Mike Brey Notebook | Jan. 25

Notre Dame basketball coach Mike Brey spoke on Tuesday as his Irish prepare for NC State on Wednesday, which starts a stretch of four games in seven days. 

On message to the team heading into a big stretch:
"General stuff, but not a big statement and I think that's probably come within with these seniors. Again, I think what's really helped us with Kentucky and Clemson and I think tomorrow - our students have helped us generate a pretty good home atmosphere even though our group has played well without the students here.

"I think it's coming from them." 

On JJ Starling being named a McDonald's All-American:
"I think it's a great shot in the arm. I think he deserves it and I made that known to some of the people on the committee with certainly how he played in the summer and how he's played this fall. I know he moved up in the rankings, which is great. 

"It gives credibility to have a kid on that team and they're playing the game in Chicago. It's an endorsement for us. We felt good about who he signed, the three of them. He was the one that we had to get. I'm excited about coaching him. 

"It's amazing communicating with him. He really watches and follows us. He has a great feel for our team. He's got a high basketball IQ." 

On the ACC being down:
"We're a one-bid league. It's like the America East where we're going to get one bid. You get what you earn. There's no question about it. I think your numbers and non-league wins or lack thereof, maybe our Kentucky win is one of the better ones. 

"You're going to fight, scratch and claw. We'll probably get a few more in there than everyone thinks right now in late January. You are who you are because of your non-league stuff. That's what you're fighting through. 

"I look at it and talk as a staff and you feel if you can pick off a double-bye and finish in the top four - a double-bye team has never not gone. 

"Our league is a little bit like when we joined the league. We were coming out of the Big East getting eight and nine and the one year with 11. The ACC had a couple years of only getting four. I sense there's a little bit of that sting now and we're part of it.

"There's plenty of games left to put yourself in position through a power league. Our strength of schedule is great and it'll stay strong. You have opportunities."   

On consistency:
"I give a lot of credit to our seniors who wanted to deliver and have a good year. They have fought, scratched, clawed and worked to get better and taken big punches. It's neat to see them come together and set a great tone. When a group can take ownership of itself, you are way more than halfway there as a leader of the group in my position. I think this group really has ownership of itself. 

"Those seven guys are our rotation and they know who they are. I think they've figured out how to play off of each other. They've been in tough spots. They're extremely battle-tested. They've been through a lot, not only through their careers, but this particular team has played an unbelievable schedule and played in some tough places. 

"We've been good in game situations and different guys making big plays - courageous plays. I want to keep bottling that." 

On Blake Wesley:
"It's a special story and it's really neat for this town. We thought he'd be good and he's been better than we even felt. We walked out of the first few practices in June and said wow.

"He's fit in with this older group and much of it is him knowing how to play with these guys. These older guys know he can go ahead and be great because we need you to win. It's a neat dynamic to have because you never know how to manage that from my point of view." 

On Dane Goodwin's consistency:
"I think it's probably his demeanor and attitude. He's really kind of a machine with his focus. He handles his day-to-day stuff like that. He's not very emotional. He's a rock. You can coach him hard. 

"I think it's just kind of been a demeanor. He's talking a little bit more, but he's never going to be a big talker. I think that's kind of his personality - focused, intense, serious. 

"I set him up sometimes with a joke. How he's playing - it's machine-like. It's kind of how sets up his day." 

On Goodwin's development: 
"I think there's more confidence there now in year four. I think he's become a better defender. You look at his assist to turnover, he's better with the ball and he's become a little more of a guard finding people and making plays. I think that was all a process. He was more of a high school four-man. The first time I saw him play, he blocked five shots in an AAU tournament. 

"We really invested in them as freshmen and we're getting some really good ROI right now. And come on back next year." 

On Goodwin's shot selection:
"I think that part of his game has really grown. Last year, he was forcing some stuff when he wouldn't get one in a while, especially when he wasn't in the post, even though we like him getting an angle. He's become more secure that it will come around to him. He plays with good passers and guys that are unselfish. 

"We do some quick hitters for him. I don't know if anyone has scored more on an out of bounds under than Dane Goodwin. It's unbelievable. It's not rocket science. We're playing a screen for him and we're slipping it sometimes.

"He and Prentiss have benefited from extended minutes. 'I'm going to be out here, so I don't have to do anything crazy. I can probably play the whole game.' And he's kind of right." 

On four games in seven days:
"Everybody talks about what's coming at us and I showed them on the board we have two days of practice and a game. We'll address what's coming at us later in the week. You're trying to shave it down even though I'm fully aware of what's coming at us. 

"We have taken advantage of a lot of opportunities since Indiana and here come some more. I think our guys are very aware of what's on the table coming at us and the opportunities." 

On defending home court:
"We ran the table two years in a row in the Big East and if you can hang in here, there is no question it really helps you. Having our crowd helps and I think our students had such a good experience at Kentucky, they're hooked. I've done some pep talks and was in the dining halls and showed up there again today. They're really hooked. Clemson - they had fun. We need them.

"I thought we got off to a great start against Clemson because we had such a great student section. It was bouncing and hopefully, we can keep that up. If we can keep hanging in there, you're going to be in the mix." 

On preparing team for vastly different styles of play from NC State (Wednesday) and Virginia (Saturday): 
"At this point in the season, we have developed an identity. We play a certain way on both ends of the floor. You don't want to get into wholesale changes even the styles are extremely different. 

"We also played in a tournament in Vegas where you're playing back-to-back days and just about every style is coming at us in league play, we've seen in non-league. 

"When you have an identity, you kind of want to stick to that."