Notre Dame at Boston College: What you need to know
MEN’S BASKETBALL
WHO: Notre Dame (9-12 overall; 6-9 ACC) vs. Boston College (3-13; 1-9)
WHERE: Conte Forum (8,600), Chestnut Hill, Mass.
WHEN: Saturday at 2 p.m.
TV: ACC Network
RADIO: WSBT (960 AM/96.1 FM).
ONLINE: Follow every Notre Dame game with live updates from Tribune beat writer Tom Noie at twitter.com/tnoieNDI
NOTING: Boston College has been on a coronavirus pause since a Feb. 13 loss at Syracuse. … The Eagles have had their last two games and seven of their last 10 affected by coronavirus issues. … Former head coach Jim Christian was fired Feb. 15, less than two hours after participating in the weekly conference head coaches Zoom media call. Christian went 78-132 overall, 26-94 in the ACC during his seven seasons. His teams only once had a winning record (2017-18). … Assistant coach Scott Spinelli is serving as acting head coach. … The Eagles have lost four straight and eight of nine. Their league win is over Miami (Fla.), their only win since New Year’s. … Former Eagles guard Wynston Tabbs has entered the transfer portal after being suspended for the rest of the season two weeks ago after a violation of the school’s pandemic protocol. … Boston College is one of six repeat opponents for Notre Dame. The teams met Jan. 16 at Purcell Pavilion, an 80-70 Irish victory. Five Irish scored double figures led by Dane Goodwin’s 21 points. Power forward Juwan Durham added 12 points and 11 rebounds. It was Notre Dame’s first league win. Power forward Steffon Mitchell led the Eagles with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Tabbs added 14 points off the bench. The Irish led for 36:47. ... The Eagles lost their next five games to coronavirus issues after this contest. … Notre Dame leads the all-time series 24-11, including three in a row and 16 of 17. The Irish are 14-1 against the Eagles as ACC colleagues and 9-6 at Conte Forum. Notre Dame never has lost in Chestnut Hill as a member of the ACC. Boston College last beat Notre Dame in The Heights on Feb. 2, 2004 when both were members of the Big East. … Mitchell leads all active ACC players with 17 career double doubles. … The Eagles are 1-5 at home in league play. … This caps a stretch of three in a row and five of six on the road for Notre Dame, which finishes the season with home games against North Carolina State and Florida State. … Notre Dame is 3-6 on the road in ACC play. … The Irish have lost two straight after winning six of eight. They look to avoid a third straight league loss for a second time this season. … Boston College is in 15th place — last — in the league; Notre Dame is in 11th.
QUOTING: “It’s an unfortunate situation, but we’ve kind of bonded together, the staff has, and we’ve got our guys working together to try and get better. Nothing’s changed. We’re trying to win. The season is still in play. Our guys are dialed in right now.” —Boston College acting head coach Scott Spinelli on taking over for former coach Jim Christian
— Tom Noie
Twitter: @tnoieNDI
