Notre Dame was dealt a heavy blow yesterday when it learned that team leader Tim Abromaitis tore his ACL in practice and will be out for what was to be his final season in South Bend. Abromaitis, a fifth year senior forward, was set to lead the Irish (currently 4-2) on a quest for another NCAA Tournament bid coming off a stellar season (15.4 PPG, 6.1 RPG) supporting the departed Big East Player of the Year, Ben Hansbrough. It is not known if Abromaitis will seek a rare sixth year of eligibility. He has already earned both undergraduate and masters degrees from Notre Dame and will have surgery in the coming weeks.
Notre Dame has some experience playing without Abromaitis this season as he played in just two games, ironically the team’s only losses, after sitting out the first four contests due to an NCAA suspension for playing in exhibition games leading up to a redshirt year in 2008-09. Even with Abromaitis, the Irish were running thin on the front line. Coach Mike Brey will be forced to play small and juggle the match-ups to win, relying heavily upon sophomore point guard Erik Atkins (14.8 PPG, 3.0 APG), sophomore guard Jerian Grant (13.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 4.5 APG) and senior wing Scott Martin (11.7 PPG, 4.8 RPG). Also look for a continued increase in responsibilities for freshman guard/forward Pat Connaughton (10.5 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 24.7 MPG) who saw increased minutes during the Abromaitis suspension and has shown well thus far.
Notre Dame, who is riding a two-game losing streak, hosts Bryant University on Sunday.