With all this talk about the Southern Cal game and Weis, the basketball team got forgotten for a brief period of time.  Let's make up for that and review the last week of Irish hoops.

Last Wednesday. . .

On Thanksgiving Eve, playing their third game in as many nights, the Fighting Irish ran into the number one team in the country, the North Carolina Tar Heels.  The Heels, whose bench is deeper than anyone else in the country by a mile, had a clear advantage in the Maui format, and it showed when the second wave of high school All-Americans rolled off the bench just as Notre Dame's legs went dead.  Luke Harangody was playing under the weather, Tyler Hansbrough was rested and Ty Lawson made Tory Jackson - Tory! ­- look like he was standing in cement.  If another team approaches the sort of numbers the Heels' offense rained down on the Irish for forty minutes, I can guarantee you Notre Dame loses that game. 

To put it in perspective, Notre Dame's defensive efficiency against Texas was 108.4, with none of the other cupcakes cracking 100.  UNC?  140.5.  Notre Dame's best effort all season, even against the uber-weak competition, was 134.  Roy William's bunch are very, very good, but despite a large deficit and dead legs, Notre Dame showed some steely reserve, rallying against the Monstars.  If a McAlarney three hadn't been disallowed because of a Deon Thompson foul on Tory, the lead would have been only eight with four and a half to play.  Sadly, Tory missed the front end of a one-and-one (Everyone on the team not from Staten Island needs to spend a few extra hours at the practice charity stripe) and a couple of quick Carolina baskets later the game was put away.

 Although it ended up being a fifteen point loss the Irish only barely threatened in, both the team and fans can take a lot from this game.  Unless something goes drastically wrong, North Carolina will be the number one overall seed in the tournament, and the Irish were at least in spitting distance of them.  (They were, at the very least, a heckuva lot closer than Michigan State last night.)  Down an almost insurmountable amount, the team didn't give up and showed some heart after a tiring three days of hoops and hula.  At the very least, the Irish probably won't be matched up with the Tar Heels in the Big Dance until the Elite Eight or Final Four.  These are all very good things to take from a fifteen point loss, and that's without even mentioning McAlarney's absurd three point shooting show, a late night performance anyone who witnessed it won't soon forget.

Saturday. . .

Trickles out that Harangody had contracted pneumonia and would be out indefinitely.  ESPN instinctively praises Tyler Hansbrough for working so hard through the illness before being reminded it was Harangody that was actually sick.

Sunday afternoon. . .

The Irish return to South Bend with a slow start against the Furman Paladins.  You can't really blame the team, as they had just spent a week in Maui and were trying to readjust to life in the permafrost of northern Indiana, a sobering reality that directly contributed to the fact they only led 19-18 with 6:39 to go in the first half.  After that, the Irish worked out whatever kinks set in during the long flight and blitzed the visitors to end the first half, leading 37-22 at the break.  It wasn't close in the second half, as Ryan Ayers set a temporary career high with nineteen points on 8-for-13 shooting and McAlarney knocked down nine treys on his way to a second straight thirty-point outburst.  Zach Hillesland submitted a great glue guy line (eight points, twelve boards, five assists, one steal) and Tory continued his outstanding play, scoring seventeen points on 8-for-12 shooting and chipping in eight assists. 

Tuesday evening. . .

This is South Dakota's first season as a division one school, so they probably don't have any access to Notre Dame game film.  This would explain why they thought it might be a good idea to try zoning the Irish, and also give us a clue on how Notre Dame reached the twenty point mark before the under sixteen minute timeout.  The Irish absolutely rolled the hapless Coyotes - as they should have  - leading 60-30 at halftime.  They didn't close well, losing the second half 46-42, but I think we can forgive them for not maintaining a killer intensity with a constant twenty-five point working margin. 

via media.scout.com

Ayers' career high set two days prior was topped with a very attractive thirty-five point outburst, knocking down nine threes and twelve of his twenty shots.  McAlarney knocked down another seven from behind the arc, bringing his total for the previous three games to twenty six and putting all future opponents on notice that maybe zoning or doubling or doing anything that doesn't defend the perimeter at all times is a bad idea.  Hillesland was again productive in all facets of the game (six points, nine boards, four assists, five steals), Tory dished out ten assists on a night he didn't connect from the field and the Peoples-Scott-Nash bench combination filled up the box score.

Today. . .

The Irish sit at 6-1, 7^th in the coaches poll, 14^th in Sagarin ratings and 28^th on KenPom, a date with the undefeated Ohio State Buckeyes coming up Saturday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.  After that intriguing match-up, it's back to cupcakes for the Irish until the Big East schedule kicks off on New Year's Eve, so it would be nice to pick up another solid non-conference win to go with the Texas scalp. 

Harangody missing games due to illness is unfortunate for the big guy, but I think it's great for the team overall, especially in these glorified scrimmages.  It would be fantastic to have him back to battle the Buckeyes, but should injury or foul trouble befall him later in the season, it's good for the Irish to know how to play without him.  The more reps that Nash and Scott get, the better, as it would be best if they were legitimate bench options once the rigors of Big East play start to take their toll.   Once Harangody gets nursed back to full health, maybe fake an injury for Tory or K-Mac for a game or two just so everyone is better prepared should they miss time later in the season.  Even if the Irish struggle, or God forbid, lose, someone will just mention to the selection committee in mid-March that "Oh, that was the one game McAlarney was in a full body cast and couldn't play" and it'll get immediately written off.    

Preview of the Buckeyes coming tomorrow.  They're young, but very capable, and the weird venue is going to make this a very intriguing game.