Game Preview/Thread: Notre Dame (13-9, 3-6) at NC State (15-7, 5-4)
Notre Dame (13-9, 3-6) at NC State (15-7, 5-4)
Date: February 3rd
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Where: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina
TV: ESPN
QUICK FACTS
- Notre Dame leads the all-time series 8-4.
- The Irish are 5-0 at NC State and 2-0 in ACC play.
- Martinas Geben and Nik Djogo were the first pair of foreign-born players to start for Mike Brey.
- TJ Gibbs has played 360 of a possible 370 minutes (97 percent) over the past eight games.
- Gibbs is shooting 94.7 percent from the free throw line in ACC play, which leads the conference.
- Sophomore forward John Mooney is averaging 14.0 points and 7.3 rebounds over the last three games.
- Geben leads the ACC in offensive rebounds per game at 4.4.
THE STARTERS
Notre Dame
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| TJ Gibbs | 15.7 | 3.0 | 3.3 |
| Nik Djogo | 2.8 | 1.4 | 0.6 |
| Rex Pflueger | 8.5 | 4.3 | 2.9 |
| John Mooney | 5.6 | 3.9 | 0.5 |
| Martinas Geben | 9.9 | 7.9 | 1.2 |
NC State
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Markell Johnson | 8.3 | 2.9 | 7.5 |
| Torin Dorn | 13.4 | 6.8 | 1.6 |
| Braxton Beverly | 9.8 | 2.5 | 4.1 |
| Abdul-Malik Abu | 5.7 | 3.8 | 0.4 |
| Omer Yurtseven | 13.8 | 6.9 | 0.4 |
National Rankings
| Category | Notre Dame | NC State |
| Scoring Offense | 76.1 (115) | 81.0 (43) |
| Scoring Defense | 66.9 (54) | 219 (73.4) |
| Rebound Margin | 3.0 (94) | 7.7 (79) |
| Assist Per Game | 14.2 (149) | 16.0 (52) |
| FG% Offense | 44.8% (167) | 45.7% (123) |
| FG% Defense | 41.7% (72) | 45.4% (268) |
| Three-Pointers Per Game | 8.3 (113) | 7.2 (220) |
| Three-Point Percentage | 36.5% (104) | 33.5% (247) |
| Free-Throw Percentage | 76.5% (31) | 70.8% (192) |
| Assist-Turnover Ratio | 1.37 (32) | 1.32 (40) |
Preview
Notre Dame beat NC State 88-58 on January 3rd but the teams have taken a different path since as the Wolfpack have gone 5-2 with wins over Duke and North Carolina. The Irish have gone 1-6 and have lost six games in a row.
The Irish haven't lost in Raleigh but it's going to take a big effort from Mike Brey's team to continue the winning streak.
“(Markell) Johnson is a guy who can get into the lane and make plays for them and create shots," stated Brey. "They play faster with them, he pushes the ball this is a team that likes to play fast, we don’t necessarily want to get out and run with them.
“They’re confident right now, they just beat North Carolina, and they have won five of their last seven. They were dead in the water against Pittsburgh and came back and won, and of course, I am sure they remember what happened here a couple of weeks ago.”
NC State is now battling for seeding in the ACC and NCAA Tournament, while Notre Dame is battling for its postseason life. If the Irish fall, a 3-7 hole might be too much to climb out of for the Big Dance, but Brey believe will be up for the challenge.
"They are playing for a lot and have firepower," Brey said of the Wolfpack. "They haven’t been the best defensive team, but right now we haven’t been able to take advantage of that enough, maybe we can do that Saturday.”
Brey has also been realistic with his team about where they stand when it comes to postseason play and has tried to take some of that pressure off by being honest.
"They’re doing great," said Brey. "The kids are amazingly resilient, and older guys are even more resilient. If we had a team with more sophomores and freshmen, this would really affect them, but this is a group that is older.
“I have been realistic with them about our chances and where we stand and what we would have to do to get back in the picture of the NCAA tournament. You can talk to an older group that way, and it was really digested. I told them to turn the month to February and see if our karma can swing a little bit the other way."
Getting point guard Matt Farrell back on Saturday would be a positive step in the right direction and a much-needed boost in the rotation, as the Irish are playing with a seven-man lineup without Farrell.
“We would like to work him back into practice, today and tomorrow and I think he will be a game-time decision on Saturday," Brey said. "He is better, conditioning is still an issue, but we are hoping we can get something out of him Saturday.”
Prediction: NC State 74 Notre Dame 64