Pace: 57. VERY slow. Like, slowest Notre Dame has played since Feb. 10 vs. Clemson slow.
Efficiency:
Kentucky--119
Notre Dame--116
This is coming out a little slower tonight than usual because--even trying my best to be an objective sports writer--that one stung, and I had to take a quick break. I can't help but feel for you guys, ND Nation and this team. That's a tough, tough pill to swallow.
I'd like to say that as winnable as that game was (so understandably it stinks to lose,) there is a lot to be proud of with this Irish team. I'd feel confident in saying that they could've beaten just about anyone enroute to the championship, and the best part about it was they were a true team, built from the ground up. However you feel about Coach Calipari and his recruiting methods, ya know, we can save for another day.
Offense: Crazy enough as it sounds going into it, Zach Auguste was the clear MVP. Team leading 20 points on 10-for-13 shooting, and six (6!!) offensive rebounds (9 total). Vasturia had a quiet 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting, Grant and Connaughton both finished in double-digits but had inefficient shooting nights.
Defense: Again, people might complain about the team strategy, but I think you'd be unwise to do so. In the big recent winning stretch, ND has let the big guys go to work, and made sure to try to shut out every one else. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting, and the other two forwards (Willie Cauley-Stein and Trey Lyles) finished with a combined 15. But ND absolutely shut UK's guards out of the game. It was almost comical listening to the announcers--the entire night--saying ND just "HAD" to do something about not doubling Towns, when that very strategy has worked wonders for them the last several games, and was THIS close to getting them a win tonight. Whatever.
Identity Stats:
1) Effective Field Goal Percentage[/I]: 50 percent. This is several points below ND's nation-leading 58 percent, but UK is also No. 1 defensively nationally in this category, only allowing 39 percent on the season. So, basically a meeting in the middle.
2) Turnover Rate[/I]: 7 TO's in 57 possessions, a 12 percent turnover rate (which is outstanding). Huge checkmark here. ND only averages 14.5 percent on the season, which ranks No. 3 best nationally, and they played an outstanding defensive team tonight. Most notably, the large majority of the turnovers came very early in the game, seemingly from nerves--most didn't seemed "forced" by UK's defense. Once ND settled down, they had incredible control of the ball.
3) Free throw differential[/I]: ND shot 13 FTA's on 56 FGA's (23 percent), while UK shot 20 FTA's on 47 FGA's (43 percent). As easy as it is to point to other statistics, this one did ND in as much as any. Recently they've been great at getting to the line more often than the opponent, didn't happen tonight.
Summary: There aren't many words I can write to make ND fans feel better tonight, so I'll keep it short. My statistics aren't going to tell you anything you didn't already see tonight. You could've won the game, you led for a large portion of it--and you didn't pull it out. Just heartbreaking. But I would go back to what I led off with, which is that there's a lot to be proud of with this team. A newfound defense late in the season is what led ND to even be in this position, and almost helped them to a historic win. They didn't pull it off, but man…everyone around the country now knows this ND hoops team was for real, as much as they may have foolishly doubted coming into this one. I don't have any ND gear…but if I did, I'd rep it proudly tonight.
Kudos to the Irish for a season, and team, that won't soon be forgotten. As a huge basketball fan, I'm already looking forward to writing about next season.
This post was edited on 3/29 11:20 AM by Jordan Wells
Efficiency:
Kentucky--119
Notre Dame--116
This is coming out a little slower tonight than usual because--even trying my best to be an objective sports writer--that one stung, and I had to take a quick break. I can't help but feel for you guys, ND Nation and this team. That's a tough, tough pill to swallow.
I'd like to say that as winnable as that game was (so understandably it stinks to lose,) there is a lot to be proud of with this Irish team. I'd feel confident in saying that they could've beaten just about anyone enroute to the championship, and the best part about it was they were a true team, built from the ground up. However you feel about Coach Calipari and his recruiting methods, ya know, we can save for another day.
Offense: Crazy enough as it sounds going into it, Zach Auguste was the clear MVP. Team leading 20 points on 10-for-13 shooting, and six (6!!) offensive rebounds (9 total). Vasturia had a quiet 16 points on 6-for-8 shooting, Grant and Connaughton both finished in double-digits but had inefficient shooting nights.
Defense: Again, people might complain about the team strategy, but I think you'd be unwise to do so. In the big recent winning stretch, ND has let the big guys go to work, and made sure to try to shut out every one else. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 25 points on 10-for-13 shooting, and the other two forwards (Willie Cauley-Stein and Trey Lyles) finished with a combined 15. But ND absolutely shut UK's guards out of the game. It was almost comical listening to the announcers--the entire night--saying ND just "HAD" to do something about not doubling Towns, when that very strategy has worked wonders for them the last several games, and was THIS close to getting them a win tonight. Whatever.
Identity Stats:
1) Effective Field Goal Percentage[/I]: 50 percent. This is several points below ND's nation-leading 58 percent, but UK is also No. 1 defensively nationally in this category, only allowing 39 percent on the season. So, basically a meeting in the middle.
2) Turnover Rate[/I]: 7 TO's in 57 possessions, a 12 percent turnover rate (which is outstanding). Huge checkmark here. ND only averages 14.5 percent on the season, which ranks No. 3 best nationally, and they played an outstanding defensive team tonight. Most notably, the large majority of the turnovers came very early in the game, seemingly from nerves--most didn't seemed "forced" by UK's defense. Once ND settled down, they had incredible control of the ball.
3) Free throw differential[/I]: ND shot 13 FTA's on 56 FGA's (23 percent), while UK shot 20 FTA's on 47 FGA's (43 percent). As easy as it is to point to other statistics, this one did ND in as much as any. Recently they've been great at getting to the line more often than the opponent, didn't happen tonight.
Summary: There aren't many words I can write to make ND fans feel better tonight, so I'll keep it short. My statistics aren't going to tell you anything you didn't already see tonight. You could've won the game, you led for a large portion of it--and you didn't pull it out. Just heartbreaking. But I would go back to what I led off with, which is that there's a lot to be proud of with this team. A newfound defense late in the season is what led ND to even be in this position, and almost helped them to a historic win. They didn't pull it off, but man…everyone around the country now knows this ND hoops team was for real, as much as they may have foolishly doubted coming into this one. I don't have any ND gear…but if I did, I'd rep it proudly tonight.
Kudos to the Irish for a season, and team, that won't soon be forgotten. As a huge basketball fan, I'm already looking forward to writing about next season.
This post was edited on 3/29 11:20 AM by Jordan Wells
