Irish Miss Doherty
UHND.com - Colin Lipnicky
After Notre Dame’s fourth straight nationally televised
defeat on the hardwood, it’s time to face the cold, hard truth.
This Irish basketball team is simply not very good.
I never thought I’d be saying that 14 games into the season. After all, not only was virtually everyone back from last year’s NIT runner up, but with Ryan Humphrey joining the starting lineup, this team was supposed to challenge for the Big East title and be a cinch for the NCAA tournament.
So what has gone wrong? Why have the Irish not only failed to improve, but actually seemed to have taken several steps back?
The answer is painful for Irish fans still feeling a little betrayed by Matt Doherty’s departure to North Carolina. But the truth is the truth.
Doherty was the perfect leader for this Irish team, and they’re not the same without him.
I admit, I was one of those who thought that perhaps we’d gotten the better end of the deal with Mike Brey taking the helm. I read the negative comments about Doherty the players uttered to the press, and believed the Irish were now in better hands.
I was wrong.
Hey, nothing against Brey. The guy is genuine. He may have a long and highly successful career under the Golden Dome.
But there’s no denying that Doherty got every ounce and then some out of these players, who suddenly seem shockingly mediocre.
Doherty would scream. Doherty would cry. Doherty would make them run sprints until they puked.
But in a big game, you did not see what you’ve seen so far this season: Irish players looking listless and lazy on the court. Irish players playing without emotion or confidence. Irish players performing with no heart.
Say what you want about Doherty, but the guy exudes passion, and passion is the one thing utterly lacking in this year’s Irish squad.
You can’t always treat college players, even a veteran team such as Notre Dame, like adults. That was a common refrain among team members before the season started: Coach Brey treats us like adults.
Yeah, well, what this Notre Dame team needs right now is a kick in the pants. They need a coach yelling in their faces and working them until they drop. They need someone to light an inferno under them.
Make no mistake: Unless the Irish get energized, and quick, they are headed toward a John McLeod-like .500 record and an NIT bid at best.
Take Notre Dame’s six gimme wins out of the equation, and they are a disappointing 3-5 this year in the games that count: the ones against potential NCAA tourney teams and conference foes.
This team can do better. They proved it last year.
But that was with Matt Doherty pumping his fists on the sideline.