Notre Dame 2021-2022

[Basket]

Blowouts like the one against Louisville are a good good barometer of how far the Irish have to go to be elite.

Louisville was deeper and more athletic at many positions, allowing them to constantly attack the Irish with superior quickness and shooting accuracy with fresh troops. You can’t be elite and rely on a one dimensional senior guard who is a defensive liability and a streaky shooter, have a former starter who is now 2nd off the bench who cannot score, and have no reliable post presence when your elite starter has to go to the bench in foul trouble. And the short bench is a serious liability.

Perhaps this could have been a 10 point loss had Sam not been injured, but there’s no mistaking how much quicker and more athletic Louisville was, just as UCONN was earlier in the year.

Let’s hope Nielle Ivey can pull in a couple elite transfer portal players and more elite recruiting is on the way. The talent just isn’t there yet.

It’s a bunch better than last year or like two years ago. Can you say Boston College with the sweep? Go Eags! Eags (no McDonald’s AA’s) delivering beat downs *sarcasm to ND 3 of last 4. Was 3 straight. These are good times at the “Heights”

 

[Dwilliams02]

Yes—I believe if Sam never gotten injured, I think it may have been between a 7-10 point loss (which isn’t that bad in my opinion).

As recruiting goes—Niele is very selective with her prospects. However, it’s come to my understanding that Niele went to DC last Friday to watch Sidwell Friends’s Jadyn Donovan (10-2023) and Kendall Dudley (4-2024). I believe those are her two top priorities—getting those two to ND.

Also heard Niele is working on paperwork to get Dodson to play next year. Which I don’t see why the NCAA would deny her another year since she was hurt/COVID at Stanford before transferring to ND.

So if Dodson is granted another year, this would be HUGE for the Irish—and if Marshall comes back after another setback with her knee (backup), they should be in a good spot. They should have (if not mostly) everyone back next year. They should be a top 10 team, and if not the top of the ACC next year (IF Dodson does return-with mostly everyone back).

Last thing, I do believe Niele will get one transfer. I’m not sure what position, but I do believe she’ll get one.

Her and Alexis Morris in the same class. Even Morris have an extra year. I think she will be approved.

 

[Frankus]

Yes—I believe if Sam never gotten injured, I think it may have been between a 7-10 point loss (which isn’t that bad in my opinion).

As recruiting goes—Niele is very selective with her prospects. However, it’s come to my understanding that Niele went to DC last Friday to watch Sidwell Friends’s Jadyn Donovan (10-2023) and Kendall Dudley (4-2024). I believe those are her two top priorities—getting those two to ND.

So if Dodson is granted another year, this would be HUGE for the Irish—and if Marshall comes back after another setback with her knee (backup), they should be in a good spot.

Good Question: This has been a source of discussion on The Bench all season, particularly after ND's only other post -- Nat Marshall -- was lost for the season after a meniscus tear.

Those who view it from a strict NCAA interpretation say no: She's on her fourth season of play and that's it.
Since she sat out the "pandemic year," she's not eligible to take advantage of the NCAA's extra season offer.

However, there are always waivers and the NCAA is always surprising us. Perhaps her decision to sit a year doesn't matter? Plus she only played 9 games her junior year coming back from a left foot injury.
Once again, many say no. Niele has been heard saying she's been told the opposite.

Lastly, Maya is enrolled in the MBA program at ND, which last two years, so if she wants the MBA, she probably needs to come back for one more year if she wants to finish right now. On the other hand, does she want to give the pro's a shot and finish the MBA in the off-season? Stay tuned.

In any case, ND does not have a freshman big coming to campus for the 2022-23 season ("just" guard KK Arnold Bransford). So, don't be surprised to see ND scan the transfer portal again this offseason for another post or forward.

I can’t remember a player developing in season as rapidly as Dodson has. Perhaps it was her building her stamina back up, but she is running the court and dominating both ends. She’s relentless and is MVP in my book.

I think coach Ivey has to be thinking about bringing in another big. Hoping Marshall can develop physically with so much down time again, and stay injury free for an entire season, is a big risk. If Maya gets in foul trouble we are effectively finished against good teams and I’d rather see Sam and Maddy develop more as players who can move quicker and create their own shots than bulk up as post players. Neither have great jumping ability, but both can progress as more dangerous players who can beat people off the dribble and score inside and outside. Add in a big with Maya and watch out. We’d be extremely dangerous again.

Can’t wait to see what KK Bransford brings to the team and perhaps Coach Ivey will recruit/portal one other effective 3 point shooting guard.

Hoping Maya can stay out of foul trouble Sunday, and that with a healthier Sam and (hopefully) a 3 point hitting Dara, that we can make it a game at home against Louisville.

 

[KY Card Fan]

Hoping Maya can stay out of foul trouble Sunday, and that with a healthier Sam and (hopefully) a 3 point hitting Dara, that we can make it a game at home against Louisville.

Nine of us will be there tomorrow. We'll be the ones wearing red.

I'm absolutely expecting a close, down-to-the-wire game. Louisville is a little deeper, but the Irish have some special players in Miles, Dodson and Citron.

 

[rvwsleep]

On another front:

 

[Dillon77]

On another front:

My maternal grandmother fled the Ukraine into Slovakia to escape the be presence of the Soviets. Her name is at Ellis Island and every one of my children have found it on a field trip. She moved to Pottsville, Pa., where my mother was born and raised. Can't begin to say just how sad...and mad...I feel as history repeats itself...

 

[Dillon77]

Nine of us will be there tomorrow. We'll be the ones wearing red.

I'm absolutely expecting a close, down-to-the-wire game. Louisville is a little deeper, but the Irish have some special players in Miles, Dodson and Citron.

Have fun at Purcell (or as it was known in my day, the Joyce arena). As the Irish have gained so very much by having Maya Dodson, so has Louisville with Emily Engstler, the girl from Roosevelt Island in the East River who headed west. With that double-bye attained after the win against Clemson, I think the Irish can just leave it all on the court. Should be a good one.

 

[Mulder]

Why didn't the coach call a T.O. ?

 

[rvwsleep]

Louisville just had, possibly, the best first quarter I've ever watched. They are up 31-3 after first quarter. Louisville is 7 of 7 from 3 point range. Just incredible.

 

[rvwsleep]

Why didn't the coach call a T.O. ?

She called one at 10-0 and. I believe, one more t.o.

 

[SECbbfan24]

Why didn't the coach call a T.O. ?

Saving them for the post season. Smart IMO.

 

[donalddoowop]

I think ND is struggling a bit so far.

 

[rvwsleep]

Louisville is not going to shoot like this consistently. But what this game demonstrates is that Louisville is a MUCH more athletic team than ND is. That is without question. Louisville is playing at twice the speed that ND is.

 

[rvwsleep]

54-15 at the half. I see it but I don't believe it.

 

[Mulder]

Striped shirts slowed everyone down!

 

[redhat]

Miles acts like a spoiled brat

 

[donalddoowop]

Miles acts like a spoiled brat

She needs an attitude change, big time.

 

[Mdoggie]

The only thing that would make this day better is for the orange team to lose also!

 

[Rocket009]

The only thing that would make this day better is for the orange team to lose also!

Looks like your wish may come true - LSU taking it to TN

 

[Frankus]

Not much to say that wasn’t said in the first Louisville beat down. Ivey has to recruit/portal quickness and toughness. She has to take a hard look at how she can make Sam and Maddy more competitive against elite quickness and toughness . They both have a lot of developing to do if they’re going to be playing heavy minutes going forward. If they don’t develop along with Dara -and only Bransford is brought in-this will be a program on the fringes again. I doubt Ivey will be satisfied with that. We’ll see.

 

[Dillon77]

Have fun at Purcell (or as it was known in my day, the Joyce arena). As the Irish have gained so very much by having Maya Dodson, so has Louisville with Emily Engstler, the girl from Roosevelt Island in the East River who headed west. With that double-bye attained after the win against Clemson, I think the Irish can just leave it all on the court. Should be a good one.

Well, it was a good one, but only if you were a Cardinal fan (and or an anti-ND fan). The first quarter, as pointed out, was one of the most devestating attacks of basketball I've seen in many a day, from shooting to defense.

ND is the fourth best rebounding team in the ACC (before this game) but Louisville nearly doubled ND's total. Shows what aggressiveness and attitude can do. And outside of Engstler, the other leading rebounders were guards.
Irish played a much better second half, but the damage was done. Gotta be there at start.

Enjoy the trip home and be safe.

 

[Frankus]

ND is the fourth best rebounding team in the ACC (before this game) but Louisville nearly doubled ND's total. Shows what aggressiveness and attitude can do. And outside of Engstler, the other leading rebounders were guards.
Irish played a much better second half, but the damage was done. Gotta be there at start.

Enjoy the trip home and be safe.

Engstler highlights ND’s problem though. At 6’1” she outrebound the 6’3” Sam/Maddy 10-4 and outscored them 17-8, mostly in the paint. There’s a quickness and strength to Engstler which allows her to dominate these bigger players. It’s a problem.

 

[baggerbob]

Engstler highlights ND’s problem though. At 6’1” she outrebound the 6’3” Sam/Maddy 10-4 and outscored them 17-8, mostly in the paint. There’s a quickness and strength to Engstler which allows her to dominate these bigger players. It’s a problem.

Even though Van Lith gets all the publicity, Engstler is the best player on the team.

 

[KY Card Fan]

Even though Van Lith gets all the publicity, Engstler is the best player on the team.

No doubt about that. And she is paying at a higher level now than she has all season.

 

[Dillon77]

Engstler highlights ND’s problem though. At 6’1” she outrebound the 6’3” Sam/Maddy 10-4 and outscored them 17-8, mostly in the paint. There’s a quickness and strength to Engstler which allows her to dominate these bigger players. It’s a problem.

Even though Van Lith gets all the publicity, Engstler is the best player on the team.

No doubt about that. And she is paying at a higher level now than she has all season

• Don't have to convince me about Engstler: I wanted ND to recruit her out of NYC when she was in high school and was on the horn the moment she entered the portal.
• She has been and is Louisville's best player this year. Hailey Van Lith had a great game yesterday -- with shooting, hustle, smart decisions -- but Engstler, aggressive without getting in foul trouble, set the tone. If she stays in games, Louisville's a threat to anyone.
• The only good news is that in everything I've read to date she wants to go pro next year, so the Irish won't have to deal with her next year! Keep developing the mid-to-long range jumper and she'll do fine.
• BTW, Engstler wreaked havoc on the Irish inside in terms of rebounding. Interestingly, Hailey Van Lith and Smith got the next most. On the Irish side, Citron --another wing -- led the Irish with 8. It's almost as if the bigs negated each other in the paint. If so, win for Walz and the 'Cards. Engstler's doubles on D are very, very effective.
• The only Irish that didn't back down were Citron, Peoples and Miles. However, Miles lost her cool, Peoples is offensively challenged (this was her best game of the year) and Citron needs to have some help on offense, with screens. Kid has to work too hard.

 

[donalddoowop]

Hey Dillon77, what has happened to Westbeld's game this season. She does not seem to be playing as well this season as last year. I thought she would be one of the best Sophomore's in the country this year.

 

[Dillon77]

Hey Dillon77, what has happened to Westbeld's game this season. She does not seem to be playing as well this season as last year. I thought she would be one of the best Sophomore's in the country this year.

This has become a lightening-rod subject over on the Bench, as you can tell.

I think it's a two-fold answer:

• she's betwixt and between in Niele's sets; and,
• experiencing some aspects of a sophomore slump (I'll explain).

Betwixt:
While I challenge anyone to get to the exact scope of Niele's half-court offense, you can see two major focus points:

• the down low/high-low game, with Maya Dodson. McGraw used this (too much , some opinions) with Bri Turner and now Niele is doing the same with Maya. Option one and two is to get the ball to Dodson. It works, but has forced people to change: Maddy admitted as much in a post-game presser.
• ISOs. Most of the ISO's start with Olivia Miles who is increasingly calling her own number. And when she passes off those ISO sets, she's usually looking for fellow frosh, Soni Citron who cuts to the basket hard or Sam Brunelle, who always drops back to her designated three-pt. launch spot.

Maddy, not so much....caught between inside and outside.

Maddy does get her number called, but sometimes she's on but also off: the consistency is off.

Sophomore Slump:

• Last year, Maddy was option A, B and D (Dara Mabrey was there, too). It's a big difference headset-wise from sole focus to being one of many. (remember, Citron is here, too).
• Coaches are onto her. People know how to play her. Crowd her. Make her work for the shot.
• While Maddy prefers an outside-in approach, I'd maintain she had more success last year inside-out. Thus, she's having a bit of hard time flipping the switch.
• I think the effort on defense and rebounding is still good, but she now has help. Dodson is a force and Citron and Miles are very good at rebounding, partcularly Citron in ACC play. Maddy doesn't have to do it all.

Next year, I think Maddy has to work on her game facing the basket. Get some quickness to her moves. Let the jumper rip rather than ponder then let the defense get in her face.

And I've argued that Ivey has to integrate the ISO's with some sets that make it easier for Maddy, Sam and Soni to get shots off.

 

[Frankus]

This has become a lightening-rod subject over on the Bench, as you can tell.

I think it's a two-fold answer:

• she's betwixt and between in Niele's sets; and,
• experiencing some aspects of a sophomore slump (I'll explain).

Betwixt:
While I challenge anyone to get to the exact scope of Niele's half-court offense, you can see two major focus points:

• the down low/high-low game, with Maya Dodson. McGraw used this (too much , some opinions) with Bri Turner and now Niele is doing the same with Maya. Option one and two is to get the ball to Dodson. It works, but has forced people to change: Maddy admitted as much in a post-game presser.
• ISOs. Most of the ISO's start with Olivia Miles who is increasingly calling her own number. And when she passes off those ISO sets, she's usually looking for fellow frosh, Soni Citron who cuts to the basket hard or Sam Brunelle, who always drops back to her designated three-pt. launch spot.

Maddy, not so much....caught between inside and outside.

Maddy does get her number called, but sometimes she's on but also off: the consistency is off.

Sophomore Slump:

• Last year, Maddy was option A, B and D (Dara Mabrey was there, too). It's a big difference headset-wise from sole focus to being one of many. (remember, Citron is here, too).
• Coaches are onto her. People know how to play her. Crowd her. Make her work for the shot.
• While Maddy prefers an outside-in approach, I'd maintain she had more success last year inside-out. Thus, she's having a bit of hard time flipping the switch.
• I think the effort on defense and rebounding is still good, but she now has help. Dodson is a force and Citron and Miles are very good at rebounding, partcularly Citron in ACC play. Maddy doesn't have to do it all.

Next year, I think Maddy has to work on her game facing the basket. Get some quickness to her moves. Let the jumper rip rather than ponder then let the defense get in her face.

And I've argued that Ivey has to integrate the ISO's with some sets that make it easier for Maddy, Sam and Soni to get shots off.

Ivey’s offense allows Maddy to get her shot off. The problem is, when driving into the paint against elite players, she doesn’t have the explosiveness to finish.

Both Cochran and Engstler blocked her shot in the first quarter when she drove into the paint from the elbow. She also missed a wide open jumper from the free throw line. For ND to be elite now, she’s got to be able to score inside and outside and currently she can’t do it against the best teams.

Other than developing her through better strength and conditioning (which can and should happen) I don’t know what Ivey can do with either Maddy or Sam. Admittedly, there aren’t many 6’3” players in college women’s basketball who can be dual threats shooting accurately from outside and finishing in the paint. However, neither Sam or Maddy are ever going to be elite post players. So, I don’t know what Ivey can do but continue to work with them and try to develop their agility and explosiveness.

Hopefully Ivey will also bring in at least one portal player who can contribute an inside/outside game better than People’s and spell Maddy some minutes to get her some rest. She’s playing a ton of minutes-as are all the starters- and there’s no way they can play at the intensity needed all game long, when elite teams can bring in great players off the bench.

 

[Frankus]

^^^^^^^^^^^^
Correction:

One of the shots that was blocked was an off ball screen, not a drive, where Maddy was wide open in the paint, got the pass and Cochran blocked it. The Engstler block was off a dribble drive to the paint.

 

[Basket]

Even though Van Lith gets all the publicity, Engstler is the best player on the team.

Heck yeah she is