Notre Dame will take on Villanova on December 10 in the battle of the undefeated.
The Fighting Irish had to earn their way to #23 in the AP Poll. Their 9-0 start to the season has come as a shock to many, even though it shouldn’t surprise anyone.
Notre Dame is one of the best units in the NCAA. They may lack height in the post, but they make up for it in the backcourt. As long as players like V.J. Beachem and Matt Farrell stay competitive, Bonzie Colson has proven he can handle the post.
The spread has Villanova -11. At #1 in the country, it’s understandable why the Wildcats are favored over a team who just broke into the top 25. But the gamblers will be disappointed in the outcome of this one. Because when it’s all over, Notre Dame will move to 10-0 and Villanova will slide down the rankings.
There man be reasons to doubt a Notre Dame victory. There’s five big reasons the Irish will win, though.
5. Bonzie Colson
Bonzie Colson has led the Irish all season in rebounding and points. As a short post player, Colson has dominated the paint all season. Against Villanova, that shouldn’t change.
Colson is 6’5 and one of the best forwards in the college basketball. His 17.1 points and 11.1 rebounds per game lead the Irish. How Notre Dame has worked all season is by relying on Colson to protect the rim while the guards dominate the backcourt. As long as Colson isn’t the only player contributing for Notre Dame, and he can focus on winning the battle down low, he’s one of the best in college basketball.
Villanova has no one to cover the paint. They’re just like Notre Dame, a group of guards and no post game, except the Irish have adopted Colson. The high-flying forward is going to be a major difference maker in this one. If he’s on his game, which all indications say he will be, Notre Dame will have a significant advantage against Villanova.
4. Villanova’s Three-Point Shooting
Villanova’s biggest threat has been their three-point shooting. The Wildcats average 40% shooting from behind the arc and have six players shooting over 40% from deep.
It’s no secret that the Wildcats can scorch any team from deep if they get rolling. If they come into South Bend and catch fire early, they could take a lead large enough to secure a victory. That shouldn’t happen with Notre Dame’s defense.
Notre Dame has allowed a 34.2% shooting percentage from outside the arc. That includes the game that Northwestern went 11-19 from deep and shot 44% from three. This isn’t a team to put up 90 points a night. What they excel at is defending the basketball and keeping momentum on their side.
Villanova is going to rely on their outside scoring in this game. They know that Colson will be clogging up the inside, and they’ll need to shoot threes to put points on the board. Notre Dame is one of the best defensive teams in the country.
The Irish’s guards should have no issues containing Villanova’s three-point shooters.
3. V.J. Beachem
V.J. Beachem was a Naismith Award watch list player before the 2016-2017 season began. Today, he averages 16.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.0 assist per game. On top of that, he’s quickly becoming less and less important to Notre Dame’s success.
That all changes in this game. Beachem has been a disappointment thus far. He’s been able to score, but not as he could, and the rest of his contribution is minimal. He’s playing well enough to show that his hype isn’t a mistake, he just hasn’t hit his potential yet.
Josh Hart is easily the best player in the country. Beachem may not be looked at as one of the best right now, but he’s talented enough to be. Eventually, he’s going to have a breakout game, and that could be against Villanova.
On the other end of the court, Beachem still requires attention every time down the court. Much of Notre Dame’s success has been the ability of the other guards to perform at a high level. Beachem may not be having 30-point games, but he’s causing enough attention to free up other players.
There’s one of two ways Beachem is going to give Notre Dame a win – He’s either going to have a freak game, or create enough defensive coverage for the rest of the Irish players to score.
2. Notre Dame’s Defense
Notre Dame is easily one of the best defensive units in the NCAA. The Irish have five players who average at least a steal per game. Most of this defense has come from their guard play. But the entire Notre Dame unit has dominated the defensive end all season.
Through nine games, Notre Dame has established themselves through solid defense. They may not have the players who score 100 points every night, but they certainly aren’t giving up anything close to that.
Villanova relies almost entirely on their guards. Bonzie Colson will clean up the paint on defense, but Matt Farrell and the Irish backcourt will keep this game in check. Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins know if a game is close, it’s their jobs to win. That’ll be exceptionally hard against Notre Dame.
No matter who the Irish have on the court, they produce quality defense. Even their big men outside of Colson are capable of stopping players when needed. Against the Wildcats, the starters will be relied on heavily. That isn’t a problem for Notre Dame, because, during rest times, bench players have shown they can step up when needed.
1. The Irish Guards
It’s no secret that Notre Dame’s backcourt is among the best in the country. V.J. Beachem, Matt Farrell, Steve Vasturia, Temple Gibbs, and the rest of the Irish guards have quietly dominated every team they’ve played.
This backcourt is a group of players that were given no credit coming into the season. It could be the coaching of Mike Brey, but they’ve turned into a squad every team is afraid of. Villanova is no different.
To reiterate, the Wildcats have no post game. Colson is going to handle the rim with ease both offensively and defensively. That’s going to put a lot of pressure on Villanova’s guards, and frankly, they aren’t going to be able to handle it.
This backcourt can score and play sound defense. They’re the total package, and it’s taken nine games for anyone even to notice. It’ll be a surprise to a lot of people when Notre Dame’s guards dominate Villanova. The score may not be outrageously lopsided, but when the Irish shock the world, remember, Notre Dame has been doing this all season.
They’re the most underrated team in the country. This group of guards is phenomenal in every aspect of basketball. Villanova isn’t going to be able to control them. As a result, they’ll be the biggest reason Notre Dame pulls out the victory.
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