Game Preview/Thread: Louisville (13-4, 3-1) at Notre Dame (13-5, 3-2)
Louisville (13-4, 3-1) at Notre Dame (13-5, 3-2)
Date: January 16th
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Purcell Pavilion, Notre Dame, Ind.
TV: ESPN2
QUICK FACTS
- Louisville leads the all-time series 21-15.
- Notre Dame has won three of the last four meetings against the Cards in ACC play.
- The Irish have won the last six games against Louisville at Purcell Pavilion.
- Notre Dame has collected 206 rebounds over the past five ACC games - the most for the program in a five-game stretch since the 2012-13 season
- TJ Gibbs 10.1ppg increase is the fourth-best in the ACC.
- Since 1994, Notre Dame and Louisville have met 13 times and seven of those games have gone to overtime.
THE STARTERS
Notre Dame
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Matt Farrell | 15.9 | 2.1 | 5.1 |
| TJ Gibbs | 14.8 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| Rex Pflueger | 8.8 | 4.4 | 2.9 |
| DJ Harvey | 6.0 | 3.0 | 0.6 |
| Martinas Geben | 9.3 | 7.5 | 1.2 |
Louisville
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Quentin Snider | 12.6 | 3.1 | 4.1 |
| V.J. King | 9.3 | 3.8 | 0.8 |
| Deng Adel | 15.8 | 4.6 | 2.8 |
| Ray Spaulding | 11.1 | 9.1 | 1.2 |
| Malik Williams | 3.6 | 3.0 | 0.3 |
National Rankings
| Category | Notre Dame | Louisville |
| Scoring Offense | 77.7 (101) | 77.6 (104) |
| Scoring Defense | 64.2 (23) | 67.4 (71) |
| Rebound Margin | 2.8 (113) | 2.7 (115) |
| Assist Per Game | 14.4 (142) | 13.4 (205) |
| FG% Offense | 46.5% (103) | 45.3% (155) |
| FG% Defense | 40.1% (34) | 38.9% (15) |
| Three-Pointers Per Game | 8.0 (153) | 7.5 (190) |
| Three-Point Percentage | 38.4% (51) | 34.8% (190) |
| Free-Throw Percentage | 76.2% (31) | 74.1% (72) |
| Assist-Turnover Ratio | 1.48 (15) | 1.10 (146) |
Preview
Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey expects his team to play angry on Tuesday night and it will be needed as Louisville comes to town. The Cardinals will bring a pesky defense to Purcell Pavilion, which isn't ideal for a Notre Dame squad struggling to score points.
The Irish could get a boost as senior point guard Matt Farrell is likely to return to the starting lineup and it could be the breath of fresh air Notre Dame needs to end a two-game losing streak.
Brey's team started 3-0 in ACC play, but he knows the Irish need its senior leader after losses to Georgia Tech and North Carolina.
"The other thing we need to do is get Matt Farrell back at practice on Sunday and Monday," said Brey. “If all goes well, start him. It’s time for him to come back. We’ve done a heck of a job without him, but we need him.
"It will energize our guys. We need that now. They need to know we’re getting Matt ready for Tuesday. I think it will help the whole atmosphere.”
It's not all going to fall on Farrell's shoulders as the Irish need to continue its dominance on the boards. Notre Dame has pulled down 206 rebounds in the last five games and it has kept them in games.
Louisville is a bigger and more athletic team, so the battle of the boards is a category Notre Dame will need to win on Tuesday.
Notre Dame has shot the ball well from three-point range this season despite its scoring droughts and I believe Tuesday's game will be decided with the three-ball.
If Farrell should return, the floor will be a little more open for TJ Gibbs, DJ Harvey and John Mooney. Nik Djogo scored a career-high 12 points on Saturday against North Carolina and another big game would be huge for the sophomore guard's confidence, but also Brey's confidence in him.
I believe this will be a slug it out game and timely threes will keep the Irish in this one.
Prediction: Notre Dame 67 Louisville 62