Feb. 2, 2016
Notre Dame (15-6, 6-3) vs. No. 17/15 Miami (16-4, 5-3)
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 3
Site: Coral Gables, Fla. ââ’¬” United Center
Game Time: 7:10 p.m. (ET)
TV: ESPN2
Talent: Dan Shulman (play-by-play); Jeff Van Gundy (analyst); Dick Vitale (analyst)
Radio: Notre Dame Basketball Radio Network; WatchND; Sirius/XM 84
Talent: Jack Nolan (Play-By-Play); Jordan Cornette (Analyst)
NOTRE DAME ââ’¬” MIAMI BY THE NUMBERS
0.1 – Percentage point separating Notre Dame (122.6) and Duke (122.7) in the Pomeroy Adjusted Offense index, giving the Irish the second-most efficient offense in the country.
6 – Steals by junior guard Demetrius Jackson in his return to the lineup against Wake Forest on Jan. 31. Jackson missed his first game since the 2013-14 season with a pulled hamstring, suffered in the early minutes of ND’s victory over Boston College on Jan. 23. Jackson’s return stat line was impressive – 14 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and six steals.
14 – Career high points scored by senior forward A.J. Burgett vs. Wake Forest on Sunday, his first start since March 3, 2014. Burgett also hit a career-best four three pointers and grabbed five rebounds in 25 minutes of action.
19 – Wednesday marks the 19th meeting between Notre Dame and Miami. The Irish lead the all-time series 10-8 and are 4-4 on the Hurricane’s home court.
19.3 – Points per game averaged by Demetrius Jackson in his last seven FULL games played in 2016 (going back to Jan. 2). Jackson was sidelined in the first two minutes of the game vs. Boston College, then missed the Syracuse game. Over that same stretch, he has averaged 6.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game.
11 – Consecutive ‘bounce-back’ games in which the Irish have earned a victory, including the 85-62 victory over Wake Forest on Jan. 31. Notre Dame has not lost consecutive games since the end of the 2013-14 season.
10.1 – Average rebounds per game for senior forward Zach Auguste – good for third in the ACC and 20th in the country. Auguste also is fifth in the ACC in field goal percentage (.542).
62 – Games in a row played by Demetrius Jackson before being sideline on Jan. 28 at Syracuse with a hamstring pull. Jackson returned to the starting lineup vs. Wake Forest to score 14 points with eight assists, seven rebounds and a career-high six steals.
126 – Points scored by Notre Dame in the first-ever meeting between the Irish and Miami on Feb. 22, 1986. It is still the most points ever scored by the Irish on an opposing team’s home court.
981 – Career points scored by junior guard Demetrius Jackson, who is poised to become the 58th Notre Dame player to reach that scoring plateau. Zach Auguste joined the exclusive club Jan. 16 at Duke.
NOTRE DAME ââ’¬” MIAMI SERIES HISTORY:
- All-time series: Notre Dame leads 10-8.
- Notre Dame at Miami: 4-4
- First meeting: Feb. 22, 1986, a 126-73 victory for the Irish at Miami.
- Most recent meeting: March 12, 2015, a 70-63 victory for the Irish in the ACC Championship Quarterfinals.
- Mike Brey vs. Miami at Notre Dame: 4-1
THE LAST TIMEââ’¬¦ VS. MIAMI:
Notre Dame scored 45 points in the first half and held off a Miami rally to advance to the ACC Championship Semifinals with a 70-63 victory over the Hurricanes at the Greensboro Coliseum on March 12, 2015. Five Irish players scored in double figures, led by current junior Steve Vasturia’s 16 points. The Irish held Miami to 36.4% shooting in the contest. The Hurricanes were led by Angel Rodriguez with 15 points off the bench.
MEMORABLE START FOR ‘BURG’:
Senior captain A.J. Burgett made his first start for the Fighting Irish since March 3, 2014 in Notre Dame’s 85-62 victory over Wake Forest this past Sunday. Called upon due to his outstanding practice performances over the past month, Burgett responded with a career day. He ended the game with career-best in points (14) and three pointers made (4).
Heading into the game with Wake Forest, Burgett had seen 41 minutes played but ended up with a season-high 25 minutes against the Demon Deacons.
IRISH BENCH READY FOR ACTION:
Three Irish players have made an impression on the box score in their first significant minutes of the 2015-16 season.
On November 27, freshman forward Matt Ryan saw a season-high 26 minutes against Iowa, scoring a then-career best 11 points. Ryan moved into the starting line up against Georgia Tech on Jan. 13 and played a career-high 35 minutes with 10 points and seven rebounds.
On January 16, freshman guard Rex Pflueger came off the bench to play 23 key minutes in Notre Dame’s victory at Duke. Pflueger contributed seven points, two blocks and plenty of defense in the program’s first win in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Prior to the Duke game, Pflueger’s highest minutes played in a game was 12 against Youngstown State.
Last Sunday, Jan. 31, A.J. Burgett joined the starting lineup and played a season-high 25 minutes, scoring a career-high 14 points.
20 and 10:
Zach Auguste is putting together a stellar senior campaign. Averaging a career-best 14.0 points and 10.1 rebounds, Auguste has 12 ‘double-doubles’ to his credit this season and has reached the 20 and 10 plateau (20+ points, 10+ rebounds) three times this season. Auguste had 23 points and 11 rebounds vs. Stony Brook, 22 points and a career-high 15 rebounds vs. Georgia Tech and 21 points and 12 rebounds vs. Wake Forest.
Auguste just missed reaching that 20-10 mark vs. Georgia Tech (24-9) and UMass-Lowell (19-10).
IRISH IN THE ACC:
Notre Dame is 25-19 in ACC regular-season play after two-plus seasons in the conference. After going 6-12 in its first season in 2014-15, the Irish finished 14-4 in 2014-15.
Notre Dame’s 14 wins a year ago (+8.0) marked the second-best improvement from the previous season in ACC history.
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