Virginia vs Notre Dame Basketball Preview
By Josh Burton
Following a 79-44 victory over Morgan State Wednesday night, the 10-2 University of Virginia Men’s Basketball team now turns their attention solely to ACC play and the quest to hang yet another regular season championship banner. Already 1-0 in conference thanks to an 84-62 victory over Syracuse in early December, they head to South Bend to face Notre Dame on Saturday (12/30). The game will air on the ACC Network with a scheduled noon EST tip.
About Notre Dame
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are led by first-year head coach Micah Shrewsberry. Shrewsberry entered Notre Dame well regarded coming off a successful stint as the head coach at Penn State. There is also some familiarity here, as he hired former UVA assistant coach Kyle Getter to be his associate head coach.
Coming into the contest, Notre Dame is 5-7 overall and 0-1 in ACC play.
For Starters
The Irish have nine players who average double digit minutes, with only three upperclassmen in that rotation. Being so young, they are a team that is still trying to settle into who they are. They have used multiple different starting lineup combinations so far. In their last contest, they lined up as follows:
Guard - Markus Burton (5’11” Freshman) Averages 16 points, 3.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game
Guard - J.R. Konieczny (6’7” Junior) Averages 9.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game
Forward - Tae Davis (6’9” Sophomore) Averages 8.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game
Forward - Kebba Njie (6’10” Sophomore) Averages 3.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game
Forward - Carey Booth (6’10” Freshman) Averages 6.4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game
Absent from their last two contests was Julian Roper II, a 6’4” Junior. Roper averages 8.9 points and 5.2 rebounds and is Notre Dame’s best three-point shooter. His status for Saturday is uncertain.
While their record hasn’t been what they probably hoped for, the Irish play tough and have been solid on the defensive end. They rate at 111th defensively, but have a top 65 defense over their last ten games.
For Virginia
For our Cavaliers, this contest offers a good challenge as the first conference road game and start of full on conference play. The Cavaliers will look to continue to build on the success of the non-conference schedule while also picking up an always important road victory.
In the game, watch for second-year guard Andrew Rohde to continue to establish himself, particularly within the offense. Coming off the exam break, it was revealed that he had missed more than a week of time with an ankle issue. His play dipped in the two contests immediately following the break. Against Morgan State, however, he showed more of the promise from earlier this season as he stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Rohde's ability to not only score but also initiate the offense while playing sound defense is why the coaching staff made him a top priority in the portal and should continue to serve him well.
Isaac Mckneely will be another player to watch. The two games after break were also rough for him, as he went a combined 2-11 from three and then didn’t hit one until the second half of the Morgan State game. Despite this, Isaac is still hitting a blistering 48.3% from three on the season. He’s just too good of a shooter for this slump to hang around forever. Watch for him to try and get going again.
This should also be a game in which Coach Bennett is able to extend the bench a little as we continue to search for a settled rotation. Before the exam break, it felt as though things were beginning to come into place. But following two lackluster showings, we saw an extended bench run in the first half against Morgan State. Third-year Taine Murray was the first sub into the contest and played 16 minutes. Graduate Jordan Minor also subbed in early, matching his season-high of 12 minutes played. A serviceable Minor would go a long way towards shoring up a thin frontcourt for the Hoos. Look for both players to try and build on their recent successes as they work to secure a spot in the lineup.
Next Up
Following the Notre Dame game, the Hoos will be back in action at JPJ Wednesday (1/3) as they take on designated rival Louisville. This game will air on ESPN2 and tip at 7 pm EST. Follow along for all the best coverage on Locker Room Access!
(Featured Image Credit: Jose Drumheller/UVA Athletics)