Niagara vs Notre Dame Odds, Picks and Predictions: Delightful Irish Debut

After 23 years under the guidance of Mike Brey, there’s a new bench boss in South Bend.

With Micah Shrewsberry now at the helm, what will the Notre Dame Fighting Irish look like when they debut tonight against the Niagara Purple Eagles?

College basketball odds have the Irish as 8.5-point favorites, in a matchup of two schools in serious transition. Read on for my best free college basketball picks and analysis for Niagara vs. Notre Dame on Monday, November 6.

Niagara  vs Notre Dame best odds

Niagara vs Notre Dame picks and predictions

The Mike Brey era ended with a whimper, as Notre Dame finished a dismal 11-21 last year, including a brutal 3-17 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

It appears there’s nowhere to go but up after Notre Dame scored just 69.6 points per game, which was a distant 220th in the NCAA.

The only four players on the roster who averaged double-digits in scoring have either graduated or transferred, including Nate Laszewski — who led the team with 13.7 points and 7.3 rebounds — and second-leading scorer Cormac Ryan, who put up 12.3 points and led ND with 1.3 steals.

That leaves a lot of roster intrigue and plenty of potential. While it hasn’t been confirmed, there’s a very good chance the backcourt will be manned by freshmen Markus Burton and Braeden Shrewsberry — yes, the coach’s son.

Perhaps their best young hope is four-star prospect Carey Booth. The lanky, 6-foot-10 big man should be able to bang and board defensively, but also step out onto the perimeter and knock down shots on offense.

Whoever does work their way into the rotation will also be tasked with improving a defense that allowed 72.1 points against, which ranked 239th, with the KenPom adjusted defensive ranking an even bleaker 255th.

If there’s a team that can understand what Notre Dame is going through, it’s Niagara. The Purple Eagles finished 16-15 last year, including a 10-10 mark in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

They’re down their three top scorers from last season, with Noah Thomasson and his 19.5 points per game into the transfer portal and onto Georgia. Not only that, but second-leading point-getter Aaron Gray transferred to Indiana State.

Niagara also struggled to put the ball in the basket, scoring 65 points per game, way down the NCAA rankings at no. 323.

Unlike ND, there are no star players refreshing the pipeline, and while the transfer portal netted them some needed bodies, they will enter the year with no player who scored in double digits a season ago.

Most notable are a trio of seniors: forward Yaw Obeng-Mensah from UMBC, guard Randy Tucker coming over from Green Bay, and Luke Bumbalough, a guard transferring from Ball State. 

There’s no telling how this roster picks up from last season's defensive identity either. The Purple Eagles stayed competitive by allowing 65.9 points a game, inside the Top 60 in the nation.

However, this being the Irish’s home opener with a new coach at the helm plays a factor in this matchup. 

Combine that with a weaker opponent, and the fact that Notre Dame has won 10 straight games against non-conference opponents at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center, and I'm taking the favorites to cover.

My best bet: Notre Dame -8.5 (-110 at DraftKings)64% boost available

Niagara vs Notre Dame same-game parlay

Notre Dame -8.5

Notre Dame team total Under 67.5

Under 125.5

30% boost available

+415 +540 at FanDuel

We know these are overhauled rosters, and while that’s business as usual for Kentucky or North Carolina, Niagara and Notre Dame don’t have five-star recruits waiting in the wings to dot the starting lineups.

That’s also a reason why I believe these teams will struggle to find solid offensive flow, at least early on.

These teams ranked among the lowest in KenPom’s adjusted tempo metric a season ago, with Niagara ranking 346, and Notre Dame not much better at 304.

The lack of easy buckets is noticeable: Niagara averaged 6.87 fast-break points per game (290), with ND way down the board, at 4.97 points (337).

Shrewsberry’s offense at Penn State managed to put up 72.2 points per game last year, but he’s going to need a little bit of time to sculpt his offense with this roster.

I don’t think both teams hit 60 points in this opener.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

Niagara vs Notre Dame spread and Over/Under analysis

This spread opened as low as 7.5 points, and if you were thinking of betting an upset, your best odds came a few days ago, when Niagara was pegged as a distant +9.5-point underdog.

Most books have settled in that 8.5 to nine-point range heading into tonight's contest.

The total has moved consistently lower during the last week, since opening at 130 points.

Interestingly, FanDuel and DraftKings both dropped their totals to 127.5 on Sunday afternoon, before settling in at 125.5 just before 10 p.m. ET.

Niagara vs Notre Dame betting trend to know

The Fighting Irish finished last season with a 10-20-2 record against the spread, while Niagara finished 16-14-0 ATS. Find more college basketball betting trends for Niagara vs Notre Dame.

Niagara vs Notre Dame game info

Niagara vs Notre Dame key injuries

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