7 202 So. South Bend (St. Joseph) 23 Dane Goodwin G 6-6 214 Gr. Upper Arlington, Ohio (Upper Arlington) 24 Robby Carmody G 6-4 205 Gr. Mars, Pa. (Mars Area) 25 Matt Zona F 6-9 242 Jr. Blauvelt, N.Y. (Bergen Catholic [N.J.]) "There's a real maturity and seriousness about him." BREY ON LUBIN NOTRE DAME 2022-23 MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET) Nov. 2 Xavier (La.)# 7 p.m. Nov. 10 Radford (ACCN) 8 p.m. Nov. 13 Youngstown State 4 p.m. Nov. 16 Southern Indiana^ (ACCN) 8 p.m. Nov. 18 Lipscomb 7 p.m. Nov. 22 Bowling Green^ (ACCN) 6:30 p.m. Nov. 25 St. Bonaventure& 4 p.m. Nov. 30 Michigan State% (ESPN2) 9:15 p.m. Dec. 3 Syracuse* (ESPN2) 12 p.m. Dec. 7 Boston University 7 p.m. Dec. 11 Marquette (ACCN) 4 p.m. Dec. 18 vs. Georgia+ (ESPN2) 5:30 p.m. Dec. 21 at Florida State* (ACCN) 8:30 p.m. Dec. 27 Jacksonville (ACCN) 7 p.m. Dec. 30/31 Miami* TBA Jan. 3 at Boston College* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 7 at North Carolina* (ESPN2) 11:30 a.m. Jan. 10 Georgia Tech* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 14 at Syracuse* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 17 Florida State* (ESPN2/U) 7 p.m. Jan. 21 Boston College* (RSN) 2 p.m. Jan. 24 at NC State* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 28 Louisville* (ESPN/2) 12 p.m. Feb. 4 Wake Forest* (RSN) 1 p.m. Feb. 8 at Georgia Tech* (RSN) 7 p.m. Feb. 11 Virginia Tech* (RSN) 2 p.m. Feb. 14 at Duke* (ESPN/2) 7 p.m. Feb. 18 at Virginia* (ESPN/2/U) 12 p.m. Feb. 22 North Carolina* (ESPN/2) 9 p.m. Feb. 25 at Wake Forest* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Mar. 1 Pittsburgh* (ESPN/2/U) 7 p.m. Mar. 4 at Clemson* (ACCN) 8 p.m. Mar. 7-11 ACC Tournament TBA # Exhibition; ^ Gotham Classic at South Bend. & Gotham Classic in UBS Arena at Bel- mont Park, N.Y.; % ACC/Big Ten Challenge; * ACC game; + at State Farm Arena in Atlanta; $ at Greensboro, N.C.