Tag: North Carolina

Notre Dame 15 Years Tournament: No. 7 Seed – 2015-16 Irish

It seems odd that a team that made the Elite Eight would be seeded so low in our Notre Dame 15 Years Tournament.

It seems odd that a team that made the Elite Eight would be seeded so low in our Notre Dame 15 Years Tournament, but that goes to show this team wasn’t expected to repeat what it did the year before. Yet somehow, it happened. The 2015-16 Irish finished the season 24-12. You never would have thought this team got on a roll when it counted the most.

The Irish never had a winning streak longer than four games, which resulted in an 11-7 ACC record. The highlight of the regular season was an 80-76 win over No. 2 North Carolina in South Bend, so at 16-7, all they had to do after that was tread water, and they’d make the NCAA tournament. They did just that, even securing a second-round bye in the conference tourney. What followed was a March Madness no one could have expected.

As a No. 6 seed, the Irish got to play 11th-seeded Michigan in the first round and needed a second-half comeback to earn a seven-point win. Against 14th-seeded Stephen F. Austin, they nearly fell a team threatening to make a deep Cinderella run but for Rex Pflueger’s thrilling last-second tip-in that gave them a one-point victory. They defeated Wisconsin by five in the Sweet Sixteen before the Tar Heels got their revenge from earlier in the season by dealing the Irish a 14-point loss. Having gotten that far, there was nothing to be ashamed of.

All five of Notre Dame’s regular starters finished with scoring averages in double digits, paced by 15.8 points a game from Demetrius Jackson, who also led the Irish with 4.7 assists a game. Zach Auguste averaged a double-double with 14.0 points and 10.7 rebounds a game. Rounding out the high scorers were V.J. Beachem (12.0), Steve Vasturia (11.4) and Bonzie Colson (11.1).

Scouts and analysts are split on Cole …

Scouts and analysts are split on Cole Anthony, North Carolina’s stud freshman point guard, who has yet to announce his intentions to return to school or go pro. Some forecast that Anthony will fall into the low teens in the NBA draft, if he does forego his final three years of college eligibility. Others believe the son of former NBA point guard Greg Anthony, who will turn 20 on May 15, will be a top-five pick or possibly will fall to his hometown Knicks at No. 6. Projections are across the board for the Upper West Side native who has been in the public eye since starting as a freshman at Catholic school Archbishop Molloy in Queens. “I’ve gotten the complete spectrum,” former NBA point guard and ACC Network analyst Cory Alexander, who coached Anthony for one year as an assistant at powerhouse Oak Hill Academy, said in a phone interview. “Some people love him, and some people would not want him on their team for whatever reason.”

Two NBA scouts offered differing …

Two NBA scouts offered differing opinions. One scout said he sees Anthony as more of a scorer than a point guard and someone who needs the ball in his hands. ESPN draft analyst Fran Fraschilla had a similar viewpoint, raving about Anthony’s athleticism and star potential, but worrying about his inefficiency for a player drafted in the top five or six. “I just don’t think he wins you games,” the scout said.

What Notre Dame is Getting in Newest Commitment, Wertz

As a sophomore last season at Santa Clara, Wertz averaged 11.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.  In his freshman year Wertz earned All-Freshman Team conference honors in the West Coast Conference.

Notre Dame basketball has it’s latest commitment as transfer guard from Santa Clara Trey Wertz chose Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish basketball program on Saturday afternoon.

Wertz chose Notre Dame over finalists Arizona, Butler and North Carolina with Carolina being the only campus he had ever stepped foot on, making a visit his sophomore year of high school.

What is Notre Dame Getting in Trey Wertz?

Wertz was a two-time all-state selection in high school at Providence Day School in Charlotte, North Carolina.  At the time of his recruitment he was a as a three-star talent and chose Santa Clara over the likes of Georgetown, Stanford, Virginia Tech and others.

As a sophomore last season at Santa Clara, Wertz averaged 11.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.  Wertz earned All-Freshman Team conference honors in the West Coast Conference two seasons ago.

Quick Scouting Report:

This from Jeff Goodman of Stadium, who ranks Wertz as the eighth best player in the transfer portal this off-season.

Trey Wertz, 6-5, 185, G, Soph., Santa Clara
2019-20 Stats: 11.9 ppg
Scout’s take: “Big, smooth guard who gets to his spots well. Great pace and when you let him do that, he’s as good as anybody. When you get up in him and speed him up, he’s a different player.”
Schools: North Carolina, Arizona, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Virginia, Butler

Notre Dame Makes Final Four for Wertz, Decision Saturday

Wertz, who averaged 11.9 points, 3.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore at Santa Clara last year has cut his list of potential schools down to four and Notre Dame is one of the remaining choices.

Notre Dame has only made one Final Four in men’s basketball history but it did make the final four of schools for transfer guard Trey Wertz.

Wertz, who averaged 11.9 points, 3.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore at Santa Clara last year has cut his list of potential schools down to four and Notre Dame is one of the remaining choices.

Arizona, Butler and North Carolina also remain on his list.  Carolina is the only of those four schools he has previously visited, doing so back in his sophomore year of high school.

Wertz is set to announce his decision at 3:00 p.m. ET Saturday.  We’ll have the news for you once it goes down either good or bad.

Watch: Julius Peppers narrates Panthers’ inspirational video for Carolinas

Julius Peppers is one of the greatest athletes to ever come out of the Carolinas.

Julius Peppers is one of the greatest athletes to ever come out of the Carolinas. He also has a tremendous amount of character and always carried himself the right way during his time with the Panthers, Bears and Packers. It’s only appropriate that he should be the soft-spoken voice of inspiration during a time like this admist so much suffering and uncertainty.

This morning, the team shared a video on social media about the region coming back once this pandemic is over with Peppers narrating.

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Where Notre Dame Stands in Will Shipley’s Latest Outlook

Notre Dame is going head-to-head with Clemson for the services of running back Will Shipley. What do the Irish have going for them and where do they have to make up ground against powerhouse Clemson?

Notre Dame was supposed to have their biggest recruiting weekend of the off-season in the middle of March but corona-virus changed those plans as the NCAA suspended all recruiting visits.  Now Notre Dame appears headed to trying to make that weekend up in June, dependent on recruiting visits being OK’d by then.

Will Shipley is the biggest remaining target for not just Notre Dame but a few other teams who would love to get his commitment.  We’ve told you about the relationship Shipley shares with Notre Dame commitment Blake Fisher, who also plans to be in attendance in June.

Where does Notre Dame currently stand in the running for Shipley? According to Rivals the Fighting Irish are in a very good but not great spot.

They rank Clemson first as Shipley’s likely landing spot as of now with Notre Dame second.  They say of Notre Dame’s chances:

The Fighting Irish seemed to have some momentum with Shipley prior to the recruiting dead period, and expectations going into his previously planned visit were high. That visit obviously hasn’t happened, but that won’t stop Notre Dame from leaning on Shipley.

The Irish’s biggest weapon in the pursuit of Shipley is running backs coach Lance Taylor and his track record of developing outstanding running backs such as Christian McCaffrey and Bryce Love. Shipley looks up to McCaffrey, and the two talk fairly often. Turning out to be a back like McCaffrey is a dream of Shipley’s.

It seems like Notre Dame remains in really good shape here, assuming they can get Shipley on campus.  He clearly has a strong relationship with Taylor as evidenced by Taylor’s regular visits to North Carolina over the winter.  It’s just hard to imagine him making a commitment to Notre Dame if he can’t get back to campus for one of these massive visit weekends.

Following Clemson and Notre Dame in the Rivals projections for Shipley were North Carolina and North Carolina State.  Check out the entire piece for a deeper look at what each program has going both for and against them in the running for this star running back.

Texas offers North Carolina quarterback from the 2023 class

The Texas Longhorns have offered Tad Hudson a 2023 pro style quarterback from North Carolina.

The Texas Longhorns are looking to get an early jump on the 2023 recruiting class with their latest offer. Tom Herman and company recently offered 2023 quarterback from North Carolina, Tad Hudson.

Continue reading “Texas offers North Carolina quarterback from the 2023 class”

Santa Clara Transfer Trey Wertz Has Notre Dame on List

While it improved from an injury-riddled 2018-19 season, it’s unlikely Notre Dame would have made the 2020 NCAA tournament as aN at-large.

While it improved from an injury-riddled 2018-19 season, it’s unlikely Notre Dame would have made the 2020 NCAA tournament as an at-large team had it taken place. The Irish will take help however they can, and if a Monday report from 247Sports is any indication, help might come in a couple of years.

Santa Clara guard Trey Wertz has listed Notre Dame as one of 11 schools on his short list of schools he would like to transfer to. The Irish made the cut from an initial round of over 40 schools. They’ll have to battle it out with ACC rivals Virginia, North Carolina and NC State for Wertz’s services. Rounding out the list of finalists are Ohio State, Butler, Oklahoma, Arizona, Stanford, Vanderbilt, and Xavier.

Wertz averaged 11.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists a game this past season while shooting 40.0 percent from 3-point range. It was a slight dip from the year before, in which he averaged 12.2 points and 4.7 assists a game and made the WCC All-Freshman Team.

The COVID-19 pandemic will make it difficult for Wertz to make visits, so it’s likely Notre Dame will have to rely on reputation alone to win him over. The inability for recruits to make visits during this crisis has hampered the entire athletic program, though the same could be said for other schools, too. If there’s one thing Notre Dame has going for it in this case, it’s that the university is closer to Wertz’s hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina. Hey, anything is worth a shot to gain an advantage in this race.

Badger moments: 2015 Sweet 16 win over North Carolina

The Badgers conquer Carolina

The last game the Wisconsin Badgers played in the 2014 NCAA Tournament was their Final Four national semifinal against Kentucky. Wisconsin was seeded several notches higher than Kentucky, but the Wildcats were a blue-blood, and blue-bloods have a way of carrying themselves in big moments. Kentucky might have been a No. 8 seed at that tournament, but in the Final Four, the Cats were a newly confident team. They had overcome the problems which dogged them during the regular season. Kentucky played like a No. 2 seed, so when the Wildcats met the second-seeded Badgers, it felt like a battle of equals, as opposed to a game in which one team was several leagues better than the other.

Kentucky was a good team to play in the 2014 regular season, but not in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats came alive and played like an elite team. Wisconsin engaged UK in a superb Final Four game, but the Wildcats hit the last and biggest shot to advance to the national championship game.

With this memory in mind, Wisconsin entered the 2015 Sweet 16 against a lower-seeded blue-blood, the North Carolina Tar Heels. North Carolina had a decent but hardly spectacular regular season. The Tar Heels were a No. 4 seed, which is not what North Carolina coaches, players, or fans expect. Carolina was emerging from a brutal two-year period in which nothing went right for the program and people wondered if Roy Williams had lost his fastball.

North Carolina came into that Sweet 16 game as a diminished version of itself, but in one game, one moment, the Tar Heels had a chance to reinvent themselves, much as Kentucky did in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

Midway through the second half, Carolina’s revival effort was in very good shape.

The Tar Heels led Wisconsin, 53-46. The Badgers, as a No. 1 seed for the first time in the school’s NCAA Tournament history, had to once again respond to adversity. The good news was that Wisconsin faced this kind of adversity against Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament final, a week and a half earlier. The bad news was that continuing to tempt fate the way the Badgers did in March of 2015 can lead to ultimate ruin and heartbreak.

Once again, the 2015 Badgers refused to accept a lesser fate. They reeled off a 19-7 run with a slightly injured Frank Kaminsky (he had been hit by a Carolina player) on the bench. Zak Showalter steadied the team. Sam Dekker scored 23 points. The Badgers rallied around themselves — and rallied against North Carolina — to defeat the Tar Heels, 79-72, in Los Angeles.

Wisconsin took a blue-blood’s best punch and punched back. The 2015 Badgers were enormously skilled, but their skill was matched by their resilience and competitive greatness. That’s why they went to the national championship game — the resolve, not the talent.

The roadsides of history are littered with broken dreams from talented teams which didn’t know how to fight when the going got tough. The Badgers had smooth, velvet-glove skill, but they also had rugged iron-fist determination. That latter quality helped them past North Carolina and back to the Elite Eight for a second straight season in 2015.