Game Preview 24 - One Last Test with the Ramblin Wreck

NOTRE DAME NOTES | GEORGIA TECH NOTES

ATLANTA – The Notre Dame men’s basketball time will hit the road to Atlanta for a midweek contest, and with this road trip comes a great opportunity to finally get the proverbial road monkey off their back. The Fighting Irish (10-13, 2-10) have been so close in road contests this year (Syracuse, Florida State and NC State to name a few) but still seek that coveted first road victory. They’ll square off against rival Georgia Tech on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at 7 p.m. ET inside McCamish Pavilion. The game will air on RSN and will also be broadcast on the Notre Dame Radio Network.

ONE LAST TIME WITH GEORGIA TECH

Notre Dame has waged some battles over Brey’s tenure with Georgia Tech as the departing head coach as a 13-7 record against the Yellow Jackets. Of those 20 games, 12 were decided by five points or less and 18 were decided by single digits!

Case in point, two of the last three games between the two have gone to overtime. 

On Jan. 10 of this year, the Irish gutted a 73-72 OT victory at home. Down seven points with 2:20 to go in regulation, the Irish stormed back to tie it at 65-all and even had a chance to win it a the buzzer. Then fought punch-for-punch in overtime, as a last-second defensive stand sealed it. Dane Goodwin was everywhere with a team-high 19 points and a career-best 12 rebounds, marking the first double-double of the season and the fifth of his career. Goodwin connected on a pivotal three in overtime, his lone trey of the game. Freshman JJ Starling also shone bright with 16 points. 

Then it was the last time the Irish were in McCamish Pavilion, when they gutted out a 72-68 OT victory on Jan. 8, 2022. As far as returners go, Goodwin led with 14 points – all in teh second half. 

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 2nd in the ACC in made three-pointers per game and 29th in the country, converting 9.0 per game. They also rank 3rd in three-point shooting percentage (.367). They’re 9.0 threes per game would rank 6th all-time in program history – the program record is 9.7 set by the 19-20 squad. 

Since Nov. 30 (17 games), Notre Dame has knocked down 162 three-pointers (9.5 per game) which ranks 2nd behind Alabama amongst Power-Five schools since that date.

23 IN ‘23

Goodwin just ended his best offensive stretch of the season – 10 straight games in double figures from Dec. 27-Jan. 28. He amassed 131 points in that span, averaging 13.1 ppg. It marked the 2nd time of his collegiate career reaching a double-digit scoring streak mark – his career best is 20 from the 21-22 season. 

Now in 2023 (9 games), Goodwin is averaging 12.3 ppg (111 points) – which ranks 2nd on the team behind Laszewski for that time span. He’s also been more active on the glass in 2023 grabbing 62 boards  aka 6.9 rpg – that number leads the team. 

“THAT WAS MARCUS HAMMOND”

Marcus Hammond is starting to get in a groove as of late and be that guy that Coach Brey thought he could be for the Irish. 

Four double-digit scoring performances in the last 6 games. He led the team in scoring in two of them (Syracuse + BC, Jan. 14-17) –> had back-to-back games with a season high in made threes (4+5). Hammond is averaging 12.2 ppg over said 6-game span (73 points). 

Hammond recently produced his first double-double of the season, and 5th of his career, with 11 points and 10 rebounds at NC State. 

JJ STEPS UP

Freshman JJ Starling showed up and showed out with a game high 22 points, helping lift the Irish to the 76-62 victory over Louisville. 

Starling had 16 points at the half and ultimately finished one shy of his season high of 23. The New York native was 9-of-16 from the field and grabbed six boards as well. 

And how about this – last 3 games – 48 points on 20-of-39 shooting. 

ALSO TRENDING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

Cormac Ryan has produced 4 straight games in double figures, amassing 55 points in that span (13.8 ppg). Most recently, he recorded a career high of 8 assists to go with his 11 points against Louisville. 

Ryan is averaging a career best 11.5 ppg. He’s also 7 three-pointers away from 200 in his career. 

GAMES GETTING AWAY

The Irish have now had 4 ACC games in which they’ve garnered double-digit leads, only to succumb to the opponent’s rally. 

Largest Leads Given Out in Loss This Season

12 vs Wake Forest (12:45 in 1H), 2/4/23

12 at Syracuse (12:54 in 2H), 1/14/23

11 at Florida State (10:41 in 1H), 12/21/22

10 at Boston College (17:53 in 2H), 1/3/23

And what’s tough specifically about the Syracuse and Boston College losses was that Notre Dame led for almost the entire game in both. Take this stat – in those two games, Notre Dame led for a combined 63:38 out of the 80 minutes. 

Recently against Wake Forest on Feb. 4 – the Irish held Demon Deacons scoreless for an 8-minute stretch in the first half, only to garner a 16-4 lead out of it. It was a one-point game at the half with ND down 27-26, before giving up 54 points in the 2nd half. 

THE ABILITY TO RALLY BUT …

The game at NC State on Jan. 24 was a rollercoaster and intriguing one. The Irish went down 11 points in the first half, then rallied to go up 7 and take a halftime lead. They then went down 9 points in the 2nd half to rally to cut it to one before falling 85-82. It marked their highest points total on the road this season. 

Much in the same in the losses to Florida State and Boston College the week prior. Against FSU, the Irish twice found themselves down 24 and twice rallied to cut it to a two-possession game, but just couldn’t get over that final hump. Against BC, the Irish rallied down 14 points to take a lead in the 2nd half, but ultimately ran into an Eagles team that shot 71.4 percent in the 2nd half to close out the 84-72 win. 

— ND —