Notre Dame looks to bounce back in second year in ACC

It’s not a stretch to say the Notre Dame men’s basketball team wasn’t too pleased with its inaugural season in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

After finishing 15-17 overall and 6-12 in the conference, it’s not difficult to see why.

“We certainly got baptized by fire last year,” Coach Mike Brey said. “It was a rude awakening being a newcomer in this league.”

But a year later, the Fighting Irish are looking to redeem themselves and make a name in the ACC.

With the return of seniors Jerian Grant, who decided to return after an academic-related suspension during the 2013-14 year, and Pat Connaughton, Notre Dame is looking for a return to the NCAA Tournament.

“You go through a year like that, you go through a tough year, and you’re able to get through it with your teammates, and I think that brings a lot of guys closer together,” Connaughton said. “I think everyone is motivated to do better, and everyone is motivated to have each other’s backs and try to show the ACC the way we used to play.”

When he says ‘the way we used to play,’ Connaughton is referring to Notre Dame’s presence in the Big East; but early in conference play in the 2013-14 season, it became clear that the team had to approach its new ACC opponents differently.

“None of the teams are the same from the Big East,” Grant said. “You can’t just figure out what they’re doing from who they played last year. I feel like in the Big East you knew what you were going to get.”

And Brey agreed.

“You know, when you’re in the Big East all those years, you have your breakdown drills before you play Georgetown and before you play Connecticut, and we really didn’t have that,” he said.

He also said, however, that he thinks the team has a little better feel for the league now. And the 1-2 combination of Connaughton and Grant — with 13.8 and 19 points per game respectively in the 2013-14 season — definitely won’t hurt the Irish.

“With (Grant) and Connaughton as seniors, I think those are two of the 10 or 12 best returning players in the league,” Brey commented. “Pretty good place to start. We feel we can play our way back into the mix of things in this league.”

Notre Dame is looking to improve defensively and also try not to focus only on the Dukes and the North Carolinas, overlooking the games it is expected to win. They learned — the hard way — that you cannot do that in a power conference like the ACC.

“I don’t think we’re just trying to be better than last season,” Connaughton said. “I think we’re trying to bring Notre Dame basketball back to where it was in the Big East, when we were at the top of the league year in and year out.”

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