Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM JUNE/JULY 2023 41 MEN'S BASKETBALL "Mike's energy and drive are un- matched," Shrewsberry said. "One of Mike's greatest strengths lies in his ability to build relationships and con- nect both with his current players and recruits." FORMER NORTHWESTERN GUARD TRANSFERS TO NOTRE DAME Shrewsberry saw plenty of former Northwestern guard Julian Roper II while watching as a Big Ten competi- tor at Penn State the last two seasons. Enough to want to bring him to Notre Dame. Roper had interest, too, it turns out. He committed to Shrewsberry and the Irish April 18. The junior-to-be guard has two seasons of eligibility left to play after spending two with the Wildcats. The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Roper was a primary bench option for Northwestern this year until an ankle injury forced him out of action for all but one of the team's final 16 games. He did not appear in ei- ther of the Wildcats' NCAA Tournament games or the Big Ten Tournament quar- terfinal loss to Shrewsberry's Penn State team. He played in just one contest after Jan. 23, logging 22 minutes with 4 points in a loss to Michigan on Feb. 2. All told, Roper averaged 4.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 21.4 min- utes per game this past season. He made 15 appearances with zero starts. He shot 45.3 percent from the field, 42.1 per- cent on three-pointers (8 of 19) and 45.5 percent from the foul line (10 of 22). He played in 29 games as a freshman in 2021-22, making 15 starts. He averaged 4.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.0 assist in 20.2 minutes per game, while shoot- ing 34.2 percent from the field. Roper, a Detroit native, committed to Northwestern in May 2020 over Wiscon- sin. He also had high-major offers from Alabama, DePaul, Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Ohio State. He was a four-star recruit and the No. 113 overall prospect in the 2021 On3 Industry Ranking. He played at Orchard Lake (Mich.) St. Mary's. Roper is coming to Notre Dame as part of a roster rebuild that offers him and ev- ery newcomer a chance to win a starting job or, at minimum, significant minutes. He was the first transfer commitment since Shrewsberry agreed to take the job March 22. He won't be the last. Notre Dame lost nearly all its back- court production from the 2022-23 sea- son. Freshman guard and former Mc- Donald's All-American JJ Starling (11.2 points per game) transferred to Syra- cuse, guard Cormac Ryan (12.3 points) transferred to North Carolina for his sixth season, and guards Dane Goodwin (11.3 points), Trey Wertz (8.4 points) and Marcus Hammond (9.9 points) are out of eligibility. The Irish's returning guards are ju- nior-to-be JR Konieczny (redshirted in 2022-23), senior Tony Sanders Jr. (21 ca- reer points in three seasons). They have three-star incoming freshman Markus Burton, the lone signee who did not request a release during the coaching transition. Three-star guard Braeden Shrewsberry, Micah's oldest son and a former Penn State signee, also will play for Notre Dame next year. ✦ FRESHMAN FORWARD ENTERS TRANSFER PORTAL Notre Dame head coach Micah Shrews- berry went nearly a month without seeing one of the Notre Dame players he inherited choose to explore other options. The first, though, dealt a significant blow to his early roster building efforts and took away a po- tential centerpiece of his early years. Freshman forward Ven-Allen Lubin entered his name in the transfer portal April 18. He joined freshman classmates JJ Starling and Dom Campbell in looking for a new destina- tion. He has three seasons left to play. Starling and Campbell went in the portal March 13, the first day of the 60-day transfer window for undergrads. Lubin followed suit more than a month later, and in doing so, leaves Notre Dame without a sophomore- to-be on its roster and none of its top seven scorers from last season. "To the University of Notre Dame, thank you for this season of growth and thank you for being a supportive community," Lubin said in a statement. "This past year has been filled with new experiences. I am ready to find a new home that will allow me to grow and prosper as a basketball player, and that will allow me to maximize my abil- ity to strive for a winning season with my teammates and coaches." Lubin averaged 6.2 points and 4.4 re- bounds in 17.5 minutes per game this year, shooting 58.0 percent from the field and 67.7 percent from the foul line. He also had a team-high 23 blocks. He played in 28 games, making seven starts. Lubin also missed four games during January with an ankle injury. The 6-foot-8, 226-pound Lubin was a season-long rotation player and occasional starter for Notre Dame. Before a late October eye injury that wiped out two weeks of preseason practice, he was viewed as part of the Irish's likely starting five. Notre Dame went with a four-guard lineup to begin the season, though, with Lubin coming off the bench. He didn't step into the starting lineup until Feb. 8 at Georgia Tech. When he did, though, he started seven of the last nine games. Four of Lubin's eight double-figure scoring games came after he became a starter. He went for 13 points against Georgia Tech. His season high of 19 came in a loss to Wake Forest Feb. 26. He was 9 of 12 from the field in that game, while adding 8 rebounds and 3 blocks. His season high in rebounds was 13 in a loss to St. Bonaventure Nov. 25. He played a season-high 32 minutes against Bowling Green Nov. 22. Notre Dame signed Lubin out of Orlando (Fla.) Christian Prep. He was a four-star recruit and the No. 70 overall prospect in the 2022 On3 Industry Ranking. He chose the Irish in November 2021 over Clemson, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech. — Patrick Engel Ven-Allen Lubin averaged 6.2 points and 4.4 rebounds in 17.5 minutes per game during his lone season at Notre Dame. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER