PREMIUM
Rogers' EARLY Afternoon ANNIHILATION >> **NOON ET**
(NCAAB) Notre Dame vs. North Carolina State,
Point Spread: -5.00 | -106.00 Notre Dame (Away)
Result: Win
Point Spread: -5.00 | -106.00 Notre Dame (Away)
Result: Win
The set-up: Notre Dame (20-7 / 9-5 in ACC) returned to the AP top-25 this past Monday and Saturday afternoon will head to Raleigh to take on the 14-13 NC State Wolfpack, NC State is just 3-11 in ACC play and Thursday fired head coach Brian Gottfried, making the unusual choice of allowing him to finish the season coaching the team.
Notre Dame: Mike Brey, ND's head coach, expects a better effort from the Wolfpack here than the ones that have caused the Wolfpack's six-game slide. "Throw out the record of North Carolina State given the dynamics of the program right now," Brey said. "They're going to play great. We are going to have to play fabulous to win a road game." Notre Dame came off a 24-win season that ended in the Sweet 16 and this year, opened 16-2, including 5-0 in ACC play. Doing the math, that makes the Irish only 4-5 since, all in league action. However, Notre Dame has recovered from a four-game slide to enter on a three-game winning streak. Colson, a 6-5 small forward, leads in scoring (16.9) and rebounding (10.7). He's joined in double figures by the 6-8 Beachem (15.0 & 3.9) plus guards Farrell (14.7 & 5.5 APG) and Vasturia (14.1-3.8-3.4). That quartet is basically the entire team, as no other player averages more than 5.2 PPG.
NC State: Since beating Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in late January for the first time since 1995, NC State has lost six straight, with four defeats coming by 24 points or more. The Wolfpack were picked to finish 6th in the preseason but are 14th (15-team league) and have shown zero signs of life other than freshman guard Dennis Smith Jr. He averages 19.0-4.4-6.7 and is almost surely a "one-and-done" player! The Wolfpack have been a defensive sieve in their losing six-game streak, allowing 91.5 PPG.
The pick: Notre Dame should have little trouble scoring on NC State, as the Wolfpack have allowed at least 84 points in each of their last six games (all losses). No reason to think that the 'troops' will rally around Gottfried as the feeling around the school has better been described as "Good Riddance!" Make Notre Dame an 8* play.
Notre Dame: Mike Brey, ND's head coach, expects a better effort from the Wolfpack here than the ones that have caused the Wolfpack's six-game slide. "Throw out the record of North Carolina State given the dynamics of the program right now," Brey said. "They're going to play great. We are going to have to play fabulous to win a road game." Notre Dame came off a 24-win season that ended in the Sweet 16 and this year, opened 16-2, including 5-0 in ACC play. Doing the math, that makes the Irish only 4-5 since, all in league action. However, Notre Dame has recovered from a four-game slide to enter on a three-game winning streak. Colson, a 6-5 small forward, leads in scoring (16.9) and rebounding (10.7). He's joined in double figures by the 6-8 Beachem (15.0 & 3.9) plus guards Farrell (14.7 & 5.5 APG) and Vasturia (14.1-3.8-3.4). That quartet is basically the entire team, as no other player averages more than 5.2 PPG.
NC State: Since beating Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in late January for the first time since 1995, NC State has lost six straight, with four defeats coming by 24 points or more. The Wolfpack were picked to finish 6th in the preseason but are 14th (15-team league) and have shown zero signs of life other than freshman guard Dennis Smith Jr. He averages 19.0-4.4-6.7 and is almost surely a "one-and-done" player! The Wolfpack have been a defensive sieve in their losing six-game streak, allowing 91.5 PPG.
The pick: Notre Dame should have little trouble scoring on NC State, as the Wolfpack have allowed at least 84 points in each of their last six games (all losses). No reason to think that the 'troops' will rally around Gottfried as the feeling around the school has better been described as "Good Riddance!" Make Notre Dame an 8* play.
