catmandoo
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Member # 1284
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posted 12-12-2020 11:03 AM
1. Tough test at the point
We’ve all seen the clear point guard struggles to start the season for Kentucky, and the road doesn’t get any easier going up against Notre Dame this afternoon. The starting point guard for the Fighting Irish is junior Prentiss Hubb. Standing at 6’3″ and 175 pounds, the junior is probably the most talented offensive guard that the Cats have had to deal with so far this season. From last year’s team, Hubb was the third-leading scorer and the top assist man. Coming into this season, Hubb was the top returning scorer, and he’s been fantastic to start the year.
Through three games, Hubb is averaging 22.3 points and 5.3 assists per game, both are team highs. He’s also grabbing 5 rebounds and one steal per game. He does turn it over nearly four times per contest, but that is partially due to high minutes played being the primary ball-handler.
2. Isaiah Jackson’s first real test
Despite the overall team struggles to start the season, one of the lone bright spots has been the play of freshman Isiah Jackson. Today’s game against Notre Dame will be the first time that Jackson’s counterpart is one of the focal points of the opponent’s game plan. Junior forward Nate Laszewski measures in at 6’10” and 227 pounds, compared to Jackson’s 6’10 – 206lb frame. While Jackson has the clear advantage in the athleticism department, Laszewski’s offensive ability is much more refined, and the two are very different players holistically.
3.3. Three-point shooting
Like a lot of college basketball teams have tried to do in recent years, Notre Dame is a team that loves to take and make the three-ball. The Fighting Irish make 44.1% of their attempted threes, which makes them the 13th best shooting team in the country through the first few weeks of the season. The Irish take 23 threes per game this season, which isn’t a crazy amount, but they are making an average of 10 of them per game, which is in the top-30 for teams across the country. What that tells me is that Notre Dame is taking quality threes rather than just sheer quantity.
4.4. Turnover remedy
The most obvious issue for the Kentucky Wildcats in each of their three losses this season has been the inability to take care of the basketball. A mountain of turnovers has piled up, making staying in a game nearly impossible. Even when the defense is taking care of business on the other end of the floor, turning it over so often doesn’t allow the offense to go on any runs themselves. Luckily for Kentucky, through their first three games, Notre Dame hasn’t forced a ton of turnovers.
The Fighting Irish have forced just nine turnovers per game so far this season, which ranks 303rd out of 308 Division I teams across the country.
5 Short bench
Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish squad works just a six to seven man rotation. One of their bench players, Nikola Djogo hasn’t played since the first game of the season with an ankle issue, which has caused Brey to shorten the bench to just two players. Four of the starting five players play at least 36 of the 40 minutes per game. Starting point guard, Prentiss Hubb, plays 38 minutes per game, while the other two guards in the lineup, Dane Goodwin and Cormac Ryan, play 38 and 37 minutes per game respectively. Stretch-four, Nate Laszewski matches Hubb’s 38 minutes per contest, which leaves the only starter that really subs out as starting center Juwan Durham.
Link
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http://www.ukfightsong.com/
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