So, after loosing to Rutgers, the previously winless team in the Big East, Notre Dame is sitting at 4 and 5 in coference play.* And Mike Brey has decided that it's time for the old 8 am practice. Messing with a college kid's sleep is never a thing to be taken lightly, so I'm sure Brey is really hoping to drive a point home...with one extra practice. Are we being serious here? I guess he did this last year. I guess after the extra morning practice Notre Dame went on to beat Louisville 90 to 57. Notre Dame then went on to play in the NIT.If you want to get serious about why your team is 4 and 5 in the Big East and why they've lost to the likes of Loyola Marymount and Rutgers, there is a pretty simple way to address it. Sit Harangody against Cincinatti. He won't. Not when Notre Dame still has some bubble hopes left. But, for the past two years Mike Brey hasn't had a team. He's had Luke Harangody. Maybe he thought that was enough. It isn't.
Other than Harangody, only two other players average in double digit scoring. Tim Abromaitis at 16.7 points per game and Ben Hansbrough at 11.7 points per game. Harangody is a gaudy 24.2 points a game.
Against Rutgers, Notre Dame actually had a pretty balanced scoring attack. Ben Hansbrough and others have been stepping up this season. Still, it seems this team's identity is too wrapped up in one man: Luke Harangody. He's a great player and a great player to build a team around. The key is to not forget the building a team part. Maybe Brey and the fighting Irish truly understand that. I'm not convinced. If they sat Harangody and found a way to win without him, that might be just what the Irish need.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4880714
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