Heading into last Saturdays' opener the Notre Dame men's basketball program was surrounded by buzz, it was our first look at a new, post elite eight era of Notre Dame basketball, but as we all know the new era didn't get off to the start that any of us had hoped. In short the Irish left Breslin center with more questions than answers. It was hard to draw positives from an outing like that, but after a week of cancellations the Irish were finally able to find an opponent. In a season like this that alone is a positive, but Sunday night's performance brought more things for Mike Brey and his team to hang their hat on, so here are some encouraging things from the first two games of the season.
Notre Dame scored in a few ways we haven't seen before
Last season the Irish were fairly predictable on the offensive end, a typical half court possession consisted of a three point attempt from one of Notre Dame's guards or a post up from John Mooney or Juwan Durham, but in the opening week , the Irish have scored in a few ways we haven't seen before. While this was partly due to MSU and Detroit Mercy's long, athletic guards making it hard for Prentiss Hubb and Cormac Ryan to get good looks. Notre Dame made up for this by scoring in ways we have rarely seen in past years. It started off with Cormac Ryan hitting two tough threes with a hand in his face which was certainly an encouraging sign to start off his career at Notre Dame.
We also saw 5th year forward Nik Djogo making plays early in the opener which is also encouraging considering that he is expected to play significant minutes over the next few months as a result of injuries to Elijah Taylor and Robby Carmody. If Djogo can come in off the bench, play good defense, and stretch the floor with his shooting ability he could be a valuable asset to the Irish down the stretch.
We have also seen two members of Notre Dame's highly touted 2018 class add elements to their game that they had not been successful with in the past two seasons. Against Detroit Mercy, Dane Goodwin was able to create his own shot successfully off the dribble multiple times which was a rare sight in his first two seasons with the Irish. Goodwin has also been able to take advantages of mismatches like when he posted up his former teammate Foster Loyer for an easy bucket. Goodwin has shown flashes of being more than a sharpshooter in his time at Notre Dame but if he can put it all together consistently on the offensive end it will add a completely new element to the team offensively.
Speaking of post-ups, Nate Laszewski has also been more of a force down low than ever before. The sharpshooting forward has scored a large portion of his points this season in the paint. For somebody who has just been regarded as a stretch four in past seasons Laszewskis' development down low has been a welcome improvement for the Irish.
Nate Laszewski seems to have taken the next step
In these first two games, Nate Laszewski looks like he has taken the famous third year leap that big men seem to make under Mike Brey. In these first two games the former top 100 recruit has shown his ability as a true post up big man in addition to his skillset as a stretch four. Laszewski has also clearly put on muscle since the season's abrupt end in March and it has already payed dividends on both sides of the ball. While the Irish have struggled to replace John Mooney's production as a rebounder early on, Nate Laszewski has been a big bright spot down low, the 6'10 forward currently leads the Irish in rebounds per game which really helped them down the stretch in their eight point victory vs Detroit Mercy. In his postgame presser, Mike Brey said that he thinks Laszewski is getting more confident in his game. Brey has been harping on Laszewski's improving confidence since late last season and if he can keep trending upwards there is no reason why he cannot be Notre Dame's best player this season.
Notre Dame was able to Get it Done With a Shorthanded Bench and Help is on the Way
Heading into the season one of if not the biggest question mark was Notre Dame's depth and in this first week the Irish haven't done much to ease that concern. Over the first two games the bench has combined for 11 points total ( Djogo 2, Zona 1, Sanders 5, Morgan 3). Obviously this isn't ideal in a season where depth is more important than ever because of the possibility that some players will have to sit out due to injuries or COVID, but the Irish are making the most of their small rotation. Freshman swingman Tony Sanders JR. was able to come in and provide 15 valuable minutes off of the bench where he was able to score five points and provide some nice minutes on the defensive end. Outside of Sanders, Brey didn't have much to work with last night but he was able to "take a little pressure off the legs" of his starters by dropping into zones periodically throughout the game. If the rotation is going to be as small as it was last night, Brey and the staff will have to continue to get creative with ways to preserve his starters energy.
Outside of two early minutes from freshman forward Matt Zona, Notre Dame only had a six man rotation last night in their win vs Detroit Mercy. However, it doesn't look like they will need to play shorthanded for much longer. After missing games vs Detroit Mercy and Ohio State with a sprained ankle, 5th year forward Nik Djogo could return to the lineup as soon as Saturday. After Djogo, athletic guard Robby Carmody is set to return to practice later this month after breaking his kneecap. After another severe knee injury, nobody knows if Carmody will ever return to being the player he once was because of how much he relies on his athleticism. Notre Dame is all to familiar with players not returning to form after knee injuries after seeing Rex Pflueger never fully get his athleticism back after tearing his ACL. If Carmody can get close to where he was athletically before the injury he could lock down a spot in the rotation and provide valuable energy, scoring, and good defense as the 6th or 7th man. Another candidate for the 6th man role is one with a huge amount of buzz surrounding him. Trey Wertz is still waiting on his waiver to be approved by the NCAA so that he can be immediately eligible this season. The NCAA is considering passing a rule that would allow all transfers to get immediate eligibility, this proposal will likely be brought up December 16th in the basketball oversight committee's next meeting. If there is a way to get the transfer from Santa Clara immediate eligibility Mike Brey is going to do everything he can to do it. If eligible, Wertz will provide a boost in playmaking, defense, and scoring on the perimeter which the Irish will be in desperate need of heading into conference play.
As of now arguably the biggest weakness for Notre Dame is their bench, but with players returning from injuries and Trey Wertz potentially gaining eligibility the back end of the rotation could potentially go from a glaring weakness to a strength in a short period of time.
The Commits Have Gotten Off to Dominant Starts
While High School film and stats should be taken with a grain of salt, Notre Dame signees JR Konieczny and Blake Wesley have certainly passed the eye test early on this season.
Blake Wesley has started off the season with multiple 30 point outings but he also looks to have taken significant steps in other aspects of his game. The South Bend Riley star has always been known as a scorer, but he has impressed with vision and ability to find the open man in transition and half court sets which is a skill he has showcased more than he ever has recently. Wesley has also provided tremendous value defensively for the Wildcats, in the first two weeks of the season Wesley has shown off his ability to be a pest in the passing lanes along with a tremendous on ball defender. A Notre Dame backcourt with long, athletic guards like Cormac Ryan, Trey Wertz, and Blake Wesley will be a scary sight for opposing guards.
Just seven minutes away from the gym where Wesley is making highlight plays, Notre Dame signee JR Konieczny is making just as much noise. In his first two games this weekend the 6'6 forward had 71 points combined (30 on Friday, 41 on Saturday) against two schools that are far from pushovers. In addition to Konieczny's impressive scoring that he has shown off throughout the first few days of the season it is clear that he has put on some muscle since the end of last season which is almost equally as important as his scoring ability. Konieczny said this summer that he has always struggled to put on weight so it is extremely encouraging to see him bulking up before arriving to Notre Dame especially since many think bulking up could be the key for him to earn playing time as a freshman.
In the first week of their seasons the two Notre Dame signees have generated a ton of buzz to start off their senior seasons and seem like they are in a great position to become the faces of Notre Dame basketball in the post Hubb, Goodwin, and Laszewski era.
If the Irish can carry some of these positives over into the Kentucky and Ohio State games, they will be in a great positions to get two wins this week.
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