Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com DECEMBER 2017 39 MEN'S BASKETBALL I have to rebound a lot more down there. Communicating off the ball de- fensively, cutting with a purpose and playing my game and doing what I'm capable of." Harvey passed the first test. The Irish opened the tournament against host Chaminade, a Division II squad, and cruised to an 83-56 win thanks to a career-high 27 points from senior point guard Matt Farrell and 23 points from senior forward Bonzie Colson. Harvey was the only other player in double figures, scoring 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting in just 19 minutes of action. In Notre Dame's 92-53 rout of LSU, he contributed five points, three rebounds and a block in 20 minutes of playing time. Through the first five games of his career, Harvey was averaging 9.2 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 20.2 minutes of action per game off the bench. It can take freshmen a few games to adapt offensively and to the speed of the college game, but Harvey seems to have made the adjustment quickly. During those five contests, Harvey connected on 17 of 26 (65.4 percent) of his field goal attempts while knocking down 5 of 11 (45.5 percent) from three-point range. The freshman feels himself becom- ing more acclimated each time he steps onto the court. "Most definitely, [I am] getting my feet under me," Harvey explained. "The guys are helping me a lot. I feel I still have a long way to go, but you go slowly but surely. I feel like I haven't reached the highest I can do … "I feel every game I've gotten a little more comfortable. The guys around me are experienced guys. They took me in under their wing, showing me the ropes and showing how me how to play Coach Brey's style of basketball." Harvey also realizes he hasn't ar- rived and his game is far from a fin- ished product. He knows he can im- prove in several areas to keep being a positive impact off the bench for the Irish. "Crashing the boards," Harvey said when asked what area he needed to improve the most. "They're look- ing for me to rebound. I haven't been doing a great job of that. "Defensively, looking for me to use my length. Also, just moving with- out the ball. In high school, I really didn't have to move away from the ball because it was always coming back to me." It is apparent Harvey is going to be a major piece to the puzzle for Notre Dame during the 2017-18 season given the major minutes he is already playing with limited experience under his belt. Harvey may not be in the starting lineup early in the season, but the quicker he becomes more comfort- able with the Irish system and college basketball, the sooner he may find himself in that role. ✦ 2017-18 NOTRE DAME MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Oct. 20 Holy Cross College! W, 97-57 Nov. 3 Bethel College! W, 88-59 Nov. 7 Cardinal Stritch! W, 90-46 Nov. 11 at DePaul W, 72-58 Nov. 13 Mount St. Mary's+ W, 88-62 Nov. 16 Chicago State W, 105-66 Nov. 20 vs. Chaminade# W, 83-56 Nov. 21 vs. LSU# W, 92-53 Nov. 22 vs. Wichita State# W, 67-66 Nov. 30 at Michigan State& (ESPN) 7 p.m. Dec. 3 St. Francis Brooklyn (ACCNE) 2 p.m. Dec. 5 Ball State (ACCN) 7 p.m. Dec. 9 at Delaware 7 p.m. Dec. 16 vs. Indiana^ 2:30 p.m. Dec. 19 Dartmouth (ESPN2) 7 p.m. Dec. 21 SE Louisiana (ACCNE) 7 p.m. Dec. 30 Georgia Tech* (ESPN2) TBA Jan. 3 NC State* (ACCN) 9 p.m. Jan. 6 at Syracuse* (ESPN/2) 3:15 p.m. Jan. 10 at Georgia Tech* (ESPNU) 7 p.m. Jan. 13 North Carolina* (ESPN/2) 6 p.m. Jan. 16 Louisville* (ESPN2) 7 p.m. Jan. 20 at Clemson* (ESPN/2) 4 p.m. Jan. 27 Virginia Tech* (ESPN2) 8 p.m. Jan. 29 at Duke* (ESPN) 7 p.m. Feb. 3 at NC State* (ESPN/2) 12 p.m. Feb. 6 Boston College* (ACCN) 8 p.m. Feb. 10 Florida State* (ESPN/2) 4 p.m. Feb. 12 at North Carolina* (ESPN) 7 p.m. Feb. 17 at Boston College* (ACCN) 4 p.m. Feb. 19 Miami (Fla.)* (ESPN) 7 p.m. Feb. 24 at Wake Forest* (ACCN) 3 p.m. Feb. 28 Pittsburgh* (ESPNU) 7 p.m. March 3 at Virginia* (ACCN) 4 p.m. March 6-10 ACC Tournament$ TBA ! Exhibition; + Maui Jim Maui Invitational regional matchup; # Maui Jim Maui Invitational at Lahaina, Hawai'i; & ACC-Big Ten Challenge; ^ Crossroads Classic at Indianapolis; * ACC game; $ at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y.; ACCN — ACC Network; ACCNE — ACC Network Extra Irish Claim Maui Invitational Title Notre Dame overcame a 16-point deficit to knock off then-No. 6 Wichita State 67-66 and claim its first Maui Invitational title Nov. 22. With 19 seconds remaining, Wichita State held a 66-63 lead over the then-No. 13 Irish. The Shockers were set to inbound the ball with a chance to ice the game at the charity stripe. Wichita State guard Conner Frankamp inbounded the ball to guard Austin Reaves, but Notre Dame senior point guard Matt Farrell was able to knock the ball free from Reaves and then find senior forward Bonzie Colson before falling out of bounds. Colson converted the layup to close the gap to 66-65 with just less than 14 seconds remaining. The Irish were then able to foul and send Reaves to the free throw line for a one-and-one opportunity. Reaves, who entered the game 4 of 4 on the season, missed the front end. The Irish grabbed the rebound, and Farrell raced down the court and attempted a layup that was blocked by the Shockers. Both teams scrambled for the loose ball, which resulted in a jump-ball situation. The Irish had the pos- session arrow in their favor and could inbound the ball from underneath the basket. Head coach Mike Brey called a timeout to set up a play that the Irish executed perfectly. Senior big man Martinas Geben set screens for Farrell and Colson, rolled to the basket, caught a pass from junior guard Rex Pflueger and was fouled with less than three seconds left. The Lithuanian native headed to the free throw line with a chance to give the Irish their first lead since the opening minutes. Geben needed a friendly bounce on the first attempt to tie the game at 66 before calmly connecting on the second to give Notre Dame the 67-66 advantage. The Shockers had one last chance and were able to get the ball to guard Landry Shamet at midcourt, but Pflueger found a way to knock the ball away and Shamet wasn't able to get off a shot. Colson finished with his fourth double-double of the season, compiling 25 points and 11 rebounds. Farrell notched 15 points, four rebounds and four assists, while Geben contributed 12 points, five rebounds and three assists. Farrell was named the Maui Invitational MVP after averaging 19.7 points, 5.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 50.0 percent from the field (20 of 40) and 47.6 percent from beyond the arc (10 of 21). Notre Dame cruised past host Chaminade (82-56) and LSU (92-53) the previous two days to advance to the championship game. — Corey Bodden