Game Thread | Notre Dame at UCLA
Notre Dame (6-2) at UCLA (6-2)
Date: December 8
Time: 10:30 p.m. ET
Where: Pauley Pavilion (13,800)
TV: ESPN2
QUICK FACTS
- Saturday will be the 49th meeting between Notre Dame and UCLA. The Bruins lead the all-time series 28-20.
- The Irish are returning to Pauley Pavilion for the first time since February 7, 2009, when the Bruins earned an 89-63 victory over the Irish.
- Saturday’s game marks just the eighth time in series history that neither team will be ranked in the AP Top 25 at the time of the game.
- Mike Brey is 2-2 vs. UCLA at Notre Dame and 1-0 against UCLA head coach Steve Alford.
- The Irish are 13-26 all-time in California, with a bulk of those meetings coming against UCLA (24), San Francisco (five) and Southern Cal (four).
- Junior Juwan Durham leads the ACC in blocked shots per game with a 2.57 average.
- Junior John Mooney leads the ACC in double-doubles (4).
- Junior T.J. Gibbs has scored 18 or more points in four of his last five games played and is averaging 16.8 ppg in those five contests.
THE STARTERS
Notre Dame
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Prentiss Hubb | 8.8 | 2.9 | 2.6 |
| TJ Gibbs | 14.3 | 2.9 | 3.4 |
| Rex Pflueger | 7.5 | 4.8 | 3.6 |
| DJ Harvey | 10.1 | 4.8 | 0.9 |
| John Mooney | 11.5 | 9.5 | 0.5 |
UCLA
| Name | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Jaylen Hands | 12.6 | 3.1 | 6.3 |
| Kris Wilkes | 17.5 | 4.1 | 2.0 |
| Prince Ali | 9.9 | 2.0 | 1.5 |
| Cody Riley | 8.2 | 5.2 | 0.6 |
| Moses Brown | 13.0 | 9.9 | 0.6 |
Preview
Notre Dame and UCLA will enter Saturday’s game with identical records but the young Bruins have been battle tested to this point. UCLA’s two losses have come to Michigan State (87-67) and North Carolina (94-78) on back-to-back days in November.
The Irish have struggled at times on offense and Saturday will be about offense as UCLA has a ton of it.
Points Per Game
Notre Dame: 78.0
UCLA: 83.6
Opponent Points Per Game
Notre Dame: 67.6
UCLA: 71.8
FG%
Notre Dame: 42.0%
UCLA: 48.1%
Rebounds Per Game
Notre Dame: 40.5
UCLA: 44.1
Assists Per Game
Notre Dame: 12.5
UCLA: 14.9
Blocks Per Game
Notre Dame: 5.5
UCLA: 5.8
Steals Per Game
Notre Dame: 6.3
UCLA: 6.5
On paper, the two teams are somewhat similar but it’s hard to not overlook the NBA talent on the UCLA roster. Jaylen Hands, Kris Wilkes and Moses Brown all are likely headed to the NBA in the spring.
“They have young pros and some one-and-done guys,” Mike Brey stated. “Oklahoma was old and veteran. This is young and gifted. They are very gifted offensively. The guard, (Jaylen) Hands is playing amazingly. He makes them go. They have the big kid in the middle, and they have athletic ability.”
Notre Dame may have started to find some success on the block as John Mooney and Juwan Durham have shown they can score in the post, but scoring on Brown will be a great test as the freshman center is 7-foot-1.
Brey will need at least one of his freshmen to come up big in this game and by big, I mean scoring points. Dane Goodwin has shown flashes but it very well could be forward Nate Laszewski’s night in LA.
Laszewski has been up and down shooting the rock but he’s due for a big game after scoring a total of six points in the last two games. If the 6-foot-10 freshman can get going from three-point range, it would help the Irish offense out immensely as it takes some pressure off Mooney and TJ Gibbs.
However, I’m just not sure Notre Dame is up for the challenge in this one. It will provide a good measuring stick and experience for the youth, but this smells like a game where the young Irish struggle.
Prediction: UCLA 89 Notre Dame 70