The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Purdue Boilermakers tip off on Saturday afternoon to start the Crossroad Classic as Indiana’s top four basketball programs battle it out for bragging rights in the Hoosier state.
Both of these teams find themselves down from last year as both programs lost quite a bit of talent over the summer and are in a position for a bit of a rebuild. That said, both teams do still have some upside and some quality veterans along with good young players. Both teams have been okay in the early going, not standing out, but not looking terrible either.
This head-to-head battle for Indiana supremacy is the last real test of the non-conference schedule for both programs and would certainly be a big win for either side. Can the Irish put a stop to their brief losing skid? Or will Purdue ride their stud, Carson Edwards, to a victory?
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Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Purdue Boilermakers
Date and Time: Saturday, December 15, 2018, 1:30 p.m. ET
Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
College Basketball Odds: Check Back Later
Fighting Irish vs. Boilermakers TV Coverage: ESPN
It’s been a tough early season schedule against teams like Virginia Tech, Florid State, Michigan and Maryland, but the Boilermakers have gone a respectable 6-4 through their first ten game and their battle against Notre Dame almost looks like a reprieve of sorts.
This Purdue team has held its own against tough competition considering it lost a ton of talent from last year’s team. This isn’t a program that can withstand such turnover like some of college basketball’s most distinguished programs. The last time it lost this type of talent, the Boilermakers regressed to a below-.500 club. They’ve been better than that so far, however. Carson Edwards is the biggest reason why.
Edwards had a strong sophomore campaign, but has taken his game up an extra step this season with 25.5 PPG while averaging more than 32 minutes on the court.
The guard is taking more shots as he puts the team on his shoulders and while his shooting percentage isn’t great, he’s still doing well from three.
Ryan Cline is also averaging north of 30 minutes and has 13.3 PPG with solid shooting. The senior has been an excellent complement on the outside to Edwards, giving Purdue a quality upperclassman backcourt.
Underneath the basket, Matt Haarms gives the Boilermakers something the team otherwise lacks: size. At 7’3”, he’s an intimidating presence. He’s not overly athletic and doesn’t get 20 minutes a game, but he does have good inside defense when he plays and contributes 8.1 PPG. He’s surprisingly not a great producer of rebounds, however.
As a team, Purdue has put up superior shooting numbers to Notre Dame, sinking 45-percent of their shots and 37-percent from three compared to just 41.3-pervent for the Fighting Irish overall and 31.2-percent from beyond the arc. One advantage the Irish do have, however, is rebounding.
John Mooney is the biggest reason for Notre Dame’s early season success on the boards. He has 9.7 RPG. The junior forward also leads the frontcourt in scoring with 11.6 PPG.
The team’s overall scoring leader is T.J. Gibbs. He and D.J. Harvey own the backcourt for the Irish and have 13.7 PPG and 10.4 PPG respectively. Rex Pflueger and Prentiss Hubb add to a strong backcourt with good ball control though neither are great shooters.
As a team, the Irish come into play having lost back-to-back games, falling to Oklahoma and UCLA. Earlier this year Notre Dame fell to Radford University, 60-63, and now sit 6-3 heading into their tenth game.
Live Betting
Neither Purdue nor Notre Dame come into this game playing their best brand of basketball. The Irish have lost back-to-back games while Purdue has dropped three of its last four to sink to a 6-4 record. That said, the one win did come against then No.23 Maryland with the Boilermakers holding the Terps to 35.1-percent shooting from the floor. Edwards, again, carried the team while Aaron Wheeler came up huge off the bench.
The Maryland win is encouraging and the Purdue non-conference schedule a brutal one. The Boilermakers have fought hard and played close games even in their losses, save for the one against Michigan.
Count on another close contest in this one as Notre Dame and Purdue find themselves in a similar position this year in terms of talent and depth. That should leave plenty of good live betting opportunities at BookMaker.eu.
Key Player
Edwards is, obviously, key. Without a massive game from him, the Boilermakers don’t win. After all, the team lost 72-68 to Texas even after he hung 40 points for the second time this year. That said, he’s been a lock for at least 19 all year and will have another big game, but that’s not enough.
In the win against Maryland, Edwards was supported by some offense inside the paint from Wheeler and the key to this game, Matt Haarms.
For an otherwise small team, Haarm is the inside threat defensively and showed against the Terps he can add some offense from time-to-time as well.
The center has seen his playing time increase lately with 51 total minutes in his last two games. In that time, he’s notched 10 rebounds and 20 points along with four blocks.
The blocks are important against Notre Dame, but so are the rebounds. The Irish have the edge on the boards and the added opportunities could allow the Irish to get the win. The Boilermakers are the superior shooters. If they can stay competitive on the boards they should have a good chance in this one.
Fighting Irish vs. Boilermakers Live Betting
Look for a close game between these two interstate rivals. Neither are playing great basketball heading into the action, but count on the superior shooting of the Boilermakers to pull out the narrow victory. We’ve seen Purdue play well against some quality competition.
Edwards will again lead the team. Count on another big game from him as he’s likely to score nearly 30 in the contest. Meanwhile, the added playing time for Haarm could have a major impact. With Edwards and Cline playing well outside and enough inside the paint, Purdue edges out a victory here.
Be sure to check out all of the live betting at BookMaker.eu for this weekend’s college basketball action.
NCAA Basketball Score Prediction: Purdue 71, Notre Dame 69
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