Irish Fly By Pilots 88-59
Notre Dame got a comfortable 29-point win over nationally ranked Bethel College (Ind.) on Friday night. Yes, the Pilots might be NAIA, but the 88-59 win didn’t discourage Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey from making sure his team learned from the exhibition contest.
“They kept coming and running their stuff," Brey said after the win. "To have a full building and having to fight through some stuff - we had to figure out different ways to score. Real games are going to be like that and maybe even in Chicago a week from tomorrow.”
Bethel saw Tanner Shepherd and Trey’von Covington hit back-to-back threes for Bethel to cap a quick 7-0 run in just 1:09 to cut the Irish lead to 55-44 with 13:23 left in the ball game.
The Irish held a 57-48 advantage with 11:25 remaining in the game when sophomore forward John Mooney hit a layup to start a 24-1 run over 6:42 of game time to take an 81-49 lead and put the game away.
"“I thought we got the ball into the low post and then we got to the bonus quick, so we were scoring from the foul line," Brey said of the run. "We defended pretty well. We changed and played some zone. They ran their stuff and were feeling good tonight.”
Notre Dame point guard Matt Farrell punctuated the run with two-hand dunk. Farrell finished the game with 10 points.
All-American forward Bonzie Colson led the Irish with 19 points and 11 rebounds on the night. Sophomore guard TJ Gibbs recorded 18 points, including going 10/10 from the free throw line. Martinas Geben went 5/6 from the field with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Bethel was led by Covington with 14 points and Shepherd added 10 points.
As expected, Notre Dame dominated the paint winning the rebound battle 46-35 and points in the paint 50-24. The Irish shot just 2 of 20 from three-point range, which does give some caused for concern, but they shot a solid 45 percent from the field.
"I don’t know if we will shoot it from out there like some of these other teams," stated Brey. "We have to figure out ways we can score. Throwing it into the post will be more important than ever before. I love what Martinas (Geben) – he has to score for us. It’s encouraging he can get you double-figures and close to double-figure rebounds.
“The foul line will be important for us. We get to the bonus quicker because we’re driving it more. There is where we are scoring. We drive, we get the hand checks and stuff around the bucket. The foul line will have to be a big weapon for us, especially on nights we aren’t shooting it well.”
Gibbs wasn't worried about the three-point shooting and knows shots will fall as the Irish get into the season.
"It’s a big part of our game," said Gibbs. "We just struggled tonight and it comes with the territory. We haven’t played too many games. Once we get into the rhythm of playing games, it will be something we can really lean on."
The Pilots were pesky in the first half as they opened the game on a quick 7-0 run after Notre Dame point guard Farrell scored the first bucket of the game.
Colson scored six of the home team’s next nine points to give Notre Dame a 13-9 lead with 14:36 remaining in the opening half.
The two teams traded sloppy play over the next few minutes as Bethel turned it over four times in 3:18, but the Irish couldn’t take advantage.
The three-point shot wasn’t falling for either team in the first 20 minutes as Bethel shot just 27 percent (3/11) and Notre Dame was even worse at 10 percent (1/10). However, Notre Dame dominated inside outscoring Bethel 28-12 inside the paint and a 23-16 rebounding advantage in the opening half, which included 12 second-chance points.
Neither team had a run of more than five points from the 12:33 mark in the first half until under a minute left in the half with DJ Harvey hit a baseline jumper to put the Irish on a 6-0 run.
Notre Dame’s defense held Bethel scoreless over the 2:45 of the first half and closed on an 8-0 run over the last 2:20 to take a 44-28 lead.
Colson led the Irish with 15 points and seven rebounds in the first half. TJ Gibbs chipped in with nine points.
Tanner Shepard finished with six points off the bench to lead the Pilots in the opening half.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: TJ Gibbs - The sophomore gave the Irish a spark on the defensive end with two steals and a few deflections. The 6-foot-3 guard got to the charity stripe and shot a perfect 10/10.
STAT OF THE GAME: Notre Dame got 18 second-chance points on the night while holding the Pilots to just six.
UP NEXT: Notre Dame will host Cardinal Stritch on November 7th and 7:00 p.m. ET.
