Michael Beasley, Tyler Hansbrough, and Luke Harangody.
Good thing we aren't playing: "Which one doesn't belong?"
At this point in the college basketball season, we can safely lock in three of our five All-Americans.
Anyone choosing to argue with the first two names on that list can go sit with Kelvin Sampson for the rest of the season. But surely a few will balk at a 6'8'' post player who creates more contact than anyone on Charlie Weis' football team and looks like this.
Seriously, Mark Madsen is a finesse player compared to Harangody.
Yet, with roughly two weeks to go in the regular season, Harangody is a shoe-in for Player of the Year honors in college basketball's strongest conference. He's the Big East's leading scorer and second leading rebounder.
He compares just as favorably nationally against top-tier, front line players like Kevin Love (UCLA), Darrell Arthur (Kansas), or D.J. White (Indiana):
Love 17.3 pts, 11.0 reb
Arthur 13.8 pts, 6.0 reb
White 17.2 pts, 10.4 reb
Harangody 20.5 pts, 10.4 reb
It's no contest, especially when you take into account the competition that Harangody faces on a nightly basis: Roy Hibbert, DeJuan Blair, Hasheem Thabeet. He's the best big man in college basketball's big man conference.
The sophomore put up 23 and 12 in Thursday night's win over Pittsburgh, keeping his Irish very much in the Big East regular season title picture. When all is said and done, he'll be Notre Dame's first All-American since Troy Murphy.
And you know what the best part about Harangody is? He might not get drafted at the YMCA. He'll be the only All-American who isn't taken in June's NBA draft, and he's a lock to be in South Bend for two more seasons.
Comments (18) Add a comment »
from 2 months ago
Amen, Trey. And don't forget about the free throw shooting - 78.5% as of last night's contest. And despite his physical nature, he usually stays out of foul trouble.
from 2 months ago
Good article. Harangody is one of the nation's most underrated players. I think Notre Dame, being a football school, gets lost when people talk of the Big East. Schools like Syracuse don't field as good a team but get more national attention than the Irish.
from 2 months ago
Good article. Harangody is one of the nation's most underrated players. I think Notre Dame, being a football school, gets lost when people talk of the Big East. Schools like Syracuse don't field as good a team but get more national attention than the Irish.
from 2 months ago
Pete Rose would bet on this guy to make All-American and not because they share the same haircut.
from 2 months ago
Sweet article Trey. I was watching Notre Dame play Seton Hall a few weeks ago and Harangody had something like 34 points and 14 rebounds. He is so good, and it is great that you wrote this article about him because he certainly deserves more recognition.
from 2 months ago
GOOOOOOOOOOOOO-DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!
from 2 months ago
I don't understand how a guy like Harangody beats the heck out of everyone around him and somehow draws the foul. I feel sorry for the guy on the floor who just got decked only to find out the foul was on him. Harangody even cries for fouls like a big baby. He's only an All-American in South Bend where the refs can protect him. Kevin
from 2 months ago
Only an All-American in South Bend? How about these ROAD numbers:
@UCONN 32 pts, 16 reb
@SETON 22, 13
@NOVA 25, 10
@GTOWN 13, 8
@MARQ 29, 14
from 2 months ago
Also, try telling Tim Higgins that he was "protecting" Harangody last night against Pitt. He wasn't having any of Luke's physicality and almost gave him a technical at a crucial point of the second half.
from 2 months ago
kind of hard to argue against harangody. its like you say trey, who else besides beasley and hansborough deserve it more? everyone cries for calls, that doesn't make luke less of a player
from 2 months ago
IF Kevin actually watched a Big East game or two he would understand that it is a bangers conference where the refs often let them play. You ever watched Hansbrough, he gets more calls than Jordan. You are not a very informed College bball fan.
from 2 months ago
Trey - I'll say this: Harangody deserves to mentioned in the conversation. That's it. Mentioned.
And ooooohhhh.... the hair...
from 2 months ago
Harangody is one of the top players in the country. His stats prove it. And the reason he has had this kind of season is the hard work he put in during the off-season. He deserves to be 1st Team AA not because of talent, but because of his work ethic and tenacity.
from 2 months ago
It's true, Harangody doesn't get the attention he deserves. Hibbert puts up something like 13 and 7, if I'm not mistaken. As an aside, I'd have to say the Pac 10 is the best conference in basketball.
from 2 months ago
Great article. If Harangody is left out of the post season accolades, its going to be due to lack of exposure (who would've thought I would've ever said that about Notre Dame) and the fact that he doesn't play as "pretty" of a game as the other top-tier players.
He may not have the NBA-level talent, but he is as effective a player as their is in college basketball. I don't know how he does it, but I'm loving it right now...
from 2 months ago
Luke Harangody is deserving of Big East Player of the Year. A.J. Price of UConn has struggled during the past two games. I was at the UConn Notre Dame game and Harangody was very impressive in a hostile environment. Harangody is as tough as they come and he wont back down to anyone. Notre Dame has a very good chance in the NCAA tourney. Terms that come to mind when I think of Harangody are lunch-bucket type player, blue-collar. He is not flashy, he is not the most athletic, but he plays with more heart than anyone else. McAlarney is a great 3-point shooter. Harangody looks like a young version of Gary Busey. My one criticism of him is that he has to cut that mid-western mop of a haircut he has.
from 2 months ago
I swear to God, ESPN spies on this website.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?id=3254631 ... which would link to an article on ESPN.com today about Harangody being a top player in the Big East ... if I knew how to do it.
You were all over this Trey ... I think Mr. Rittenberg at ESPN owes you a reference.
from 2 months ago
From Todd, 2 posts above---
"Terms that come to mind when I think of Harangody are lunch-bucket type player, blue-collar. He is not flashy, he is not the most athletic, but he plays with more heart than anyone else."
All the above can be summed up in one word: white
-----
But all joking aside, he's having a terrific season, as are the Irish, and I'm looking forward to a very exciting March.
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