Notre Dame quarterback Tommy Rees pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges stemming from an incident in which police used pepper spray to subdue him after an off-campus party.Notre Dame tips off Big East play still searching for an identity.
The Irish completed an up-and-down non-conference slate, which included losses to Northwestern and Loyola Marymount and a dominating 101-69 win over Bucknell.
But as Notre Dame (11-2) prepares to play host to Providence (8-4) at 9 p.m. today, guard Tory Jackson said there is still room for improvement.
“We’re really a team in progress,” Jackson told reporters after last week’s win over Bucknell. “We’re going to get better.”
The Irish will need one of their better defensive performances tonight against the Friars.
Providence averages 84.6 points, third best in the Big East, and 18.1 offensive rebounds. The Friars lead the conference in rebounding, averaging 45.2 per game.
Forward Jamine Peterson leads Providence’s offense with 17.8 points per game, and he averages 10.9 rebounds.
Notre Dame is 14th in defense in the Big East, giving up 69.1 points per game. The Irish are 12th in rebounding, averaging 37.8 per game, but are tied for first in defensive rebounding, giving up 29.8 per game.
“The Big East is a tough conference, and we’ll take our bumps and bruises, but I think we’ve got a lot of guys that are going to fight,” Jackson said. “I think we’ll be good as long as we stick together and work on the defensive end.”
The Irish should be able to exploit the Friars’ apparent indifference to defense.
Notre Dame is fifth in the Big East in scoring, averaging 83.8 points, and the Irish shoot a league best 42 percent from three-point range.
Providence, which gave up a Big East worst 76.7 points per game last season, is at the bottom in defense again, giving up 75.2 points per game.
Luke Harangody, who is averaging 24.2 points and 9.9 rebounds, can become the Irish’s all-time leader in double-doubles tonight. The 6-foot-8 forward tied LaPhonso Ellis with 56 career double-doubles Dec. 22.
And Jackson will continue to build on his legacy after he became the fourth Notre Dame player to score 1,000 points and have 500 assists in his career in the win over Bucknell.
“Anytime a guy gets 1,000 points in a career is great,” said coach Mike Brey, who has 199 victories at Notre Dame. “They are the voices and engines on this basketball team.”
