First Round Recap: Notre Dame/Princeton

Notre Dame

VJ Beachem
6-8, SF, Senior
2 points, 6 rebounds, 1-9 FG, 0-3 3FG

Beachem was pretty much a non factor in this one, which could've been for a few reasons. Notre Dame's system is very well shared across the floor and encourages ball movement. You can see that in a lot of Beachem's box scores, scoring 20 points one game and then 6 points the next. Beachem plays the four and is often setting a lot of screens, something that he more than likely won't be doing in the NBA.




He still got up nine shots though, and he had some ugly drives that ended up getting blocked. He looks to be a one dimensional guy on offense, a guy who can hit shots after someone else creates it for him. On defense, Beachem has active hands and knows where to be in help.  He could do a better job sitting in a stance, but for the most part, he does a good job using his athleticism and length to both guys. He'll have more chances to redeem this performance this weekend, and he could wow teams in workouts due to his potential 3 and D skill set.



Bonzie Colson
6-5, PF, Junior
18 points, 7 rebounds, 2 blocks

Everybody is looking for the next Draymond Green nowadays, the guy who can guard all five positions and bring a lot of tools on offense. Colson fits the mold of an undersized power forward who can bring a lot to the table on offense and shows the potential to guard multiple positions on defense as well. A really productive high school player, Colson has a huge frame and extremely long arms, helping him carve out space for rebounds and bully guys in the post.  He showed off some fadeaway moves in the post and generally used sheer force to power through his man for a bucket.

His jump shot is pretty flat, but his shooting splits this year are very impressive.  He is shooting 54% from 2, 40.7% from 3, and 79% from the line, very impressive for an undersized big man who needs to have all the intangible things going for him. He can handle the ball well, flashing a little grab and go potential on defensive rebounds.  He's a willing screener and has a high IQ within Notre Dame's pro style offense.

The questions will always be whether or not he has the size to compete at the NBA level.  He's even smaller than Draymond, listed at only 6-5.  Hopefully is long arms and wide body can make up for that, but the players in the NBA are bigger and stronger than guys in the ACC. He did have two blocks in this game and he averages 1.4 per game, something that might translate to the next level and help him stay on the floor defensively. He is currently struggling with an ankle injury and you could see him struggling and favoring it a bit when trying to move laterally.  The effort is there though, and it will be interesting to see if there is a team out there that falls in love with him like the Warriors did with Draymond.


Matt Farrell
6-1, PG, Junior
16 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 6-9 FG, 3-5 3FG

If you're looking for this year's TJ McConnell or Matthew Dellavedova, Farrell could be your guy. Farrell was a small part of Notre Dame's team last season and stepped in for the departing Demetrius Jackson. Notre Dame hasn't skipped a beat with Farrell, whose increased role this year has benefited him statistically, averaging 14.2 ppg/5.5 apg/1.4 spg with 41.3% from three on 5.4 attempts per game.

Farrell runs the team, gets them into their offense, knocks down open threes, isn't afraid to get dirty and go to the glass, plays super gritty on defense.  He's got a lot of great qualities about his game despite not being vertically gifted like most players at his position. He'll probably come back for his senior year at Notre Dame and we'll have to wait and see if he can fight and claw his way onto an NBA roster after he graduates.

Princeton

Spencer Weisz
6-4, SF, Senior
15 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks, 3-7 3FG

The Ivy League player of the year showed some translatable NBA skills in this one. Princeton runs a ton of back screen motion often to get post ups, with a lot of Weisz's touches coming in the post. He was a great passer out of the post and on the perimeter as well.  He throws guys open, a rare trait for college players.  That's to go with a really nice stroke from three.  Weisz showed some NBA range on a couple of his threes with a quick trigger and smooth release.

Weisz isn't athletic and normally uses his body to wall guys up instead of moving his feet. The only way he makes a roster is by winning over a coaching staff due to his feel for the game and shooting potential.