| ACC Tournament: | #12 NOTRE DAME (12-19, 7-13) |
|---|---|
| ACC TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: | CLICK HERE |
| WHERE: | WASHINGTON D.C. | CAPITAL ONE ARENA |
| TICKETS: | PURCHASE ONLINE |
| LISTEN: | NOTRE DAME RADIO NETWORK | CLICK HERE |
| SOCIAL: | @NDMBB | #GOIRISH |
| 1ST ROUND: | #13 GEORGIA TECH | TUESDAY, MARCH 12, 2 PM ET | ACCN |
| 2ND ROUND: | #5 WAKE FOREST | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13, 2:30 PM ET | ESPN |
| QUARTERFINALS: | #4 PITT | THURSDAY, MARCH 14 , 2:30 PM ET | ESPN/2 |
| SEMIFINALS: | #1 NORTH CAROLINA/TBD | FRIDAY, MARCH 15, 7 PM ET | ESPN/2 |
| FINALS: | TBD | SATURDAY, MARCH 16, 8:30 PM ET | ESPN |
NOTRE DAME NOTES | WAKE FOREST NOTES
Winston-Salem, NC – This weekend will mark the fourth trip to the Carolinas for the Notre Dame men’s basketball squad this ACC season, as the Fighting Irish (10-18, 2-15) still search for that coveted first road win. To pull off the feat, the Irish will have to topple Wake Forest (17-11, 9-8), who they have already met once this season. Tip inside LJVM Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 25. The game will air on ACC Network.
ND VS WAKE
Notre Dame owns the slightest edge in the overall series, only up 8-7, with a 2-3 mark in LJVM Coliseum. The two have already clashed once this season, with ND dropping an 81-64 decision in South Bend. It was one of the rare few ACC games that weren’t close this season. It was a weird game which saw Notre Dame in control early, claiming a 12-point lead in the first half. Wake Forest then found its stroke and hit 11 three-pointers in the second half. Nate Laszewski led the Irish in scoring with 18 points. For Wake, Damari Monsanto hit a ridiculous eight threes to pour in 28 points.
THE DIFFERENCE A FEW POSSESSIONS CAN MAKE
How unlucky have the Irish been this season? Just in ACC play alone, they have lost 10 games by single digits. Of those 10, a whopping eight have been by five points or less. Plus, an incredible five has been decided by one possession.
If those eight that were decided by five points or less went a different direction, aka the difference of 2-3 possessions, the Irish could easily be sitting at 10-7 and in the middle of the pack.
Taking a deeper look at six of ND’s last seven losses – excluding the Wake Forest outlier – the Irish have lost by a combined margin of 21 points over 6 games, which equates to a 3.5 average margin of defeat.
UNLUCK OF THE IRISH
Coach Brey has been happy with how the guys have competed over the last 3 games, they just have to find a way to close. The Irish battled Duke, No. 7 Virginia and North Carolina to the final minute. All three – it was Unluck of the Irish.
At Duke, the Irish Trailed by 10 in the 2nd half and rallied to make it a one-point game at 62-63 with 36 seconds left. The comeback was fueled by Dane Goodwin, who scored 17 straight points from 12:35-4:29. Goodwin finished with a season high 25 points on 11-of-13 shooting. ND thought they would have a chance for at least the tie at the end if it wasn’t for the heroics of Duke’s Mark Mitchell, who had one field goal at that point in the game. He then hit a corner three with 12.0 seconds left.
A few days later in Charlottesville, the Irish thought they had a miracle at the buzzer. Down two with three seconds on the clock, Trey Wertz was on the free-throw line with one to shoot. He then shot a ‘perfect miss’ as the ball found its way back to him. Wertz calmly dished to Dane Goodwin who was wide open for the game-winning three. It hit off the rim as ND fell at the buzzer 57-55.
A few days later at home vs North Carolina, it was 57-56 UNC with one minute remaining. UNC’s Davis took his defender 1-on-1 and converted a tough jumper just beyond the free-throw line, extending the lead to 59-56. The Irish put the ball in Starling’s hands and the freshman beat his defender with a driving layup down the right side of the paint – now 59-58 UNC with 30.3 seconds left. Next, the offensive boards helped the Tar Heels again as they got two shots off but no rim. Notre Dame was a second away from a huge defensive stand and on UNC’s third shot of the possession they hit the front end of the rim as the rebound was knocked out-of-bounds. It stayed with UNC with now just nine seconds on the clock, shot-clock off, which meant ND had to foul. The Tar Heels made both free throws and then fouled Notre Dame so they couldn’t shoot the three. ND ultimately fell 63-59.
TAKEAWAYS FROM UNC GAME
The major positive, outside of it being a one-possession game in the final minute yet again, was the defensive performance in the first half.
With the score 27-19 at the half, Notre Dame held North Carolina to its lowest first-half score total of the year. UNC’s 19 points were the fewest in a half vs an unranked team since Feb. 24, 2015 (against NC State). The Tar Heels shot 5-of-27 from the field (18.5 percent), which was their lowest shooting percentage in a half since 1980. Their five field goals were the fewest in a half in over a decade.
DANE IS THE ROAD WARRIOR
Dane Goodwin has found much success on the road down the stretch. He’s posted seven straight road games in double figures – averaging 14.7 ppg (103 points).
THREAT FROM THREE
Notre Dame’s offense may struggle from time to time, but you can’t argue with the team’s three-point shooting ability. The Irish rank 3rd in the ACC in made three-pointers per game and 39th in the country, converting 8.9 per game. They also rank 5th in three-point shooting percentage (.361). Their 8.9 threes per game would rank 6th all-time in program history – the program record is 9.7 set by the 19-20 squad.
— ND —