Expect possessions to come at a premium when the No. 7 Virginia Cavaliers (19-4, 11-3 ACC) host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-16, 2-13 ACC) on Saturday.
Notre Dame lost to the Duke Blue Devils 68-64 at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Tuesday, their fourth straight loss. Dane Goodwin was the key player in the losing effort with 25 points.
The Fighting Irish are 13th in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia won their seventh straight home game on Saturday at John Paul Jones Arena, beating the Duke Blue Devils 69-62 in overtime. Armaan Franklin had 23 points, leading the team. The Cavaliers fell to second in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
This marks the only meeting of the season between the teams. Notre Dame came out on top in the only matchup between the teams last season 69-65 at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center in January 2022. Jayden Gardner topped all players in scoring with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
Nate Laszewski had 16 points for the Fighting Irish. The Fighting Irish have been led this season by Laszewski, who is averaging 14.5 points per game. Laszewski also has grabbed 7.1 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Trey Wertz is dishing 3.0 assists.
Franklin (12.7 ppg), Kihei Clark (11.6), and Gardner (11.3) have powered the Cavaliers’ offense. Gardner also has pulled down 5.0 rebounds per game, while Clark has recorded 5.9 assists per game, 10th-most in the NCAA.
Half-court execution will likely be the difference in this matchup that features two of the country’s slowest-paced teams, as the Cavaliers and the Fighting Irish rank 360th and 319th, respectively, in possessions per game. In the last 10 games, Notre Dame is 2-8 with an average margin of -4.7 (73.0-77.7).
For the season, the Fighting Irish are averaging 70.7 points per game, compared to 72.5 for opponents. Virginia has a 9-1 record over the last 10, scoring 70.2 points per game on average while allowing 62.2 (+8.0 margin).
FIGHTING IRISH HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Marcus Hammond: 12.8 | 9.5 | +3.3
Trey Wertz: 7.6 | 14.0 | -6.4
Points per game:
Trey Wertz: 3.4 | 8.2 | -4.8
Assists per game:
Cormac Ryan: 3.6 | 2.5 | +1.1
Trey Wertz: 1.8 | 3.0 | -1.2
CAVALIERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Jayden Gardner: 22.4 | 16.8 | +5.6
Kadin Shedrick: 5.8 | 10.5 | -4.7
Points per game:
Jayden Gardner: 15.8 | 11.3 | +4.5
Ben Vander Plas: 5.2 | 7.4 | -2.2
Rebounds per game:
Armaan Franklin: 2.8 | 4.2 | -1.4
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
Virginia -13.5 (-110)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
