BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: NOTRE DAME @ VILLANOVA

January 26, 2008



You have to believe that Jay Wright's Villanova Wildcats will be breathing a little fire on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats looked like a team on the rise after wins over DePaul and a road win at Syracuse the week before, but a resounding loss at previously winless (in Big East action) Rutgers pulled the rug out from beneath of the Wildcats.

Notre Dame is a team that is facing similar questions. The Irish have been unbeatable at home and have league home wins over West Virginia, Connecticut and Cincinnati already this season, but the road has been a different story. The Irish have lost by 26 at Marquette and 19 at Georgetown (it was not really even that close). Those two games (and it is January 25) are the only two true-road games the Irish have played all season. They have also lost to Georgia Tech and Baylor on neutral floors, but have a victory at Madison Square Garden over Kansas State to their credit.

On their home floor, this game is a near 'must-win' for Villanova and it will not be easy. The Irish feature bruising big man Luke Harangody in the middle and Villanova is unlikely to have anyone available (Casseim Drummond is injured) to combat his size and physical nature. Villanova will counter with quickness and effort from Antonio Pena and dante Cunningham, but neither is a vital cog in an offensive system that is predicated on guard play.

Luckily for Villanova, their guard play is strong and led by starters Scottie Reynolds and Corey Fisher, along with Malcolm Grant and Reggie Redding off the bench. Reynolds struggled with his shot (5-19) in the loss to Rutgers and will have to rebound on Saturday. Malcolm Grant is a new generation 'microwave' and he heated up quickly against Rutgers, scoring 23 points in just 18 minutes before fouling out. Grant seems to be a last gasp option and he has rescued them before, they need to find a way to get him, Reynolds and Fisher to effectively score together.

The Irish have been contemplating some potential line-up changes to give Mike Brey' sclub a little better from the start of the game. The two most likely candidates because of their subpar games on the road seeem to be Tory Jackson and Ryan Ayers. I find it hard to believe either would start the game on the bench as Jackson will be needed against the Villanova pressure defense and Ayers is from the Philadelhia area and they really need his confidence to be intact.

Rob Kurz is also making a return trip to his home area, so the Irish will put forth a strong effort. The will likely attempt to see how far Harangody can carry them, in games like West Virginia and Cincinnati, they found out he could carry them a long way. However, the road has been a different story for the Irish and even a big game from Harangody will be tough to equate into a victory.

NBE Blogger Prediction: Villanova 77 Notre Dame 74