5 things to know about the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Presented by UK Federal Credit Union

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1. Tough test at the point

We’ve all seen the clear point guard struggles to start the season for Kentucky, and the road doesn’t get any easier going up against Notre Dame this afternoon. The starting point guard for the Fighting Irish is junior Prentiss Hubb. Standing at 6’3″ and 175 pounds, the junior is probably the most talented offensive guard that the Cats have had to deal with so far this season. From last year’s team, Hubb was the third-leading scorer and the top assist man. Coming into this season, Hubb was the top returning scorer, and he’s been fantastic to start the year.

Through three games, Hubb is averaging 22.3 points and 5.3 assists per game, both are team highs. He’s also grabbing 5 rebounds and one steal per game. He does turn it over nearly four times per contest, but that is partially due to high minutes played being the primary ball-handler. Hubb can score in a variety of ways, but he does love the three-point shot. His 4.3 threes made per game ranks 9th in the country. 30 of Hubb’s 55 attempted field goals this season have come from three. He’s not going to shy away from any shot, so it will be extremely important for Kentucky to keep track of him on the perimeter when ball screens are set.

2. Isaiah Jackson’s first real test

Despite the overall team struggles to start the season, one of the lone bright spots has been the play of freshman Isiah Jackson. Today’s game against Notre Dame will be the first time that Jackson’s counterpart is one of the focal points of the opponent’s game plan. Junior forward Nate Laszewski measures in at 6’10” and 227 pounds, compared to Jackson’s 6’10 – 206lb frame. While Jackson has the clear advantage in the athleticism department, Laszewski’s offensive ability is much more refined, and the two are very different players holistically.

Laszewski is averaging 15 points, 9.7 rebounds, and one steal per game this season. He’s a true stretch-four at the college level, with the ability to score at all three levels, but a preference of playing on the perimeter. After shooting 31% from three last season, he’s made 6 of 8 to start this season. Laszewski really wants to attempt as many threes as possible, as 65% of his career field goal attempts have come from deep. His freshman year, he attempted just 59 twos, compared to 130 threes. He followed that with a sophomore season of 129 attempted threes, with just 66 attempted twos. Kentucky will need to watch all pick and pops as they can’t afford to lose him on the perimeter to help with the ball-handling guards. The problem for Kentucky in defending Laszewski, is that if he plays on the perimeter with Jackson staying tight, then that means the Cats’ best rim protector is being taken out of the game.

3. Three-point shooting

Like a lot of college basketball teams have tried to do in recent years, Notre Dame is a team that loves to take and make the three-ball. The Fighting Irish make 44.1% of their attempted threes, which makes them the 13th best shooting team in the country through the first few weeks of the season. The Irish take 23 threes per game this season, which isn’t a crazy amount, but they are making an average of 10 of them per game, which is in the top-30 for teams across the country. What that tells me is that Notre Dame is taking quality threes rather than just sheer quantity.

Four players for Notre Dame are taking the bulk of the three-point attempts. Prentiss Hubb takes 10 threes per game, hitting more than four of them on average. Nate Laszewski has hit six of his eight attempted threes this season, after being an average outside shooter last season. Dane Goodwin has made 3 of 10 threes on the season, and Cormac Ryan has hit over 41% of his 17 attempted threes this year. Only one other player on the team has even attempted a three and there is only one three-pointer made in total over the rest of the roster.

4. Turnover remedy

The most obvious issue for the Kentucky Wildcats in each of their three losses this season has been the inability to take care of the basketball. A mountain of turnovers has piled up, making staying in a game nearly impossible. Even when the defense is taking care of business on the other end of the floor, turning it over so often doesn’t allow the offense to go on any runs themselves. Luckily for Kentucky, through their first three games, Notre Dame hasn’t forced a ton of turnovers.

The Fighting Irish have forced just nine turnovers per game so far this season, which ranks 303rd out of 308 Division I teams across the country. On the flip side, Kentucky has averaged 18.2 turnovers committed per game this year, which would put them 283rd in the nation. A team that turns it over a ton facing off against a team that rarely forces turnovers. Something’s gotta give this afternoon. I think Kentucky probably experiments with having the ball in some other players’ hands this afternoon, with Devin Askew maybe taking a backseat on the primary ball-handling responsibilities. Whether it be Davion Mintz, Terrence Clarke, or BJ Boston, someone has to step up and take control of the offense as a leader. It might not be today, but someone will take a step forward at some point. Let’s just hope for sooner, rather than later.

5. Short bench

Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish squad works just a six to seven man rotation. One of their bench players, Nikola Djogo hasn’t played since the first game of the season with an ankle issue, which has caused Brey to shorten the bench to just two players. Four of the starting five players play at least 36 of the 40 minutes per game. Starting point guard, Prentiss Hubb, plays 38 minutes per game, while the other two guards in the lineup, Dane Goodwin and Cormac Ryan, play 38 and 37 minutes per game respectively. Stretch-four, Nate Laszewski matches Hubb’s 38 minutes per contest, which leaves the only starter that really subs out as starting center Juwan Durham.

If Djogo is unable to play for a third consecutive game, look for the only players brought off the bench to be Tony Sanders Jr and Matt Zona. With a bench this short, it is imperative that Kentucky attacks the defense and forces the issue. While Notre Dame does do a good job of defending without fouling typically, that needs to be a trend that stops with the Cats this afternoon. If the Cats can force Brey’s hand and get deeper into the Fighting Irish bench, there’s a definite advantage to be had there.

Go Cats. Beat Fighting Irish.

@BrettBibbinsKSR