Spring Break
Time for luck against the Irish
Marc Gauthier
Issue date: 1/23/09 Section: Sports
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On Saturday, the No. 3 Huskies (17-1, 6-1 Big East) have a chance to add onto their success when they travel to Indiana Saturday to take on No. 19 Notre Dame (12-5, 3-3). Saturday's game ,scheduled for 7 p.m. (EST), will be the second consecutive game the Huskies will play on ESPN.
The Huskies and the Fighting Irish split two games last season, with the home team winning in each contest.
But for the Irish, home-field advantage will be working heavily in their favor.
Notre Dame has won 43 straight games in the Joyce Center, the longest current streak in all of college basketball.
"We'll work hard [Thursday] and then we have an incredible test against Notre Dame," said coach Jim Calhoun. "They've won a lot of games out at their place."
But coming into Saturday's game, Notre Dame is currently riding a two-game losing streak and even though the Irish are 8-0 at home, their road record is only 5-5. Despite the five losses, Notre Dame is still ranked in the AP top-25.
While Notre Dame has those five losses, which include a 15-point loss to No. 5 North Carolina, an overtime loss to No. 9 Louisville and a 19-point blowout loss to No. 8 Syracuse, the Irish are among the country's highest in several statistical categories.
Luke Harangody, Notre Dame's 6-foot-8, 285-pound forward, is fifth in the country for scoring with 25 points a game, and second in rebounds with 13 a game. Harangody's teammate, Kyle McAlarney, who scored 32 points in UConn's loss to Notre Dame last year, is fifth in the country in 3-point percentage, shooting 48 percent from behind the arc and is also third in the country with 4.4 3-pointers made per game.
As a team, the Irish are 14th in the country in points per game, averaging 81.2. They are fourth in assists at 18.5 a game and second in turnovers, averaging only 10 per game.
While on paper this match-up seems to be difficult for the Huskies, actually playing against them will be tougher.
"We're going to go in there and try and do the same thing we did [Wednesday]," said Jerome Dyson. "They'll work as hard as 'Nova and they play a similar style. We've got to come out and play tough."
In Saturday's game, the Huskies will also bring some high-end statistical leaders. Hasheem Thabeet leads the Big East and is third in the country in blocks, with 3.7 a game.
Jeff Adrien is fourth in the Big East in field goal percentage, shooting the rock at 56 percent on the court.
UConn as a team averages only two fewer points than Notre Dame, scoring about 79 points a game on 48 percent shooting - the second highest in the league.
Saturday will be Notre Dame's annual 'Black Out Day,' in which all fans are encouraged to wear black clothing.
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