NEW YORK -- When Jamelle Cornley looks across the Madison Square Garden floor at 9 tonight, he'll be staring at a taller, burlier version of himself for what is likely the first time in his four-year career.
Three inches taller and 15 pounds heavier than the Penn State men's basketball forward, Luke Harangody presents the type of inside-outside threat that gives rival players nightmares and makes opposing coaches gush before game day.
His 23.5 point, 11.8 rebound per game averages speak for themselves, as the Notre Dame forward often crashes, collides and contends down low, powering his way to the rim for easy buckets and snatching every board in sight.
"Creating contact is something that I think both of us do a good amount, but he's somebody who's relentless, as well as myself," Cornley said of his opponent. "I respect the things that he does down there because being down there with such taller defenders, you gotta be relentless and you gotta show a lot of heart and passion."
But just when defenders think they have him figured out, the 2008 Big East Player of the Year steps back and shoots a 3, keeping his opponents honest with a 36 percent effort from beyond the arc.
Harangody is one of seven Fighting Irish (21-14, 8-10 Big East) to shoot better than 30 percent from 3 on the season, which makes virtually anyone on the court a threat to score at any given time.
Missed shots from long range often create rebounding opportunities near the perimeter, something the Nittany Lions' backcourt will have to prepare for, given the Irish's love affair with the outside shot.
"We gotta discourage them. We can't really present the opportunities for them and when they do we gotta get our hands in their face and, more importantly for me and Stan [Pringle], we gotta go back and rebound," Battle said. "There's gonna be a lot of long rebounds so we can't really count on the big guys."
Battle called Harangody one of the best players in the country, a notion that was affirmed later Monday when he was named to the Associated Press All-America second team for the second consecutive season.
Andrew Jones, a more traditional center, will start the night covering Harangody, but Cornley said the Lions (25-11, 10-8 Big Ten) won't be afraid to switch things up defensively to keep the Irish guessing throughout the game.
"Defending him is gonna be a task," he said, "but as long as I think we can contain him and limit the amount of 3s that they shoot, we'll be OK."
Yet it'll be the bandaged Cornley who is targeted from the other side, as his recent performances through injuries in the postseason has drawn the attention of his opposition.
"Jamelle's a great player. You can see it in the inside and the outside, too," Harangody said. "From what I've seen on tape just the last couple games, especially against Florida, he's shown that very well, so it should be quite a challenge for us."
