Welcome to the 2016 ACC Tournament, Round 2! What a testament to the depth and talent in the conference. On the second day of Elite 8 games, the only four teams in play are all from the ACC: Virginia vs. Syracuse and North Carolina vs. Notre Dame. It’s highly possible that the Tar Heels could repeat the path they took in the semifinals and finals of the ACC Tournament. They play Notre Dame tonight (ACC Tournament semifinals) and, with a win, would most likely play Virginia (ACC Tournament final) in the Final Four next Saturday.
Elite Eight: Notre Dame
- 24-11 (11-7)
- 6th in ACC
- Stat Leaders
- Points: Demetrius Jackson – 15.5
- Assists: Demetrius Jackson – 4.7
- FG%: Zach Auguste – 55.9
- Rebounds: Zach Auguste – 10.9
- Steals: Demetrius Jackson – 1.2
- Blocks: Demetrius Jackson – 1.1
- Minutes: Steve Vasturia – 36.0
Previous 2015-16 ND / UNC Games
- February 6. UNC @ ND. Notre Dame won 80-76. UNC led by at many as 15 and 9 at the half. The Heels let off the accelerator in the 2nd half and lost by 4.
- March 11. ACC Tournament semifinal. North Carolina won 78-47. The Heels were locked in defensively and the game was effectively over by halftime. The Tar Heels had a 24-0 run at one point in this game.
Game Notes
- Bonzie Colson has started most of the season for Notre Dame, but Coach Mike Brey has inserted Matt Farrell into the starting lineup throughout the NCAA Tournament. As he says, this gives them “another ball handler on the floor…and that’s kind of helped and taken a little pressure off Demetrius that we have another ball handler on the floor to start a game”. The problem for the Irish is that while this gives them another ball handler, it eliminates their height advantage in the backcourt and doesn’t seem to provide any matchup difficulties for the Tar Heels in the frontcourt.
- While North Carolina has won every tournament game by double digits, Notre Dame has played three very close games. In fact, Notre Dame has been behind in the 2nd half of every game they’ve played. Michigan last held a lead with 4:32 remaining. Both Stephen F. Austin and Wisconsin held leads with under :30 left.
- This is Notre Dame’s 2nd straight Elite 8. They lost to Kentucky in the same round last year.
- By the numbers, Notre Dame’s defense is by far the worst of the 4 units in adjusted efficiency. UNC is 2nd on offense and 16th on defense. ND is 10th on offense but 154th on defense.
- While having a very efficient offense, Notre Dame plays at a much slower pace (318th in the country) that do the Tar Heels (50th). It will be interesting to see which team can exert their will.
- There has been a lot of talk from Notre Dame about 2014-15 when Duke beat them handily before Notre Dame got revenge later in the postseason. They are hoping to do the same to North Carolina after the Heels’ 31 point victory a few weeks ago. If I were Roy Williams (and I’m most decidedly not), I would counter by reminding my team of the 2008-09 season. Carolina played Michigan St. in the Big 10/ACC Challenge and won 98-63 (35 point victory). When the teams met again for the National Championship later that season, there was a lot of talk of revenge, but the Heels won 89-72 in a game that never felt that close.
A couple records that might be broken tonight:
- Brice Johnson has 387 rebounds this season. This is 12 shy of tying Tyler Hansbrough for the most by a Tar Heel in one season. Tyler has 399 in 2007-08. Should Brice break the record, he would be the first Tar Heel to have 400 rebounds in a seson.
- Brice also has 22 double-doubles (points and rebounds) on the season. He is tied with Billy Cunningham for the most for a Tar Heel in one season. Cunningham achieved this in 1963-64.
Notre Dame Starters (**Colson usually starts but Farrell has been starting in the NCAA Tournament)
| Player | Ht | Wt | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3-PT% | FT% | TO/G | SPG | BPG |
| Demetrius Jackson | 6’1” | 201 | 35.9 | 15.5 | 3.5 | 4.7 | 44.4 | 32.7 | 81.5 | 2.1 | 1.2 | 0.3 |
| Matt Farrell** | 6’1” | 175 | 12.9 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 35.0 | 28.1 | 88.2 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Steve Vasturia | 6’5” | 212 | 36.0 | 11.4 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 43.3 | 34.6 | 85.0 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 0.2 |
| V.J. Beachem | 6’8” | 200 | 31.1 | 11.9 | 3.9 | 0.8 | 47.1 | 44.0 | 57.1 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.8 |
| Zach Auguste | 6’10” | 245 | 29.8 | 14.3 | 10.9 | 1.1 | 55.9 | 0.0 | 62.6 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 1.1 |
Notre Dame Key Reserves
| Player | Ht | Wt | MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | FG% | 3-PT% | FT% | TO/G | SPG | BPG |
| Bonzie Colson** | 6’5” | 225 | 25.2 | 11.2 | 6.7 | 1.0 | 53.6 | 33.3 | 77.0 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 1.0 |
| Matt Ryan | 6’8” | 217 | 14.8 | 5.3 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 41.7 | 37.4 | 79.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 |
| Rex Pflueger | 6’6” | 198 | 13.6 | 2.4 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 38.2 | 32.0 | 95.2 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.2 |
The Numbers
| North Carolina | Notre Dame | |
| KenPom Rank | 4 | 34 |
| Points per game | 82.9 | 75.1 |
| Adj. Offensive Efficiency (Rank) | 121.6 (2nd) | 118.2 (10th) |
| Adj. Defensive Efficiency (Rank) | 94.4 (16th) | 102.7 (154th) |
| Tempo (Rank) | 71.9 (50th) | 65.7 (318th) |
| Field Goal% | 47.9 | 47.4 |
| 2P FG% | 53.7 | 52.8 |
| 3P FG% | 32.1 | 37.1 |
| 3PA% | 26.8 | 34.2 |
| FT% | 74.4 | 74.1 |
| FT Rate | 32.7% | 33.0% |
| RPG | 40.9 | 35.7 |
| Offensive Reb Rate | 40.0% | 33.0 |
| Defensive Reb Rate | 69.8% | 68.3 |
| APG | 17.9 | 13.5 |
| BPG | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| SPG | 6.9 | 5.5 |
| TPG | 10.9 | 10.1 |
| TO Rate | 15.4% | 15.4% |
X-Factor: Notre Dame’s starting lineup change. Can Carolina take advantage of the now even more pronounced frontcourt size advantage before Bonzie Colson comes in off the bench? Justin Jackson (6’8”) will most likely match up with Steve Vasturia (6’5”) – advantage Jackson. Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson (both 6’10”) will, in some form, match up with Zach Auguste (6’10”) and VJ Beachem (6’8”). The Heels need to attack whomever Beachem is guarding. The question for Carolina is whether Meeks will be quick enough to follow either Auguste or Beachem or whether Roy Williams will need to bring in Isaiah Hicks or go small with Theo Pinson. The personnel chess match between Coach Williams and Coach Brey will be interesting and go a long way to determining which of these teams will head to the Final Four next Saturday.
Main Key to the Game: Stop me if this sounds familiar to Friday’s game against Indiana: Stop Demetrius Jackson’s dribble penetration (Friday it was Yogi Ferrell). Staying in front of Jackson (without fouling) is top priority tonight. If other players have to help off, that leaves shooters open outside for 3s and, with the defensive rotations required, also leaves the offensive glass vulnerable.
Tar Heel Hoops 