March Madness: Previewing Saturday’s Round of 32 Matchups
Notre Dame (5) vs. West Virginia (4)
West Virginia versus Notre Dame is a true strength-against-strength matchup. West Virginia turns their opponent over on 24.7% of possessions, which is the highest rate in the country. Notre Dame, on the other hand, turns the ball over on 12.4% of possessions, which is the best mark of any team in the country.
Notre Dame survived a scare from Princeton in the opening round, and West Virginia held off a late push by Bucknell.
Below are three players to keep an eye on from each team.
| Player | Team | PPG | RPG | eFG% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jevon Carter | West Virginia | 13.1 | 4.9 | .537 |
| Esa Ahmad | West Virginia | 11.2 | 4.2 | .510 |
| Nathan Adrian | West Virginia | 9.9 | 5.9 | .482 |
| Bonzie Colson | Notre Dame | 17.5 | 10.2 | .549 |
| V.J. Beachem | Notre Dame | 15.0 | 4.1 | .540 |
| Matt Farrell | Notre Dame | 14.2 | 2.0 | .545 |
Here is a quick breakdown of the team stats comparison.
| Team | nERD | O Rtg | eFG% | Reb% | TO% | D Rtg | Opp. eFG% | Opp. TO% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #4 West Virginia | 18.64 | 112.7 | .518 | 51.8 | 14.2 | 91.2 | .487 | 24.7 |
| #5 Notre Dame | 14.26 | 114.5 | .540 | 48.7 | 12.4 | 101.6 | .489 | 16.3 |
