Keeping It Heel
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UNC Basketball: Fighting Irish vs. Tar Heels game preview

By Brandon Griffin

Jan 31, 2017; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2017; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame Fighting Irish

NCAA Basketball: Duke at Notre Dame
NCAA Basketball: Duke at Notre Dame /

Head Coach: MIke Brey. Career Record: 472-234. Brey is in his 17th season with the Irish, which is his second head coaching stop. Before coming to South Bend, Brey coached at Delaware where he made the tourney twice in five seasons. Brey was also an assistant under Mike Krzyzewski for eight seasons.

Since arriving at Notre Dame, Brey has done nothing but win. In his 16 seasons he has averaged 22 wins a season and made the NCAA tournament 11 times, though he’s never made it past the Elite 8, something he has done each of the past two seasons.

Last Season: Last season, Notre Dame went 24-12 just a year after being the ACC Tournament Champions and making it to the Elite 8. They finished with an 11-7 record in conference play, good enough for fourth in the ACC. After an opening quarterfinals win over Duke, the Irish were throttled in the semifinals against UNC.

Notre Dame went into the NCAA tournament as a six-seed. They won their first three games by a total of 13 points. In the Elite 8, they ran into UNC again and though not as bad as in the ACC Tournament, the Tar Heels made quick work of the over-matched Irish.

Best Former Player: Bill Laimbeer. I am not going to lie, this was not easy. The choice came down to Adrian Dantley and Laimbeer. Despite more points and slightly better honors, I went with Laimbeer.

The four-time All-Star once led the league in rebounding. He was also a starter and key player on two NBA championship teams for the Detroit Pistons. Laimbeer finished his career with 13,790 points, 10,400 rebounds (34th All-Time), and 965 blocks.

This Season: This season, the Irish are 17-6 overall. Notre Dame started the season by winning 16 of their first 18 games including wins over Louisville and Northwestern. However, they have since lost four of their past five including three in a row. What started as a 5-0 first place record in ACC play has quickly become a 6-4 mark.

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