We’re almost there, almost back to the grind of another Notre Dame basketball season. Before you know it, there will be a foot of snow on the ground, temperatures will be below zero, and another Atlantic Coast Conference game will be going up and down the court inside Purcell Pavilion.
To get you ready for those nights and get you ready for a Notre Dame season that starts in Rome on November 1 against Villanova in the Eternal City Tip-off, we’ll take an alphabetical player-by-player look - from 0 to 51 with several stops in between - at the 2026-27 Notre Dame basketball team over the next 16 days (Monday, October 12 thru Friday, October 30).
Who are these guys? What did they do last year? Where do they fit in this one? And what does fourth-year head coach Micah Shrewsberry think of them? Your snapshot of the 2026-27 Irish starts here.
∎ (4) Bryce Dortch
Hometown (High School/previous school): Somerville, Massachusetts (Brimmer & May/Rutgers)
Dimensions: 6-foot-9, 210 pounds
Projected position: Backup power forward
Class: Junior
Notable number(s): In 18 Big Ten games last season at Rutgers, Dortch shot .667 percent from the field. Dortch also has not attempted a 3-pointer in his first two seasons of college basketball.
25-26 stats: Averaged 2.1 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.2 assists in 14.5 minutes over 31 games with three starts for Rutgers. Shot .610 percent from the field and .536 from the foul line.
26-27 outlook: Offer flexibility and versatility to an Irish front line that had too few of both the last three seasons. Likely working as a reserve, Dortch will be asked to do – and be – a little of everything when he's in the game. Rebound and defend. Get out in the open floor and finish. Rebound and defend a little more. Compete.
Shrews on Dortch: "We took Bryce because of his versatility. The thought is he could provide some of that sturdiness of guarding fours or fives. He's versatile. He's made huge jumps while he's been here."
Follow South Bend Tribune and NDInsider columnist Tom Noie on X (formerly Twitter): @tnoieNDI. Contact Noie at tnoie@sbtinfo.com
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Scouting Bryce Dortch ahead of 2026-27 Notre Dame basketball season