Game Preview/Thread: Notre Dame (13-6, 3-3) at No. 20 Clemson (15-3, 4-2)
Notre Dame (13-6, 3-3) at No. 20 Clemson (15-3, 4-2)
Date: January 20th
Time: 4:00 p.m. ET
Where: Littlejohn Coliseum, Clemson, S.C.
TV: ESPN
ACC Standings heading into Saturday.
QUICK FACTS
- Notre Dame leads the all-time series 5-0.
- Sophomore guard TJ Gibbs is one of three players to average over 40 minutes in ACC play.
- Sophomore forward John Mooney is averaging 8.0 points and 6.0 rebounds over the last three games.
- Martinas Geben is one of five players in the ACC averaging a double-double in league play.
- Notre Dame's 48 rebounds against Louisville marked a program-high in ACC play.
- Notre Dame has pulled down 301 rebounds over the last seven games, which is the best seven-game total since 2010-11.
THE STARTERS
Notre Dame
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Matt Farrell | 16.3 | 2.2 | 5.3 |
| TJ Gibbs | 14.7 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
| Rex Pflueger | 8.5 | 4.3 | 2.8 |
| John Mooney | 4.3 | 3.4 | 0.5 |
| Martinas Geben | 9.9 | 8.0 | 1.2 |
Clemson
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Shelton Mitchell | 12.3 | 2.4 | 4.3 |
| Marcquise Reed | 16.2 | 4.7 | 2.9 |
| Gabe DeVoe | 11.4 | 4.7 | 1.8 |
| Donte Grantham | 14.3 | 7.1 | 2.4 |
| Elijah Thomas | 11.2 | 7.8 | 0.9 |
National Rankings
| Category | Notre Dame | Clemson |
| Scoring Offense | 77.7 (98) | 77.6 (100) |
| Scoring Defense | 65.1 (30) | 65.6 (39) |
| Rebound Margin | 3.4 (93) | 3.5 (90) |
| Assist Per Game | 14.6 (131) | 13.9 (172) |
| FG% Offense | 45.9% (122) | 48.2% (41) |
| FG% Defense | 40.6% (44) | 40.7% (47) |
| Three-Pointers Per Game | 8.2 (133) | 8.0 (150) |
| Three-Point Percentage | 37.5% (78) | 37.2% (89) |
| Free-Throw Percentage | 75.9% (34) | 75.5% (40) |
| Assist-Turnover Ratio | 1.43 (17) | 1.09 (152) |
Preview
Clemson might be the surprise team of the ACC season to this point as the Tigers sit at 15-3 and 4-2 in league play. Notre Dame will be without two starters for the sixth game in a row as freshman DJ Harvey will miss Saturday's game.
The good news is senior captain Matt Farrell returned to the floor earlier this week and dropped 23 points and eight assists in his return.
It wasn't always pretty for Farrell, who went 8-for-25 from the field, but the plan wasn't to play him for 48 minutes in his first game back.
Clemson presents Notre Dame a challenge as they are long on the perimeter and athletic down low. The Irish have done a phenomenal job on the boards in ACC play, but it will be crucial for Notre Dame to win the battle on the boards on Saturday.
Martinas Geben will have a tough task keeping Donte Grantham (7.1rpg) and Elijah Thomas (7.8rpg) off the glass, but he's risen to the challenge in every ACC game so far, including 17 rebounds against Louisville on Tuesday night.
I believe the deciding factor in this game will be junior guard Rex Pflueger. Every member of Clemson's starting five averages double-digits in points per game and the California native will be counted on to slow the Tigers down on defense, but he will need to provide points on Saturday. With the loss of Harvey, the Irish lost another scoring threat and will need Pflueger to take his offensive game to the next level.
Sophomores John Mooney and Nik Djogo have put up career-highs in recent games, but asking them to have big games on the road might be a few weeks away. Mooney has shown the ability to make big buckets at home, but will he feel comfortable enough to hit shots on the road? Djogo is fearless but will he play aggressively on the offensive end at Clemson?
Those questions will be answered quickly on Saturday and the Irish need the young guys to play old to use a Mike Brey go-to saying.
All in all, I feel the Irish will continue to battle, but I just don't know where the points will come from. Notre Dame will likely try to make the game ugly as the past five games, but until someone steps up and proves they consistently score, life is going to be difficult on the offensive end, specifically at the end of the shot clock and crunch time.
Prediction: Clemson 69 Notre Dame 61