With the season over and the new recruits signed, some of the Fieldhouse gang gathered to discuss the year that was and our hopes for the future over our annual game of poker. Bidding was fierce and the mood was serious as griping over cards and griping over the season mixed interchangeably. Jay's bluffs were called a bit too easily (quit double-checking your hand, Jay) so he was knocked out early. To help pass the time he agreed to document our conversation about the hoops season and what we all took from yet another up and down year. Enjoy.
1. Looking back, what was the most frustrating thing for you with regards to this season?
KevinC - Being so close, so often, coming up just short, and knowing that even as few as two games falling differently might have made a big difference in our postseason destination. While the team is a long way from where it should be -- where so many close games aren't a necessity -- they got crapped on by the basketball gods.
Pat - The quick and easy answer for this is the number of close losses. Everytime you think the Irish might pull one out, they didn't. Still, the most frustrating thing for me this season was the low post play. With Torin Francis and Rick Cornett I anticipated a solid dependable low post presence that would free up outside shooters like Quinn and Falls. Unfortunately, both options down low failed to provide a consistent scoring punch on offense. Teams didn't need to bother with a double-team and could instead focus on extending their defense against the rest of our perimeter shooters. Losing the close games was rough, but being in so many close games due to sub-par production down low was the real killer.
Kevin - I agree that it was post play, both on offense and on defense. Merely mediocre post play, as opposed to terrible, would have made many of those close losses into comfortable ND victories. Just three more wins, i.e. 18-9/9-7 and an NCAA Tournament bid, from credible post play is not a stretch.
The numbers exist to tell how poor Francis's and Cornett's offensive play was. I saw their defense in person about 15 times, and it was just as bad. Francis was pretty good on the defensive boards, but he was consistently abused whenever the ball got to the post. Cornett defended well, but he lost rebounds because he relied more on jumping than getting good position. Neither man learned how to move a man off the block without pushing, and pushing gets called a lot.
Teds - The interior play was obviously a sore spot, but I was more bothered by what I interpret as a general lack of timely adjustment by Brey and the staff. They were too late in making Francis earn his minutes rather than reflexively handing him 30+ a night. On certain occasions when Falls was off his game, I felt that they stayed with him far too long. Down the stretch, there was little change in personnel usage patterns and precious few minutes for the freshmen in spite of the state and direction of the team. And, obviously, going to Quinn in end-of-game situations time and time again was something else I thought could have been avoided or tinkered with, regardless of the percentages.
2. What did you like least about Brey's performance as head coach this year. Like best?KevinC - Least: His propensity to take the air out of the ball with a small lead late in a game. He seemed to do it a bit less in the last few games, however. Best: Keeping the team up and fighting despite all the close losses. Most other teams, including last year's version of ND, would have folded after the Louisville game (if not earlier).
Pat - Maybe he wasn't ready earlier in the season but after watching Ayers play in the NIT game against Michigan I have to wonder why he didn't see more action during the regular season. Likewise, the decision to not play Francis and Cornett at the same time very often was a bit disappointing. I realize neither were very efficient on offense, but in some of those games I would have liked to see ND try to use some muscle rather than trying to out-shoot teams.
I did like the way that Brey managed the team from a standpoint that they never gave up and quit. There are always teams that fold after a few tough loses and ND never did that. They couldn't quite get over the hump, but Brey did a good job of keeping the players focused on the next game.
Kevin - Least - I understand that Francis was the key to the season back in December, but it was obvious that he was bad by the end of January. I don't think Cornett is particularly good, but I am certain that he's at least as good as Francis. I would have split their time 50-50 and insisted that they play physically. I'd demand that they use their fouls. ND might not have been much better in the post, but it could have been tougher.
Next least - I hated what he did with Zeller. Luke had Jordan Cornett numbers from three point range. Moving him to the free throw line would have increased his shooting percentage, and he wasn't going to get into the mix on the offensive boards from outside of the three point arc. Zeller looked like a good rebounder at times. If that had been job one for him, he would have been a solid contributor this season.
Best - The team kept competing in the face of disappointment after disappointment.
Next best - Revamping the offense on the fly at midseason was not easy. Plan A was to go through the post. To say that failed is soft peddling. Brey switched to a four guard offense with Quinn and Carter penetrating, and that offense was quite effective. Then he worked Kurz's skills into the mix. If Francis and/or Cornett could have held their own on defense, ND would have been able to rally back to the bubble, at least.
Teds - Least: noted above. Lack of timely adjustments. Most: he's very controlled, and I believe that this had a good bit to do with the scarcity of blowout losses and the uncanny ability of the team to dig itself out of huge deficits against often superior opponents time and time again. In spite of our record in close games this past year, I don't think that Brey rattles easily.
3. What is your take on the current state of recruiting?Pat - Despite the absence of signing a true big man, I have to say the shift in recruiting philosphy is a positive sign. Rather than just shoot for the best players and duke it out with programs like Duke and Michigan State, Brey seemd to focus on midwest kids that possess skills that fit the team needs (rebounding, physical play, quickness). It's also the second straight year that Brey signed four players so it's nice to see him using up the scholarships to build team depth.
KevinC - Recruiting is significantly improved over the rising senior and junior classes. Brey suffered from some problems outside of his control and made some mistakes of his own, but he seems at least to have learned from that. We need another big man or two, especially in the Big East, but the rising sophomore and freshman classes are otherwise well stocked and seem to have a greater emphasis on quickness than past classes.
Teds - Difficult to judge. I would tend to label it "suitable but less than spectacular", but I'm not sure that the state of our playing and practice facilities makes it possible to outrecruit the Dukes and UConns for kids any longer. I don't think Rick Pitino could sell what we're offering them today. As noted elsewhere, I like the direction in which Brey has chosen to go with more physical prospects, kids with the ability to become good, full-court players in this conference. Perhaps Carter proves to be an outlier, but given other current constraints, it's not the worst idea to pursue players like Peoples and Harden with that sort of long-term growth potential in mind.
Kevin - Anyone would like a few consensus stars, but the program isn't there right now. I like the infusion of toughness, speed, and quickness. It's what Brey should have been recruiting all along.
4. What returning player do you consider most vital to success next year?Teds - McAlarney, because he's charged with replacing ND's best and most efficient player since Troy Murphy left. Those are huge shoes to fill, and the dropoff there stands to be larger than the hole created by Francis and Cornett's departure if he can't have a positive impact on the team's play right out of the gate.
Pat - Honestly, I think Zeller is the most important person on the roster right now. I'm comfortable with MacAlarney running the show and Falls and Carter are now proven assets. Kurz showed a lot of potential last season and hopefully will continue to develop. Zeller is the big question mark. He'll be the biggest guy on the team and his size will be needed in the rough and tough Big East. Harangody is being counted on for a lot, but as a freshman that's sometimes hard to deliver. Zeller needs to add some strength and show a willingness to get inside that 3-point arc and mix it up with the other big men.
Kevin - First McAlarney because he's going to have the ball. Then it's Carter because he'll be the go-to scorer. He has been immature during a lot of his career, so it will be interesting to see how he handles the responsibility. Somebody has to defend the post and rebound - Zeller and/or Kurz.
KevinC - Kurz. We need an interior presence, and he's the most experienced big man we've got. He plays better defense than either Francis or Cornett, and he has a decent offensive game inside and out. The biggest question marks are his size and whether he can stay out of foul
trouble.
5. After missing the tournament for three straight years, what changes (if any) would you like to see in the ND basketball program.Teds - Defense, absolutely. We cannot thrive in the Big East over the long haul without playing solid defense.
Kevin- Emphasis on defense should be reflected in changes on the staff. (a) I want someone who can coach the bigs... not just by telling them what to, by getting onto the floor and pushing them around a little. (b) There will be enough quick bodies to pressure the ball without worrying about tiring the starters. (c) I want quickness to mean that guys get through screens instead of playing under them most of the time. Getting through screens requires determination and quickness. I don't know if the Irish didn't play screens well because of the former, but the latter was a problem regardless.
KevinC - Facilities, admissions, assistants, and, oh yeah, facilities. Enough bytes have already been spent lamenting the facilities situation, so I won't rehash it except to say this: ND is supposedly waiting for a donor to pledge the necessary funds. The longer we wait, the more expensive it gets. It has been reported that the basketball program is held to a markedly higher standard in admissions than the football program. For a program that has not once misbehaved on the court, in the classroom, or elsewhere, that is unacceptable. Finally, this program lost something when Anthony Solomon took the St. Bonaventure job. Brey needs a bad cop, and one with experience in tutoring post play and defense. I'm not ready to fire Brey yet -- partially because I don't believe our odds of upgrading are at all good -- but he needs to shake things up.
Pat - The changes I'd like to see involve a shuffling of the assistant coaching staff with a move to get a defensive minded and/or low-post oriented coach. I agree with Kevin that Brey should not be fired now, but changes must be made. The big thing is that I want the Notre Dame administration to make a clear and public committment to the Irish basketball program. JACC renovations, a new practice facility, and letting Brey spend a bit more on assistants are all things that I'd like to see the University publically commit to with a definite timetable.
It has been reported today that assistant coach Lewis Preston 
The late signing period has arrived and the Irish officially added two more prospects to the roster. Jonathan Peoples and Joe Harden both faxed in their letters of intent and bring the class of 2010 up to four players. This gives the Irish back to back classes of four players, something that has never happened under Coach Brey.
The Arrested Development series of posts all included a small bit of stats analysis centered on the Big East stats of each player. Read parts 
