Notre Dame Basketball: Can Ben Hansbrough and the Irish Win it All?

In a college basketball season where no team has truly separated themselves from the pack, Notre Dame is looking more and more like national title favorites. 

The stats aren't particularly impressive: The Irish rank just 37th in the nation in scoring offense and 58th in field goal percentage.

The players aren't particularly impressive: Only three players on the team average double figure scoring and coach Mike Brey only utilizes a six-man rotation. 

But the Irish are 25-4 overall, with a 13-4 record in the toughest conference in America. 

Not bad for a team that just graduated the most winning class in school history.

The Irish are not the flashiest of teams, but they are remarkably efficient.  

Brey runs a "burn" offense, instructing his players to run as much clock as possible while looking for the best shot possible. 

This strategy works well for an Irish team that shoots close to 40 percent from three-point range, and it also helps the Irish in the defensive game, shortening the game and reducing the energy Irish players expend on defense.

The switch to the burn offense has actually even improved the Irish's offensive attack, despite fewer shots being taken.  

Brey called the offense "a great teaching tool, because it has taught guys to understand patience and, even better, shot selection." 

The results have been splendid since switching to the burn offense; last year the Irish were a bubble team that finished the year as a six seed, and this year they are ranked seventh in the nation, a half-game behind Pittsburgh for the Big East lead. 

Brey also emphasized the importance of "changing gears" on offense throughout the season, which the Irish have certainly done. 

The Irish can easily switch over to an up-tempo offense because they have so many shooters to spread on the floor in transition.

The ability of Notre Dame to win those low scoring games, as well as the shootouts, is what makes them so impressive.   

To illustrate, Notre Dame beat then No. 2 Pittsburgh 56-51 in late January, then beat No. 15 Louisville 89-79 two weeks later.

Notre Dame is not without flaws however—they can be offensively challenged at times; in all of their four losses, Notre Dame failed to break 60 points.

They are a team that relies heavily on three-point shooting and if the shots aren't falling come March, that could spell an early exit for the Irish. 

But the positives far outweigh the negatives for the Irish. They look poised to make a deep tournament run.

As leading scorer Ben Hansbrough put it: "This group has been very good at rising to the occasion... Every time we've had a challenge, we've done it" (Brian Hamilton, Chicago Tribune).

Hansbrough should be excited. The Irish are 5-2 against top-25 competition (not including an early-season win against then-unranked Wisconsin) and have won 10 of their last 11 games.

Notre Dame is a well-coached team that is equally balanced on offense and defense.  

In a season with no dominant teams, the luck may finally be with the Irish come tournament time.