BIG EAST GAME PREVIEW: NOTRE DAME @ CONNECTICUT

February 28, 2009


Following a seven-game losing streak, Notre Dame has made things interesting by coming back to win four of their last five games, moving to 7-8 in the conference. However, climbing to that magical benchmark of .500 in the Big East is a tall order on Saturday as the Irish have to travel to Storrs to take on UConn on Senior Day.

The Huskies will be honoring their senior basketball program members, including AJ Price, Jeff Adrien and Craig Austrie. The energy and emotion of the day will have Gampel Pavilion abuzz from the get-go, making it a tough atmosphere for any visitor.

Earlier this season UConn defeated the Irish 69-61 at the Joyce Center in the game that ended the record-setting Irish home win streak. While there might be an element of revenge at work for Notre Dame, the Irish do not match-up well against the Huskies.

Neither team has much depth and the presence of 7’3 Hasheem Thabeet and the powerful Adrien will make things very tough for Luke Harangody, the reigning Big East Player of the Year, who is a walking double-double for the Irish. While Harangody is likely to still register his normal 25 points and 14 rebounds, expect it to be an extremely hard-earned stat-line. Even during the seven-game losing streak, Harangody continued to put up big numbers, but the efficiency of his output dropped significantly. Much of that was due to the lack of support from the players around him.

While Ryan Ayers and Kyle McAlarney have picked up their games in the recent weeks as the Irish have returned to winning ways, they will have to do so on Saturday against once of the stingiest defensive teams in the nation. With the perimeter in lock-down mode and Thabeet inside, the high-powered Irish offense will likely be tested like no other time this year.

With the loss of Jerome Dyson, UConn is definitely a more vulnerable team as they will miss Dyson’s ability to break down defenses and his own defensive abilities. However, one very uplifting development from their recent win at Marquette was the 19-point, 10-rebound performance of Stanley Robinson. Finding offense from Robinson, which has been sorely missed this season, could go a long way to helping the Huskies recover some of the punch lost with Dyson’s injury.

Saturday is likely to be a very emotional day for UConn point guard AJ Price who has been through a tremendous amounts of highs and lows in his five years as a member of the UConn program. Wednesday night was among one of the highest highs as Price poured in a career-high 36 points in a win over Marquette and helping Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun to his 800th career win. Now on Senior Day, the coach and his seniors can be honored together for their accomplishments and are likely to go out in style.

NBE Blogger Prediction:

Connecticut 84
Notre Dame 69

UConn-Notre Dame Preview Capsule (Norwich Bulletin)
Seniors Still Working on UConn Legacy (Hartford Courant)
Poor Record Could Hurt Luke Harangody's Player of the Year Hopes (Chicago Tribune)