Tag: hoops

Photos of Blake Wesley’s season at Notre Dame

What was your favorite moment from Blake Wesley in his time at Notre Dame?

One-and-done isn’t a term that gets thrown around the Notre Dame basketball program very often but it did in regards to freshman [autotag]Blake Wesley[/autotag] who has officially declared for the [autotag]NBA draft[/autotag].  It remains to be seen if he will be a first round draft pick as he’d become Notre Dame’s first since 2016 to do so.

Wesley averaged 14.4 points per game for Notre Dame, twice scoring a career high 24 points in a single contest (at Illinois, at Wake Forest).  Before he gets his name called on NBA draft night take a look back at Wesley’s season at Notre Dame that saw the Irish reach the NCAA Tournament’s second round.

Notre Dame’s all-time NBA first round draft picks

It’s been a while since the Irish have had someone called in the NBA draft’s first round…

It hasn’t happened since NBA draft night in 2015 when Jerian Grant was taken in the top-20 by the New York Knicks but it could very well be changing in a matter of months.

Notre Dame freshman guard [autotag]Blake Wesley[/autotag] appears headed to the NBA draft after just one season with the Fighting Irish.  We can debate for hours if the move is the wisest for him but in doing so, he’ll likely become Notre Dame’s 21st former player to have his name called in the first round.

Who are some of the others?  Check out the list of every single Notre Dame basketball player to be selected in the NBA draft’s first round all-time below.

ESPNU to Honor Muffet McGraw on Monday

Either way, clearly a historic career by McGraw who finishes as one of the legends of women’s college basketball.  If you’re working from home Monday it’ll be a good day to have a few all-time classic Notre Dame and McGraw victories on in the background.

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Recently retired Muffet McGraw will get a day in her honor on ESPNU Monday as the channel will dedicate the day to some of her greatest accomplishments at Notre Dame.

Some all-time great moments in that slew of games but I feel like at least one of the time slots should be dedicated to the a game or two from 2000.  Knocking off number-one Connecticut or winning the national championship over Purdue in thrilling fashion, both of which were thrillers and originally aired on ESPN?

Either way, clearly a historic career by McGraw who finishes as one of the legends of women’s college basketball.  If you’re working from home Monday it’ll be a good day to have a few all-time classic Notre Dame and McGraw victories on in the background.

Notre Dame to hire Penn State’s Shrewsberry: What to like for Irish

Notre Dame gets their guy. Here’s what to like about the hiring…

Reports began to emerge on Tuesday that Notre Dame was zeroing in on Penn State‘s [autotag]Micah Shrewsberry[/autotag] as their target to be Mike Brey’s replacement as head basketball coach.  Wednesday afternoon reports arrived that Shrewsberry turned down Penn State’s offer to extend him (and likely give a significant raise) to instead take the Notre Dame job.

Shrewsberry only has two years as a head basketball coach at the Division I level but that doesn’t mean he’s not worth getting excited about if you’re a Notre Dame fan.  Here are a little more than a handful of reasons to like the hire for Notre Dame, even if he’s got his work cut out for him early on in South Bend.

College basketball: Front-runner emerging for Notre Dame?

Is he going to be Notre Dame’s next head basketball coach?

Is Notre Dame zeroing in on their next head basketball coach?  According to Jon Rothstein, Penn State‘s Micah Shrewsberry is getting more than just a little attention from Notre Dame.  Here is what Rothstein said about the Irish and Shrewsberry on Tuesday afternoon:

Sources: Penn State’s Micah Shrewsberry has emerged as a primary candidate for the head coaching vacancy at Notre Dame. Shrewsberry is also expected to receive a lucrative, long-term offer to remain with the Nittany Lions.

Shrewsberry and Penn State were just eliminated from the NCAA Tournament but not before they had a memorable March.  The Nittany Lions were the sweetheart of the Big Ten Tournament as they went from being the 10-seed to playing Purdue down to the wire in the championship game.  They went on to beat up Texas A&M in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to Texas.

Shrewsberry has been at Penn State just two seasons but saw quite the turnaround this year.  The Nittany Lions went from 14-17 a year ago to 23-14 and the NCAA Tournament’s second round this year.

Shrewsberry has plenty of connections to the state of Indiana.  He attended high school at Cathedral in Indianapolis before having coaching stints at Wabash, DePauw, Indiana University-South Bend, Butler, and Purdue while also spending six seasons with the Boston Celtics.

There isn’t news yet in terms of anything being inevitable but it would certainly appear that his name is the hottest in Notre Dame circles.  Stay tuned!

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Breaking: Notre Dame’s top player entering transfer portal

Notre Dame’s five-star recruit from a season ago is entering the transfer portal after one year with the Irish.

Yesterday our very own Geoffrey Clark wrote about how dark days are ahead for Notre Dame basketball.  A team with very little experience awaits whoever the next head coach will be and on Monday the task for that new head coach didn’t get any easier.

[autotag]J.J. Starling[/autotag], who just finished his freshman season, is entering the transfer portal. The combo guard was seen as a five-star talent and a top 25 player nationally in his recruiting class.  Starling started 24 games for the Irish this past season, averaging 11.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game.  With the key players being lost to graduation, it was assumed Starling would be the top returner for Notre Dame in 2023-24.

Instead, the rebuild that awaits the next head coach just got a bit more difficult.  Starling had offers from several powerhouse programs including Duke, Alabama, and Syracuse.

Notre Dame men’s basketball all-time roster: Fighting Irish legends

Touchdown Jesus? More like Three-Point Jesus.

Although it won’t soon be confused for being a basketball school, the University of Notre Dame has had quite the run of success over the years.  The Irish won’t earn a bid in this year’s NCAA tournament but their 37 trips there all-time are good enough to rank ninth all-time.  In fact, Notre Dame has appeared in the most NCAA tournament’s all-time without actually winning the national championship.

With that much success, there have obviously been star players for decades under the golden dome.  So when filling out a ten-man roster, who would make the cut for being on the all-time Notre Dame basketball team?

Here is who we came up with:

ACC down a team in latest USA TODAY Sports bracketology

How many teams will the ACC ultimately get in?

It wasn’t too long ago that the ACC was seen annually as the best and deepest conference in men’s college basketball.  Heck, only a year ago North Carolina ended Coach K’s career as they eliminated Duke in the Final Four.  This year has left a bit to be desired for the conference however and the latest NCAA Tournament projections from USA TODAY Sports reflect that.

Notre Dame certainly won’t be dancing as Irish fans know, but what about the rest of the ACC?

After North Carolina fell to North Carolina State this past weekend, the conference sees two fewer teams in the field of 68 than they did a week ago in USA TODAY Sports projection.  Below are where they have each ACC team projected to play in the latest bracketology as well as how the biggest bubble teams appear as well as who gets the tournament’s number one seeds.

Mike Brey’s 23 best players at Notre Dame

Who is your starting five?

After 23 seasons as Notre Dame’s head coach, Mike Brey hits the stretch run of his career under “Three-Point Jesus.” It will not end with a run into March as we sit in late January with the Irish having one ACC victory. Though not a storybook ending for Brey, it certainly was a storybook career.

It’s easy to get caught up in what’s going on this year and wonder about the big picture of Notre Dame basketball in the weeks and months to come.  Those questions will certainly remain for some time, but the struggle of 2022-23 isn’t representative of what Brey helped Notre Dame accomplish.

In honor of Brey’s 23 seasons at Notre Dame, I decided to put together a list of the best 23 players he coached with the Irish. Let me tell you, this was a task I thought was going to be much easier before I started writing it.

As we near the end of Year 23 for Mike Brey at Notre Dame, here are the 23 best players to play for him.

College basketball: 10 potential Mike Brey replacements

Who should replace Brey?

After the way the 2022-23 season has gone it wasn’t the most surprising news to hear that [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] would step down as Notre Dame’s head basketball coach at season’s end.  The Irish, who went to the NCAA Tournament 12 times in Brey’s first 17 seasons, have gone dancing just once since the 2017-18 year.

Brey mentioned in his press conference Friday that he’d be helping athletic director [autotag]Jack Swarbrick[/autotag] find the next head coach.  Will Brey and his boss have to go very far?  Will it be someone with Notre Dame roots?  Or could they get really creative in who they decide to pursue?

Here are ten names to look at as Notre Dame hits reset on their men’s basketball program.