After a nine-day layoff, the Fighting Irish will start the second half of their Big East schedule with a scrimmage … at least it better seem like a scrimmage against the winless DePaul Blue Demons.  After a 6-3 record playing the conference’s most difficult first-half schedule, a loss to one of the bottom five teams would be an unacceptable turn of events to both fans and players.  It happened last season when Rutgers got its first conference win at ND’s expense.

“We definitely respected Rutgers, but maybe didn’t go into it with the same energy and focus as some of the higher-ranked teams that we played,” said Notre Dame’s Tim Abromaitis earlier this week.  “If we’re trying to be a top team in this league, we have to go out with that focus and energy every single game.”

While DePaul’s winless conference record might spur an opponent’s indifference, the Irish have plenty of motivation for this game — excitement about playing again after a long layoff, the opportunity to improve the 1-3 conference road record after the upset victory over Pittsburth, and the quest for improved postseason tournament seeding.  Rustiness will be understandable, but lack of intensity will not be.

What you need to know about DePaul:

• #16 scoring offense in the Big East, 62.9 ppg
• #16 scoring defense in the Big East, 79.2 ppg
• #15 free throw percentage in the Big East, 65.9%
• #16 field goal percentage in the Bg East, 39.8%
• #16 field goal percentage defense in the Big East, 50.4%
• #15 three-point percentage in the Big East, 25.2%
• #16 rebounding margin in the Big East, -4.2
• #6 assists per game in the Big East, 15.4
• #13 turnover margin in the Big East, -1.9
• #9 assists/turnover ratio in the Big East, 1.1

First-year head coach Oliver Purnell, 394-280 in four head coaching stints before DePaul, has his work cut out for him.  Having 6’8″ freshman forward Cleveland Melvin in the program is a good start.  Melvin is 3rd in Big East scoring (20.5), 11th in field goal percentage (51.1%), 10th in rebounding (6.8), and 8th in blocked shots (1.6).  Unfortunately for Purnell and the Demons, there is only one of him.  Nobody else averages more than nine points per game.

What you need to know about Notre Dame:

• #11 scoring offense in the Big East, 65.4 ppg
• #4 scoring defense in the Big East, 65.7 ppg
• #7 free throw percentage in the Big East, 71.9%
• #6 field goal percentage in the Big East, 44.6%
• #12 field goal percentage defense in the Big East, 44.2%
• #5 three-point percentage in the Big East, 37.4%
• #10 rebounding margin in the Big East, -1.4
• #9 assists per game in the Big East, 13.8 per game
• #12 turnover margin in the Big East, -0.6
• #9 assist/turnover ratio in the Big East, 1.1

Ben Hansbrough’s 18.1 points per game lead the Irish in scoring and are good enough for 5th in the conference.  Tim Abromaitis (11.8) and Scott Martin (10.1) add double-digit averages.  Carleton Scott leads in rebounding, 5.6 per game.

The Matchup

Nothing in the numbers suggests that DePaul has a chance, but that’s what I said about Notre Dame going to Pittsburgh.  Then the Irish got their first road win.  This game is a chance to build on the road record, a statistic the selection committee considers as it decides how high to seed teams in the NCAA Tournament.

In Notre Dame’s road games at Marquette and St. John’s, aggressive perimeter defense disrupted its offensive rhythm while contesting three-point shots.  The Irish added to opponents’ defensive effectiveness by missing open threes when they had them.

By the second half of the second game against Marquette, ND had adapted by slowing the offense and working for closer shots, and once the Irish started to score inside, they started hitting threes.  The Pitt game was more of the same … “Burn” for the entire game, and the result was the same:  victory.  The ability to score on the drive led to open threes, and the Irish nailed nine of the18 they took.

Don’t expect Notre Dame to slow the offense for the entire game on Thursday because it shouldn’t be necessary.  But don’t be surprised to see it if things aren’t going well.  Do expect DePaul to extend the defense like Marquette and St. John’s did.  Taking Notre Dame, perhaps rusty form the layoff, out of its offensive rhythm is the Demons’ only chance because they struggle so much to score.

Game information

• #9 Notre Dame (17-4/6-3) at DePaul (6-14/0-8)
• Thursday, February 3rd, at 9pm (ET)
• Allstate Arena, Rosemont, IL
• Television: ESPN
• Internet: ESPN3.com

(Note: All cited statistics are for conference games only)