South Dakota Preview

Sagarin Predictor- ND by 27.53
Rankings-

• ND- Sagarin- 8th, Pomeroy-30th
• South Dakota- Sagarin- 305th, Pomeroy- NR

A couple of tempo-free stats to chew on (though it is still too early to take these numbers too seriously):

The Irish have one of the best offenses in the country, ranking fifth in adjusted efficiency. Notre Dame scores 125.8 points per 100 possessions, slightly above North Carolina and below Tennessee's 128.8. The defense has not been so strong, at 162nd nationally. Last year's rankings were 22nd and 42nd, respectively.

Looking forward to Ohio State on Saturday, the Irish will go up against the second best defense in the country. While Ohio State barely ranks in the top 100 on offense, its D allows only 71.5 points per 100 possessions (case in point, OSU's dreadfully boring 59-22 win over Samford). We will learn more about this team after Tuesday when they play #22 Miami.

Speaking of rankings, the Irish moved up a spot to #7 in the Coaches' Poll. Gonzaga and Oklahoma jumped us by remaining unbeaten and defeating top opponents in Tennessee and Purdue. Ohio State is 28th, receiving 32 votes.

EDIT: McAlarney made the Big East weekly honor roll and a record 8 Big East teams are currently ranked in the AP poll (ND is 7th there too).