Notre Dame coach Mike Brey had some nice things to say about Kevin Ollie during his conference call this morning.

The Fighting Irish host the Huskies Saturday afternoon in South Bend.

Brey believes UConn made a smart decision to give Ollie a five-year contract.

“I’m really thrilled that they decided to invest in him…,” Brey said. “You can tell the kids on the team love him. He walks that line of being able to be close to them yet being their coach and getting on their backside extremely well.

 “… It’s a great decision byConnecticut to enlist Kevin long term. … I think it’s great continuity to have him running the show.”

No. 17 Notre Dame (14-1, 2-0) is off to its best overall start in Brey’s 13 seasons as head coach. The Fighting Irish have won 12 straight games for the first time since the 2006-07 season.

UConn (11-3, 1-1) is entering a tough three game stretch during which it also hosts No. 3 Louisville Monday and visits Pittsburgh Jan. 19.

The Huskies head to South Bend coming off an impressive 99-78 rout of DePaul Tuesday in Storrs.