Notre Dame Escapes Furious Georgia Tech Rally 84-80
Notre Dame (13-19) has shown growth over the last month of the season and that maturity was on full display during Tuesday’s 84-80 win over Georgia Tech (14-18) in the opening round of the ACC Tournament.
The Irish started fast, taking a commanding 17-5 lead less than six minutes into the game. Notre Dame maintained a comfortable double-digit lead and even stretched it to 17 points with 12:59 left to play.
That’s when the game took a turn. Georgia Tech and Naithan George went on a key 8-0 run to cut the lead to three with just over eight minutes left. George, who finished with a game-high 24 points, then led another 7-0 run to give the Yellow Jackets the lead with just over four minutes remaining in the game.
Notre Dame didn’t flinch and showed some seasoning, remaining collected and finishing strong over the final four minutes. In fact, the Irish outscored Georgia Tech 7-2 to advance to Wednesday’s second round, including Markus Burton’s go-ahead layup with just over a minute left.
“I don't think anything has come easy for us this whole season,” said Notre Dame head coach Micah Shrewsberry. “We've learned how to rally through it. I think we were scoring the ball pretty well, obviously when we weren't turning it over there late, but we were scoring it pretty well.
“I just felt like at the end of the day -- they were scoring, as well, but I felt like at the end of the day, when it's time to get a stop, this is the group that can do it. That's what we did that last possession.”
The game-sealing possession was Notre Dame sophomore Tae Davis matching up with George. Davis, who is Notre Dame’s best defender, tipped a pass in the lane and forced the game-wining turnover.
“The coaches just made adjustments really throughout the game,” Davis stated. “I ended up on him. We were kind of working on that in practice and it just translated late in the game.”
Down the stretch, Notre Dame struggled to hit field goals, but the Irish hit nine of its last 10 free throws and 13-of-15 in the second half. Kebba Njie scored 11 points and hit 9-of-10 from the free throw line.
Braeden Shrewsberry shined bright in D.C. as he led the Irish with 23 points and five three-pointers. 14 of Shrewsberry’s points came in the second half as he went 4-for-6 from deep. Classmate Markus Burton got the Irish out to a hot start with 15 first half points on his way to 21 points and he also dished out eight assists.
KEYS TO THE GAME
Entering the game, the three-ball and rebounding were going to be a significant factors in deciding this one. Notre Dame passed with flying colors as they held Georgia Tech to 8-for-27 from three while shooting 12-of-23.
Shrewsberry’s five threes led the Irish, but Burton went 3-for-6 and four other players hit treys.
“I felt like just finding my spots on the court,” stated the younger Shrewsberry. “My teammates did a good job of finding me in spots that I like, coming off and shooting, like, off staggers or in transition. I think they did a good job on me overall. I just got loose a couple times.”
Georgia Tech head coach Damon Stoudamire knew his team was playing with fire by letting Shrewsberry and Burton get into a groove.
“We needed to do a better job, obviously, but again, for me, it was the early threes,” stated Stoudamire. “It wasn't so much as the game went on. You just can't give guys confidence. I've been fortunate, I've played with three of the top 10 percentage shooters in NBA history. There's a routine and a rhythm that goes, and if you're not there and you're not contesting shots, really getting off the ground, they don't see you, because that's what they practice each and every day.”
The other key for Notre Dame was winning the battle on the glass. In the previous two games, Notre Dame dominated the game when to rebounds and Tuesday was much of the same. The Irish out-rebounded Georgia Tech 31-23 as Njie led the way with nine boards.
“The biggest thing is in playing against Notre Dame, it's like Groundhog Day, because we lost the second game to them on offensive rebounding, as well,” said Stoudamire. “Again, they got that offensive rebound, and we just couldn't overcome.”
PRESSURE
Notre Dame shot 54 percent from the field and scored 84 so the offense was humming, especially when you consider some of the games the Irish found themselves in to start the year.
That said, Georgia Tech got back in the game with a full court press that forced 10 second half turnovers. Valuing the basketball is an area Notre Dame has struggled with all season and it was once again highlighted as the Yellow Jackets climbed back into the game.
“They were being really aggressive with their double-teams,” explained Shrewsberry. “They were trapping some ball screens. They were running -- they're a good offensive rebounding team, and we were boxing out and maybe came up with it, but then we were getting a little casual with our rebounds, and they were stealing it from behind.”
And sure, Shrewsberry knows part of it was his team getting too comfortable going up 17 points in the second half, but a sense of urgency has to be there at this time of the year.
“Human nature sometimes sets in. A team that is down really gets aggressive, and the team that's up sometimes takes their foot off the gas and starts to coast, and you see leads like that change. That's what happened.
“Then everything starts going your way, like threes start falling. We were fouling and sending them to the free-throw line a little too much. They were getting offensive rebounds and some turnovers, and everything kind of snowballed, but we were able to kind of stymy it at the end.”
The smallest details matter when Shrewsberry and Stoudamire face off as they both come from the same coaching tree in Boston.
“He puts you in a bind,” Shrewsberry said. “He'll move people around. He'll do some different things offensively. It looks really similar. We try and do a lot of the same things. That's why I said I didn't want to play them because we're both adjusting to what -- we try and do something, he makes a counter move, and now we've got to try and counter.
“That's what it becomes is a cat-and-mouse game with them. We've played three games, and every single one of them have been close because it's just two teams that -- just a lot of respect for each other and how each other plays.”
DEFENSE OPTIONAL
Notre Dame may have found its offense over the last few weeks, but the defense has started to struggle. With Georgia Tech scoring 80, the Irish have let the last three opponents hit the 80-point mark.
In addition to George, Yellow Jackets freshman Baye Ndongo scored 22 points and Kevin Sturdivant added 10. Georgia Tech did shoot 47 percent from the field, which is a bit high for a Notre Dame opponent.
Is it concerning? Probably not as Notre Dame needed to find offense and they were able to get key stops late, including the Davis steal to end Tuesday’s contest.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame will take on Wake Forest on Wednesday at 2:30 PM ET on ESPN. The Irish beat Wake Forest 70-65 at Purcell Pavilion on February 27th.
“They're a talented team,” said Shrewsberry. “They're an explosive team. When you have three guards that can all score it, but you have two good big guys, they kind of put you in a bind a little bit. We've got to get back and start preparing and figure out what we need to do to have success against them.
“Playing a good team, I guess, is what frightens you, a talented team. But what excites me is we get a chance to play again tomorrow. That's really exciting. I would hate to be on the bus right now going home.”
Notre Dame Fighting Irish 2.0 Lace-Up Pullover Hoodie
