After four games, Kellogg acknowledged that Davis’ maturation into a Minutemen mainstay is still considered a “work in progress.”

Davis played 32 minutes Saturday against Notre Dame, but scored just nine points on 4-of-11 shooting. He didn’t score a single point in the first half, and looked out of sorts in all aspects of offensively.

But what’s more concerning for Davis – who admittedly refers to himself as a scorer – is the facilitation of shots and scoring throughout the UMass offense. The Minutemen had only four assists Saturday, as opposed to 18 turnovers, and Davis assisted a teammate on just a single scoring play.

Davis is struggling to determine his role. As Kellogg’s point guard, the ball and the offense works through him. But at what point is Davis hurting his own production – and the production of the team – by also passing up scoring opportunities?

“Trying to find my teammates and get them involved first, I think has been a little hard for me,” Davis said. “I’m more of a scorer, I think I need to start taking that back. Start the game more aggressive and try to get to the paint and look for my shot first.”

Davis deferred often to start the game, which initially worked out. UMass jumped out to a 24-15 lead, but that came as a result of its strong defensive play, which created opportunities offensively. As Notre Dame adjusted, the Minutemen came to a grinding halt.

UMass scored just four points in the final seven minutes, 42 seconds of the half. During that span, the Irish turned a 24-15 deficit into a 31-28 halftime lead.

Davis attempted to jumpstart the offense in the second half, but did so with mixed results. He opened the half shooting 1-of-3, but again the Minutemen offense stalled, and Notre Dame extended its lead to as much as 17 points.

“Coach has told me to be more aggressive and attack the basket and look for my own shot,” Davis said of his second half mentality. “I think that’s what I’m about to start doing because now, me being like that, I don’t feel good like that.”

“He struggled some today,” Kellogg said of Davis. “He’s still trying to find his way as our initial point guard, with what’s a good shot, when to shoot and taking care of the basketball. It may be a little bit of a work in progress since this is the first time he’s been a full-time point guard.”

According to Davis, the easiest way to jumpstart himself and his teammates is for him to become more aggressive. He’s known as a streaky shooter and he’s capable of scoring in bunches. In a season-opening win over Siena, he scored 28 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-6 from behind the 3-point line.

Balancing his scoring abilities with making responsible decisions is something he’s thinking about.

“It’s something I think I gotta work on,” Davis said. “I just have to continue to get better. My teammates want me to be more aggressive and I think that’s the output I’m going to take going into the next game.”

Davis is at his best when he’s playing in rhythm, typically as a shooter off a screen or creating his own shot. In his last three games – he’s shooting 37 percent and has made only two 3-pointers – he’s played hesitant, unwilling to pull the trigger on shots he normally takes.

The Minutemen as a whole aren’t displaying a consistent outside shooting threat, something Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said allowed him to stick to a defensive strategy which focused on defending against layups and action within the paint.

The ability to stretch the floor starts with Davis. He believes, as a scorer, production will increase as he gets back to what he’s comfortable with.

“I just have to play,” Davis said. “I’m listening to some people here and some people there. Some people want me to facilitate and some people want me to look for my shot more.

There’s a lot coming at me right now. I just need to push it all out and do what I know I can do.”

Mark Chiarelli can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @Mark_Chiarelli