Notre Dame's Offensive Growing Pains Could Payoff in Future
Last year, Penn State produced one of the best offenses out of 363 Division I college basketball teams under then-head coach Micah Shrewsberry.
“I let go of the rope a little bit. I don’t try to control everything that our guys do,” Shrewsberry said on College Hoops Today with Jon Rothstein. “You know, I want them to play with some freedom. I want them to have a purpose with how we’re trying to attack and what we’re trying to look for each and every possession, and then we try and come up with that formula each time.”
Now, he’s brought the same offensive philosophy that led to so much success to South Bend.
Even if his approach has already undergone a litmus test in the Big Ten, there are likely to be growing pains along the way as Notre Dame’s current roster adapts to a new style of play.
That includes a 71-61 loss at home to Western Carolina on Saturday. The Fighting Irish shot 37.9% from the field, even with a 20-point performance from freshman forward Carey Booth.
Maybe such performance should be expected for now.
Penn State’s offense actually regressed significantly in Shrewsberry's first season in 2021-22, going from 34th the year prior to 111th. There were a few ugly losses early that year as well, including an 81-56 defeat at the hands of UMass. The Nittany Lions went 14-17 that season before improving to 23-14 and making the NCAA tournament the following season.
Sure, Penn State had a better roster in 2022-23 than the program did the prior year, but many players also had a greater grasp of the requisite offensive concepts.
At Notre Dame, the offense also won’t approach its maximum level of efficiency until everyone involved understands on an intuitive level.
“It's about the experience level,” Shrewsberry told ISD over the summer. “Yeah, they can do it in practice, but doing it in a little different. So (it's) gaining that experience to do it versus people that are trying to stop you. Do it versus people that might be bigger than you or stronger than you.
“That's where I think the growth will come for us as the season keeps going, but we have the right pieces to be pretty good.”
For Shrewsberry, It’s not about harping on rule after rule or drilling a thick playbook to death. It’s about teaching offensive concepts like being aware of how one player’s movement impacts the rest of his teammates.
“On offense, we don't want to shrink that for ourselves,” Shrewsberry said. “So, if the guy is supposed to be in the corner, he needs to be in the corner, not like yeah, 'I'm in the corner, but then you're five feet out of the corner.
“You're making the court smaller just by being in the wrong spot, which at the same time is taking away the next guy's ability to make a play.”
Such spatial awareness was displayed in the season opener when Notre Dame escaped Niagara at home, 70-63.
The Irish barely drew iron from deep, hitting on just 3 of 17 3-pointer attempts. Notre Dame still managed to shoot 50.9% from the field by scoring 48 points in the paint, which includes eight made layups from point guard Markus Burton.
He finished with 29 points, a new record for an Irish freshman in their debut on a team desperate for scorers to emerge.
How did a 5-foot-11 point guard have so much success in an area of the court where big men typically operate?
It helped that his teammates were aware of his lanes to the basket.
“Markus Burton's a really good driver, but you're standing right next to him, then he's not a good driver,” Shrewsberry said. “But if you give him space to drive, then he's going to be really good, right? So we don't want to take away the opportunities from each other because we're not in the right space.”
That wasn’t the case versus Western Carolina. On Saturday, Burton scored 17 points but went 6-15 from the field, only attempting five layups.
The next evolution in an offense built around Burton is one where he becomes more of a distributor, especially as opposing defenses do more to keep him away from the rim. That’s an adjustment Burton and the other four players on the court need to make.
“Moving and getting into a guy's vision is really important as he drives it,” Shrewsberry said. “So I want to give him space to drive, but now when he does drive it, he needs to know where I'm going to be, right? Or in the general vicinity of where I should be, so we really work on moving on penetration.”
Penn State also found offensive success in 2022-23 by caring for the basketball. The Nittany Lions turned the ball over 9.0 times per game (4th) that season.
Notre Dame actually performed even better in the particular metric, turning the ball over on 8.8 occasions per game (3rd) only for the Irish ranked 104th in offensive efficiency.
The difference? Penn State consistently put those unwasted possessions to good use.
“We made shots at a high level, but we got good shots, and we got more shots because we didn't turn it over.”
Replicating similar success could be a challenge for Shrewsberry in Year 1, with Burton and fellow freshman guard Braeden Shrewsberry (yes, the coach's son) representing two of the team’s three starting guards.
The backcourt duo started off fine, turning the ball over a combine five times as the team finished with seven turnovers against Niagara.
Burton, however, struggles against the Catamounts, turning the ball over five times.
“We can't turn the ball over,” Shrewsberry said. “With a young backcourt, that'll be one of their biggest deals. That'd be one of its biggest issues is handling situations and making the right plays without turning the basketball over.”
Notre Dame also isn’t likely to shoot this poorly from beyond the arc all season.
In two games, they’ve made 11 out of 43 attempts (25.6%).
Until they improve, the Fighting Irish could experience even more uncomfortable developmental moments as the program navigates its first season under Shrewsberry. Still, there’s a good chance such trials and tribulations pay off in the future, but maybe not this year.