Tag: Blake Wesley

Aggregate NBA mock draft 3.0: Jabari Smith leaps ahead of Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren for No. 1

The best prospects in the world are all competing for the top spot in the 2022 NBA draft and it is hard to sort how everyone is stacking up.

In order to help us get a better sense of where all of the projected top prospects in the class stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from Draft Express (ESPN), Aran Smith (NBADraft.net), Sam Vecenie (The Athletic), Jonathan Wasserman (Bleacher Report), Jeremy Woo (Sports Illustrated), Krysten Peek (Yahoo), Matt Babcock (Basketball News) as well as USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score in order to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion. Predictions for a first overall pick earned a player 58 points while the second overall pick earned 57 points, the third overall earned 56 points, and so on.

Johnny Davis (Wisconsin), Jeremy Sochan (Baylor), Harrison Ingram (Stanford), EJ Liddell (Ohio State), Wendell Moore (Duke), Blake Wesley (Notre Dame), and Walker Kessler (Auburn) have improved their draft stock the most since our most recent update last month.

The most notable prospects making their debut on our rankings are Tari Eason (LSU), Aminu Mohammed (Georgetown), Dereon Seabron (NC State), Christian Braun (Kansas), Trevion Williams (Purdue) and Orlando Robinson (Fresno State).

Some of the top prospects who were not included in any of these most recent mock drafts include Matthew Cleveland (Florida State), Azuolas Tubelis (Arizona), Max Abmas (Oral Roberts), Kofi Cockburn (Illinois), Alex Fudge (LSU), Buddy Boeheim (Syracuse), Josh Minott (Memphis) and Kadary Richmond (Seton Hall).

Otherwise, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

Notre Dame dominates Clemson to extend winning streak to six

That was a whooping.

We don’t know what position Notre Dame will be in come Selection Sunday in two months. What we do know is this team is rolling, and there are games that seem much easier than others. Wednesday was one of those games as Clemson never had a chance in a 72-56 Irish victory at Purcell Pavilion.

The Irish (10-5, 4-1) got off to a fast start and never looked back in their sixth straight win. Once the lead was extended to double digits with nine minutes left in the first half, that’s where it stayed. The second half was a mere formality as the Tigers (10-6, 2-3) were too far behind to make any serious comeback attempt. It was such a dominant effort that Mike Brey, whose effort to draw students to this game appeared to have paid off, decided to sub in several end-of-bench guys for the final minute.

Dane Goodwin scored 21 points for the second time this season on 8-of-10 shooting to lead all scorers. Blake Wesley added 20, meaning he has scored at least that many points in back-to-back games. Not since Chris Thomas in 2002 have the Irish had a freshman accomplish that. Nate Laszewski had eight points to go with a game-high eight rebounds.

Notre Dame to meet Clemson in battle of hot teams

The Irish will try to tame the Tigers.

In a season many are considering a down one for the ACC, two programs trying to stand tall are about to meet in South Bend. Notre Dame (9-5, 3-1), which has won six of its past seven games, will host a Clemson (10-5, 2-2) team that has achieved five victories in its previous six contests. Whoever loses this matchup could have its momentum derailed, and that’s the last thing anyone in this conference needs this season.

As they have several times this season, the Irish will turn to phenom Blake Wesley, who was just named ACC Freshman of the Week for the second time. At an even 200 points, he’s the first true Irish freshman to achieve that feat since Chris Thomas during the 2001-02 season. While the Irish have a projected lottery pick in this year’s NBA draft, the Tigers don’t have anyone ready to make the jump to basketball’s highest level. In this and many other games for the rest of the this season, that could prove to be a crucial advantage.

Notre Dame survives late scare against North Carolina

Probably shouldn’t have been that close.

It’s true that many experts are down on the ACC this year. That doesn’t make Notre Dame want to beat the top teams in the conference any less, especially a program like North Carolina. The Irish had the Tar Heels on the ropes for much of the second half of their conference home opener and nearly let it slip away. Instead, they gladly will take their 78-73 victory.

The Irish (8-5, 2-1) extended a four-point halftime lead to as much as 13 in the second half. The Tar Heels (10-4, 2-1) slowly crawled back until they found themselves up by one with less than three-and-a-half minutes to go. The Irish finished the game on a 12-6 run, but some questionable decisions with the ball during that stretch allowed the Tar Heels to stick around longer than they probably should have. Mike Brey will be sure to remind his team that it might not be so lucky next time.

Nate Laszewski scored most of his Irish-leading 20 points on 6-of-7 shooting from 3-point range and also had a team-high eight rebounds. Blake Wesley shot 8 of 18 from the field for 18 points, and Dane Goodwin scored 17 by shooting 7 of 11. Cormac Ryan added 11 points, and Prentiss Hubb dished out a game-high six assists.

Prentiss Hubb rescues Notre Dame against Pittsburgh

That was too close.

Notre Dame will need to have a better showing against ACC competition than it had in its first game with Pittsburgh. The Irish came dangerously close to dropping this road contest against the only team in the conference with a record below .500. In the end, Prentiss Hubb’s go-ahead shot with 5.6 seconds left gave the Irish a 68-67 victory.

After the Irish (7-5, 1-1) found themselves in a 30-all tie at halftime, a 6-0 run by the Panthers (5-8, 0-2) looked like it would be enough of a catalyst to spark the hosts to a win as the Irish struggled with their shooting. Instead, an 8-0 Irish run later in the second half tied it back up, and they held a slim lead going into the final minute.

Femi Odukale scored on a layup and foul with 33 seconds remaining to put the Panthers back up. After he missed the ensuing free throw, Dane Goodwin got the rebound to begin the possession that ended with Hubb’s heroics. After taking a timeout, Jamarius Burton got a layup opportunity but missed it. The cliche that the Irish had escaped by the skin of their teeth definitely applied here.

Paul Atkinson Jr. led the Irish with 16 points, making all eight free throws, before fouling out late. Hubb was just behind with 15. Blake Wesley scored 12, and Dane Goodwin added 11, nine of which came on 3-pointers.

It was quite the maddening game to wrap up 2021. Now, the Irish will get Duke on New Year’s Day. A lot of improvement will be needed fast to pull off the upset. Do they have enough time to pull it off though?

Notre Dame’s real ACC season begins against Pittsburgh

Let the conference schedule tip off.

A 6-5 start, including a loss at Boston College, surely isn’t what Notre Dame had in mind. All it can do now is look forward to the rest of the schedule, which will have ACC opponents in all but one game. Fortunately, the Irish get to kick this slate off against Pittsburgh, the only conference program with a record below .500 (5-7). On the flip side, although these teams play each other twice this season, an Irish sweep is unlikely to boost their NCAA Tournament resume.

If the Irish win this game, they will have beaten the Panthers for the fifth time in their past seven trips to the Petersen Events Center. To do it, they will have to continue to rely on the overall offensive game from Dane Goodwin, the emergence of freshman phenom Blake Wesley and the shooting of Paul Atkinson Jr. At the same time, it would be helpful to get other key contributions from Mike Brey’s short rotation.

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Notre Dame has to battle to beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

The Irish got a battle some probably didn’t expect.

Notre Dame needed more than the effort it might have thought it needed to beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The matinee, which served as the final game before ACC play begins in earnest, could have spelled disaster if the Irish hadn’t realized what they were up against before it was too late. Instead, they’ll be happy to go into the holidays with an 83-73 win.

With a Trey Wertz injury shortening Mike Brey’s rotation to six players, the Irish (6-5) initially looked like they were on their way to giving the Islanders (10-3) a highlight of their season. They trailed by as much as nine in the first half, and a victory still was uncertain even as they battled back to take a five-point halftime lead.

Though the Islanders never regained the lead in the second half, they only had a two-point deficit with 6:45 to go. It took a 13-4 Irish run after that to finally put this game on ice.

Five of the Irish’s six players scored in double figures. Dane Goodwin led his team in scoring again with a game-high 21 points, including five 3-pointers. Blake Wesley scored 15 and tripled his previous assists high by recording nine. The Irish got 14 points apiece from Paul Atkinson Jr. and Cormac Ryan. Prentiss Hubb rounded out the double-digit scoring with 11.

The Irish also shot 13 of 14 from the free-throw line.

Mike Brey speaks after Notre Dame loses to Indiana

It took a lot of trouble to get this post up.

INDIANAPOLIS — Full disclosure: This was not an easy post to make after Notre Dame’s loss to Indiana. This being my first time at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, it was difficult to find the interview room, especially since I was the last one to leave my courtside seat. That being the case, I only caught the final few answers of Mike Brey’s postgame’s news conference. Still, I hope I was were able to capture a few quotes that Irish fans will find meaningful.

On top of that, my laptop never recognized the arena’s Wi-Fi for some reason, so I was connected to an Ethernet cable that happened to be at my spot during the game. No one in the media room afterward was able to find one for me, rendering any remaining work on site unattainable. The only way I could get this particular post up was to walk to a Starbucks half a mile away.

Such is the life of a journalist. You live, learn and ultimately come away from certain experiences better than you were before. Still, I wouldn’t trade this day for anything. Hopefully, I will have a better sense of timing and direction next time along with a Wi-Fi network my laptop will recognize.

One more Notre Dame Crossroads Classic loss for the road

The Irish won’t miss this event at all.

INDIANAPOLIS — Notre Dame’s decision to back out of the Crossroads Classic led to the event’s demise. Given its history in the event, it probably won’t missed in South Bend. Indiana dealt the Irish one more bad memory by beating them, 64-56, to give the program a final event record of 4-7.

During the second half, the Irish (4-5) erased a 10-point Hoosiers (9-2) lead with an 11-1 run, tying the game at 46 with over eight minutes to go. That was as good as it got for the rest of the game as the Hoosiers went on an 8-0 run that came too late for the Irish to overcome. Soon after, a two-handed dunk by future NBA player Trayce Jackson-Davis served as the final dagger and whipped the heavy Hoosiers contingent at Gainbridge Fieldhouse into a frenzy.

Appropriately, Jackson-Davis was the most productive Hoosier with 17 points and 12 rebounds, completing a double-double. Parker Stewart had 12 points, most of which came on three 3-pointers. Xavier Johnson scored 11 despite shooting only 3 of 11 from the field and committing four turnovers. Race Thompson also had 11.

Dane Goodwin, one of three active Irish players to play in the Crossroads Classic four times, was responsible for much of the Irish’s scoring with a team-high 15 points. Blake Wesley was just behind with 14 points, though he was compounded by 5-of-16 shooting from the field. Paul Atkinson Jr. had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds to go with four steals.

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Notre Dame vs. Indiana: First-Half Analysis

This game isn’t over by a long shot.

INDIANAPOLIS ⁠— Notre Dame might be tired of the Crossroads Classic, but it still showed up to play in the last one. With the jury still out on what type of team this is, some might have been a little surprised to see it play well against Indiana in the first half. Whatever the Irish are, they’ll be happy to have only a 30-27 deficit against the Hoosiers at halftime.

Shortly after the Irish fell behind, 8-7, with a little over five minutes gone, Paul Atkinson Jr. made a jumper to give his team a lead it would not relinquish until two-and-a-half minutes remained in the first half. A mostly decent display of offense (though it was both sloppy and nonexistent in the final minutes) and timely defense in which it forced several turnovers put the Irish in great position in front of a mostly pro-Hoosiers crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Barring a dramatic reversal in the second half, this will be far from a cakewalk, unlike the Purdue-Butler game that took place right before this one.

Blake Wesley is primed for another big game after leading the Irish with eight first-half points. Dane Goodwin isn’t far behind with seven, so the two players everyone is keeping their eye on have not disappointed so far. Atkinson has been superb on defense with five rebounds and three steals.