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Notre Dame Basketball

Hoops Preview: Syracuse at No. 15 Notre Dame

January 21, 2017
2,613

Syracuse (11-8, 3-3) vs No. 15 Notre Dame (16-3, 5-1)


Date: January 21
Where: Purcell Pavilion
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN

Quick Facts

- Saturday will be the 48th meeting between the two programs.
- The Orange lead the series 28-19.
- Notre Dame’s last victory over Syracuse was in 2012.
- The Irish are 9-12 all-time at home against Syracuse.
- David Rivers will be inducted into the ring of honor at halftime.

The Starters

(Per Game Averages)
Notre Dame
Matt Farrell: 14.2 PPG, 2.2 RPG and 5.5 APG
Steve Vasturia: 15.2 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 3.2 APG
VJ Beachem: 13.9 PPG, 3.9 RPG and 1.2 APG
Bonzie Colson: 15.5 PPG, 10.7 RPG and 1.8 APG
Martinas Geben: 4.2 PPG, 4.7 RPG and 0.9 APG

Syracuse
John Gillon: 8.9 PPG, 1.8 RPG and 5.1 APG
Tyus Battle: 9.9 PPG, 1.8 RPG and 1.6 APG
Andrew White III: 15.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG and 1.4 APG
Tyler Lydon: 13.7 PPG, 7.6 RPG and 1.7 APG
Taurean Thompson: 8.9 PPG, 3.5 RPG and 0.7 APG

How They Matchup

(National Rank)
Scoring Offense: Syracuse: 75.9 PPG (119) – Notre Dame: 81.1 PPG (39)
Scoring Defense: Syracuse: 67.0 PPG (69) – Notre Dame: 67.5 PPG (78)
Rebound Margin: Syracuse: 0.6 (193) – Notre Dame: 1.2 (164)
Field-Goal Percentage: Syracuse: 45.7% (117) – Notre Dame: 47.0% (67)
Three-Point Percentage: Syracuse: 40.3% (46) – Notre Dame: 40.9% (11)
Three-Pointers Made: Syracuse: 8.9 (56) – Notre Dame: 9.9 (14)
Free-Throw Percentage: Syracuse: 69.1% (188) – Notre Dame: 82.4% (1)

Notre Dame will look to get back on track on Saturday against the 2-3 zone of Syracuse. The Irish will need to maximize possessions on the offensive end of the floor and hitting the three-ball will be huge positive in this game.

It will be interesting to see how much energy out of the gate Notre Dame has, as it will be the first home game in two weeks after three games on the road. Notre Dame enters the game a 9.5 favorite, so the Irish should be able to take control of the game a few times during the contest.

There isn’t too much to say in terms of strategy, as it’s pretty clear what Notre Dame needs to do to win against the Syracuse zone. The Orange aren’t a great offensive team, but Bonzie Colson will need to have a good game on the defensive end of the floor against Tyler Lydon.

Expect Notre Dame to try to push the tempo on the offensive end and Brey will pick his spots to run zone. It will also be interesting to see if TJ Gibbs can put together his third-straight game in double-digits in points, as he should get some looks from behind the arc with a focus on Steve Vasturia, VJ Beachem and Matt Farrell.  

I believe Notre Dame will win this one with a second half run and Brey will move within 20 wins of catching the school’s all-time record for wins.
 
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