NDMBB: I didn’t realize how utterly bad we were this year,
by Joe I 
, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 06:07 (71 days ago)
until I just checked to see what our performance was like in the ACC tournament. UNDEFEATED! Because 0-0 counts, right?
I know there’s been some chatter here about degree of ineptitude, but i had no idea. 4-14 in ACC play and Micah is still cashing a paycheck. Pete better be planning for the future.
I get annoyed at the lazy take about ND basketball
It basically goes something like, "ND is a football school and an inordinate level of resources get diverted to our breadwinner program such that it is unreasonable to expect ND basketball to be consistently competitive."
Then the collective fanbase (***DRINK!!!***) succumbs to the basketball media apologists who offer up these justifications and then we end up with the worst of all worlds...pure apathy. Can't be mad at the program/coach/players because the administration has decided basketball is simply not a priority.
I listened to Fortuna's interview with Jordan Cornette who proffered this same line of thought. Of course, he has a vested interest in Shrews' hiring (think he introduced him? Vouched for him?).
Everybody posits this theory but nobody puts forward any facts. It's all spun anecdotes.
Here's what I will say, you don't land a consensus top 15 class (2025) without spending some money ( https://247sports.com/season/2025-basketball/compositeteamrankings/ ). You don't land Burton (for multiple years), Haralson (5* '25), or Sanderson (4* '26) without spending money.
And feel free to beat this up but at least it's trying to objectively measure investment in the program. The Office of Postsecondary Education of the U.S. Department of Education publishes collegiate athletic spending by sport and gender every year. Notre Dame men's basketball is comfortably in the top quartile in the ACC (Duke and UNC are clear leaders).
https://ope.ed.gov/athletics/#/compare/search
People try knocking the source saying the accounting isn't accurate. OK?!?!? Then what else are you putting forward to corroborate this notion that ND doesn't invest?
It just sucks because we are past the point of disappointment and dangerously entered the apathy zone. And too many surrounded by the program twist themselves into pretzels to persuade the public that this is the case.
It also goes without saying
That money doesn't exactly cure all ills. There are numbers floating around regarding the programs that spent the most this season. At the top of that list (I believe) are our friends down in Bloomington. Look where that got them...
Also, O'Malley on the podcast made some good points
by BillyGoat , At Thanksgiving with Joe Bethersontin, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 10:55 (71 days ago) @ Jeremy (WeIsND)
about the very, very, very limited upside of materially increasing MBB spending. So, maybe we sneak into a Final Four once every couple of decades?
As things currently stand, the "get old, stay old" and play heady team basketball with a bunch of good four-year players who probably have pro potential in Europe is dead. It's all about the dominant programs with a combination of the One and Dones and then harvesting the late bloomers/diamonds in the rough that second and third-tier programs actually managed to find/develop but can't afford to keep.
We used to be able to point to programs like Butler under Brad Stevens or VCU under Shaka Smart and say "why can't we do that?" Barring major changes, "that" is dead.
And yet, someone will be second tier and not trash
by Regular Joseph , Thursday, March 19, 2026, 20:50 (71 days ago) @ BillyGoat
I agree the team who wins the championship is going to look like Duke, but there are several teams playing passionate well-coached basketball who will advance to the sweet 16 without spending as much as ND.
I'm jaded and closer than ever to being out on college sports, but the argument can be made that coaching is worth more than ever if you can't just buy a top tier team every season.
I haven't been paying nearly enough attention to opine on what should be done with Shrewsberry, but the team loses an awful lot and he's had some unprofessional moments.
Don't get me wrong. I was just talking about the ROI for
by BillyGoat , At Thanksgiving with Joe Bethersontin, Friday, March 20, 2026, 09:21 (70 days ago) @ Regular Joseph
NDMBB dollars.
We can and should do waaaaaay better than Shrews. There are roster construction issues, but those seem fixable. I don't see why we can't be a consistently solid team, including a reasonable frequency of Sweet Sixteen appearances.
But I also agree with the notion that we could throw every dollar we can find at that program, and "consistent Sweet Sixteens" is going to be the ceiling. MAYBE we sneak into the 8 every once in a while. And considering financial resources are ultimately finite, I don't really care if we make 3 vs 5 Sweet Sixteens each decade.
But we absolutely should be putting a competent basketball team on the floor, and that is not currently happening.
it feels like a longer running issue than just NIL/Portal
by HumanRobot , Cybertron, Friday, March 20, 2026, 06:17 (70 days ago) @ Regular Joseph
After the Jackson run, we've been atrocious in the ACC and it isn't even that great of a league after the top teams.
8–10
3–15
10–10
7–11
15–5
3–17
7–13
8–12
4–14
I get that we aren't Duke or UNC, but why can't we even be Cal or Stanford?
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Freeman's got so much riz they need to call him Aura Parseghian
There's smoke out there
That Shrews is a candidate for the Butler opening. Not sure exactly what to make of that, but its out there.
Can you imagine trying to sell that to your fans?
Which is why it will never happen.
Wouldn't exactly look great for ND either
Particularly if Shrews drops some bombs on his way out the door.
Just interesting that his name is out there. Wonder who's doing that. Presumably his agent.
How much is ND paying Butler for this exchange?
by Joe I , Thursday, March 19, 2026, 08:10 (71 days ago) @ Jeremy (WeIsND)
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Is this a Gerad Parker situation?
by Jeff (BGS) , A starter home in suburban Tempe, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 09:48 (71 days ago) @ Joe I
Why did I think his name was Gerald? What's next, posting about Charlie Weiss and Tommy Reece?
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At night, the ice weasels come.
I thought it was Geryl
by BillyGoat , At Thanksgiving with Joe Bethersontin, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 10:47 (71 days ago) @ Jeff (BGS)
- No text -
Better in net rating than 31-1 Miami University
by South Shore Line , Boston, Massachusetts, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 06:39 (71 days ago) @ Joe I
until they won last night
Combined, ND and Miami are undefeated in the regular season and conference tournament play
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Weaseling out of things is important to learn. It's what separates us from the animals… except the weasel.
I howled when I saw that we didn't qualify.
by San Pedro , More than 100 feet from Bob Davies, Thursday, March 19, 2026, 06:21 (71 days ago) @ Joe I
What can you do but laugh? The basketball program is always a day late and a dollar short. I think I'm immune to it at this point - we were terrible during my 4 years despite having Monty Williams and Pat Garrity.