By: Shane McCarthy
A first round exit in the NCAA Tournament was not
the plan after such a successful season in the Big East last year. This year, expectations are running high as
the Irish return all five starters.
Taking the next step is not only possible, but expected.
Who’s Back:
Eric Atkins –G– Junior – 37.9
Min, 12.1 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 4.1 apg
Jerian Grant –G– Junior –
36.2 Min, 12.3 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 5.0 apg
Scott Martin –G– Senior –
34.7 Min, 9.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 1.7 apg
Jack Cooley –F– Senior – 28.7
Min, 12.5 ppg, 8.9 rpg, 0.8 apg
Pat Connaughton –G/F– Soph –
24.1 Min, 7.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 0.9 apg
Tom Knight –F– Senior – 8.9
Min, 2.9 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.5 apg
Mike Broghammer –F– Senior –
5.3 Min, 1.7 ppg, 1.4 rpg, 0.3 apg
Incoming
Recruits:
Cameron Biedscheid – [Small
Forward] – 6 foot 7, 174
ESPN’s 64th ranked player and 15th ranked Small
Forward
Rivals.com’s 28th ranked player and 8th ranked
Small Forward
Zach Auguste – [Power Forward]
– 6 foot 10, 220
ESPN’s 25th ranked Power Forward
Rivals.com’s 97th ranked player and 23rd ranked
Power Forward
Austin Burgett – [Power
Forward] – 6 foot 9, 220
ESPN’s 41st ranked Power Forward
Who’s
Out: Tim Abromaitis, Alex
Dragicevich
Overview:
The outlook is simple for Notre Dame as they enter the 2012-13
season: they return all five starters from a team that went 13-5 in conference
last year; so naturally, expectations are high. Coach Brey knows this team has the make-up to
contend for the Big East regular season title, the Big East Tournament
championship, and make a deep run in March. That doesn’t mean anything short of this
success is a failure, it’s just that the potential is there for such lofty
expectations.
Notre Dame not only has one of the
best back courts in the Big East, but they have one of the best back courts in
the country with Eric Atkins and Jerian Grant. Both are juniors, who not only bring veteran
leadership and experience to this team, but a drive to be two of the best
guards in the country. It really is a
scary thought to think these two will be even better than last year, but that
is their goal. You can’t ask for better
leadership than what these two bring to the table.
It’s also a scary thought to think
that Jack Cooley did not take the game of basketball seriously until last year.
He received Most Improved Player of the
Year accolades in the Big East and quickly became one of the most dominant big
men in the league. Anything less than
last year’s performance would be a disappointment, but there is reason to
believe that he could be even better.
Pat Connaughton returns to resume
his guard/forward role and all-around contributor, but he specializes in
dropping treys.
Scott Martin also returns after
being granted a sixth year of eligibility. His numbers don’t jump out at you, but he is
the type of player that coaches say his intangibles are needed for the team to
succeed.
The Irish also welcome two highly
touted recruits, Cameron Biedscheid and Zach Auguste, to provide valuable depth
in the back court and front court respectively.
We know what the Irish were last year. And it’s perfectly reasonable to
expect improvements given the consistency of the roster. But if there is an even more bullish spin to
put on this year’s squad, it is due to the addition of the two mentioned
freshmen.
In college basketball, it goes
without saying that talent is important, but consistency and depth are
invaluable. Notre Dame returns all five
starters and bring in fresh talent to push the vets and provide a relentless
attack night after night. It has been
since 2003 since the Irish have made it to the second weekend of the NCAA
Tournament and they have never won the Big East regular season or tournament. Louisville was chosen unanimously for first place
in the Preseason Coaches’ Poll, but Rick Pitino’s vote (which couldn’t be for
his own team) went to Notre Dame. Needless
to say, expectations are high for the Irish this year, and everything seems to
be in place for a big season.
Twitter: @shane_t_mac
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