Tag: JJ Starling

Notre Dame nearly pulls off shocker at Duke

Can’t say the Irish didn’t care about this game.

No one is going to give Notre Dame any moral victories this season, especially when the season has been such a disaster. But all things considered, its game against Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium is as close as they’ll get to one this season.

With Mike Krzyzewski on hand to watch former assistant [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag]’s final game in Durham, the Irish put up way more of a fight than anyone expected. Still, the result was the same as the Blue Devils won, 68-64.

The Irish (10-16, 2-13) fell behind by as much as 14 in the second half, but the Blue Devils (18-8, 9-6) let them hang around. They cut the deficit to four a couple of times before [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] hit some big shots to get the team even closer. A 3-pointer with 1:27 left got them within two, and he put them within one on a layup with 35.5 seconds to go. That was as good as it got as Mark Mitchell subsequently hit a corner 3 with 10.8 seconds left to put the Blue Devils up four and essentially ice the contest.

While the Irish did still have a chance, it was a slim, and it quickly became nonexistent. [autotag]Ven-Allen Lubin[/autotag] converted a layup with 3.9 seconds left to bring the deficit back to two. Forced to foul, [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] sent Tyrese Proctor to the free-throw line. Proctor sank both free throws to erase any remaining doubt.

A surprising theme to this game was only a few double-digit scorers. Future NBA player Kyle Filipowski was the lone such player for the Blue Devils with 22 points. [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag], coming off the bench for the first time this season, had a season-high 25 points on an astounding 11-of-13 shooting. Lubin’s layup in the final seconds brought his scoring total to 10.

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Mike Brey, JJ Starling, Cormac Ryan speak after win over Louisville

Everyone was happy to get the win.

SOUTH BEND – For once, everyone associated with the Notre Dame men’s basketball program was in a relaxed mood. After the Irish’s 76-62 win over Louisville, there wasn’t a frown in sight.

[autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] (22 points) and [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] (11 points, career-high eight assists) came out first to talk about games that undoubtedly will be on their season highlight reels. Then, [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag], fresh out of the suit he wore for the game celebrating Coaches vs. Cancer at Purcell Pavilion, took his turn at the podium.

Make no mistake: A convincing win over the worst team in the ACC doesn’t do a whole lot in the grand scheme of things. However, the Irish needed something good in the worst way. They got it, and they have a whole week to enjoy it before reconvening at Purcell Pavilion against Wake Forest.

Here are some of things players and coach said as they basked in an enjoyable afternoon:

Notre Dame breaks skid against Louisville

The Irish are back in the win column.

SOUTH BEND – Finally, Notre Dame faced an ACC opponent that not even it could mess up against. Sure, Louisville is at the bottom of the conference and remains winless in league play, but the Irish needed any good vibes they could get. That’s indeed what they got as they took down the Cardinals, 76-62, to snap a four-game losing streak.

The Irish (10-12, 2-9) scored 13 unanswered points in the first half and went up by as much as 30 early in the second. Even with the Cardinals (2-19, 0-10) upping the nerves of everyone at Purcell Pavilion by cutting that 30-point lead to 13, the Irish had built enough of a cushion that they were able to withstand the threat. Their biggest blown lead this season is 12 in their road game at Syracuse, so it was critical that this team especially gave itself a lot of room for error.

[autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] led the way with 22 points, one shy of his high during his first collegiate season. [autotag]Nate Laszewski[/autotag] scored 17 points, including a game-high three 3-pointers. [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] had 11 points to go with a career-high eight assists, and [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] scored 10 despite missing all six of his 3-point attempts.

With [autotag]Ven-Allen Lubin[/autotag] out after tweaking his previously injured ankle in practice Friday, [autotag]Dom Campbell[/autotag] took his spot in the rotation and made a single field goal in four minutes.

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Notre Dame battles NC State hard but still winless on road

Still nothing to show for a good effort.

To Notre Dame’s credit, it was about as good an effort as it’s shown on the road this season. But like every other game away from Purcell Pavilion, a victory just wasn’t meant to be. This time, it was NC State reaping the benefits, and the Irish will head home after an 85-82 loss.

During the first half, the Irish (9-12, 1-9) turned an 11-point deficit into a seven-point lead. The Wolfpack (16-5, 6-4) cut that lead to three before halftime, then went in front themselves early in the second half, which was a dogfight. While there wasn’t really any one moment that doomed the Irish, they couldn’t convert on a number of good looks or open shots to make a close game even closer or, in some cases, to tie it up. It also did not help that they were crushed in the turnover battle, 15-2.

Jarkel Joiner was the Wolfpack’s big player with 28 points and six rebounds. Terquavion Smith, the ACC’s scoring leader who fresh off a serious injury scare Saturday at North Carolina, had 17 points to go with six assists. D.J. Burns Jr. scored 14, and Casey Morsell added 11.

[autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] and [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] paced the Irish with 19 and 18 points, respectively. [autotag]Marcus Hammond[/autotag] had a nice stats line of 11 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] also scored 11, and [autotag]Ven Allen-Lubin[/autotag] added 10 off the bench.

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Notre Dame on pace for worst conference season in program history

This is a conference season to remember for all the wrong reasons, and it could sink lower.

After decades of independence, Notre Dame joined the Big East for the 1995-96 season. It proved to be an adjustment as the Irish went 4-14 during their first conference schedule. That was as bad as it got in conference play until the 2018-19 Irish stumbled to a 3-15 ACC record. Now, only four years later, the Irish are on pace for something even more putrid.

Through eight ACC games, or 40% of the conference schedule, the Irish are 1-7, and they earned that lone win by the skin of their teeth. If this pace keeps up, they’ll finish 3-17, which would give the program its worst conference winning percentage ever at .150. Given that a second game with Georgia Tech and one with Louisville, the only teams you objectively can say are as bad, if not worse than the Irish, remain on the schedule, that’s not out of the question.

The eye test should have seen this coming. Except for the win over Michigan State, no nonconference win looked particularly impressive. Sure, the Irish had a few double-digit wins sprinkled in there, but the season began with single-digit victories at home against blue-blood opponents Radford and Youngstown State, followed soon after by a one-point home win against the almighty Lipscomb. Perhaps those raised flags, but how many actually believed it?

As the losses pile up, so do the calls for [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] to retire or be fired. Frankly, you can’t blame Irish fans for wanting either one. His “get old, stay old” philosophy for this season has backfired. Having a bunch of veteran players fresh off two NCAA Tournament wins and a highly-touted recruit in [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] should have worked, but everything that could go wrong has.

The worst part is this is happening with the knowledge that the Irish are going to have a lot of unproven talent in next year’s rotation. Except for Starling and [autotag]Ven-Allen Lubin[/autotag], no underclassman has played nearly enough for fans to say they’re excited for the 2023-24 season. With the window of opportunity not stretching beyond this season, this was the last chance for success for this group. Instead, it’s going out with a whimper.

It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what needs to happen to label the rest of the season a success. Right now, just avoiding the standing for program conference futility is the most reasonable. That speaks volumes and specifically means a disappointing tempering of expectations. However, there’s not much else you can do when it’s become almost certain that this year’s Irish will not play beyond the ACC Tournament.

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Notre Dame survives Georgia Tech in overtime for first ACC win

Ugly, tense game, but the Irish are on the board in the ACC.

Getting your first ACC victory shouldn’t be this hard, but that’s been the story of Notre Dame’s season. It only was fitting that the Irish would struggle once more when it played Georgia Tech at Purcell Pavilion. This time however, the ending was a happy one. While it won’t inspire any outsider’s confidence in them, the Irish will take their 73-72 overtime win over the Yellow Jackets.

The Irish (9-8, 1-5) saw a nine-point second-half lead turn into a seven-point deficit with two-and-a-half minutes to go. But four straight points from [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] were followed by a [autotag]Trey Wertz[/autotag] 3-pointer to tie the game with 53 seconds left. Both the Irish and Jackets (8-8, 1-5) had chances to score with time winding down, but both attempts failed. The Jackets committed a shot-clock violation, and Starling barely missed a layup with seconds to play, forcing overtime.

The period frequently known as free basketball saw the teams trade baskets and culminated in two free [autotag]Nate Laszewski[/autotag] free throws to give the Irish a one-point lead with 23 seconds remaining. Starling went after a missed 3 that was headed out of bounds, and a replay review ruled he touched the ball. That allowed the Jackets to inbound beneath the basket with 3.7 seconds left and a chance to win it. Ja’Von Franklin took the inbound and missed the subsequent shot, allowing Wertz to secure the rebound and the win for the Irish.

[autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] briefly departed with a rolled ankle, but he returned to the floor to complete a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds. Starling came off the bench for the first time in his collegiate career to score 16. Laszewski had 14 points to go with seven boards, and [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] added 11.

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Notre Dame thoroughly outplayed by North Carolina

The Irish have slipped to .500.

It’s become increasingly clear that this season is a lost cause for Notre Dame. Perhaps the best evidence of that so far was its trip to Chapel Hill to face North Carolina. Despite initially looking strong out of the gate, the Irish couldn’t keep that going, and their 81-64 loss left them still searching for their first ACC win.

The Irish (8-8, 0-5) appeared ready to give the Tar Heels (11-5, 3-2) a game, taking the lead on [autotag]Marcus Hammond[/autotag]’s tiebreaking 3 near the midway point of the first half. That quickly changed as the Tar Heels cracked down on their defense and won nearly every meaningful rebound battle.

With [autotag]Ven-Allen Lubin[/autotag] out with an ankle injury, the already-small Irish badly missed his height as they lost the battles in blocks (6-1) and rebounds (45-32). That undoubtedly kept the game less close than it otherwise might have been.

The Irish were stretched out even further in the second half when [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] was ejected for a flagrant 2 that he committed while being dunked on by Puff Johnson. Tempers briefly flared, but nothing else of consequence happened. Ryan started heading back to the locker room before the call officially was made, indicating that he knew what was about to happen.

Armando Bacot lived up to his billing as the ACC’s leading scorer and rebounder, leading all players with 21 points and 13 boards. He also was one of three Tar Heels with two blocks. Caleb Love, an equally lethal scorer, had 18 points. RJ Davis scored 13 points and stole the ball three times, though the conference’s leading free-throw shooter was held to 1 of 2 from the charity stripe. Johnson totaled 11 points off the bench.

[autotag]Nate Laszewski[/autotag] led the Irish with 17 points and eight rebounds. [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] and [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] scored 10 points apiece.

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Revisiting some of Mike Brey’s local media day comments

Do you think Mike is regretting any of these preseason quotes?

Back in October, Fighting Irish Wire was lucky to attend Notre Dame’s media day for South Bend outlets. [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] spoke with the assembled reporters before the players entered the room, and every answer he gave was a clue into the workings of his team. The atmosphere was an optimistic one as the Irish were coming off a couple of NCAA Tournament wins in the spring. Why couldn’t it happen again with all of these older players returning?

Well, the Irish have reached a crossroads much sooner than they would have liked. They are 8-7 and have lost their first four ACC games, tying with Louisville for last in the conference. The fun of last March has given way to frustration and bafflement as to how things have gone so wrong. Even most of the nonconference victories have not been very satisfying, and there is no reason to think this season will last beyond the ACC Tournament.

So how have some of Brey’s preseason words held up? Let’s take a look:

Notre Dame blows lead vs. Boston College, still winless in ACC play

It just keeps going from bad to worse.

Forget March Madness. The way this season is going for Notre Dame, it will be lucky to see any postseason play. After leading Boston College the entire game, the Irish let it slip away at the 37:19 mark and didn’t get it back in a 70-63 loss. Based on that score, you never would have known the Irish were in control most of the way.

The Irish (8-7, 0-4) led by as much as 10 early in the second half. While the Eagles (8-7, 2-2) slowly chipped into that lead, the Irish had an answer for every threat. That changed in the final four minutes as the Eagles finished the game on a 17-4 run after trailing by six. They made their final five field-goal attempts while the Irish finished 1 of 9 with the one basket coming on a layup after three straight missed layups with seconds to play and the game’s outcome decided.

To make matters worse, [autotag]Ven-Allen Lubin[/autotag] went down with an ankle injury in the first half and didn’t return. Early indications are that the injury isn’t serious, but we should find out how accurate that is in the coming days. In the meantime, the Irish are dealing with both a major hit to their depth and a first conference that continues to elude them.

Jaeden Zackery led all scorers and the Eagles with a season-high 18 points. Prince Aligbe had 15 points and seven rebounds, while Makai Ashton-Langford scored 12 points. Quinten Post, who was involved in the play that injured Lubin, finished one rebound short of a double-double with 10 points and nine boards. DeMarr Langford Jr. dished out a game-high eight assists.

[autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] and a flu-ridden [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] tied for the Irish high with 16 points, and Goodwin’s six rebounds tied [autotag]Nate Laszewski[/autotag] for another team high. [autotag]Cormac Ryan[/autotag] scored 11 points.

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Notre Dame concludes nonconference play with win over Jacksonville

This should at least inspire confidence going into full-time ACC play.

Notre Dame has to do a lot to prove it can stick with ACC competition. Having lost its first two conference games, confidence in this group is not exactly high. Still, it’s capable of doing good things, which were on display in a 59-43 win over Jacksonville to snap a three-game losing streak. It was not a bad way to end the nonconference portion of the season.

The Irish (8-5) had a rough first half, trailing for much of it and shooting only 9 of 31 (.290) from the field, including 2 of 16 from 3-point range. The struggles continued well into the second half, but they finally found their groove as they went on a 15-2 run to take a nine-point lead. That was as close as the Dolphins (7-4) would be the rest of the way as their field goal to stop that run with 7:31 to play was their last for the game.

[autotag]Marcus Hammond[/autotag] came off the bench to score a game-high 15 points for his performance with the Irish so far. [autotag]Dane Goodwin[/autotag] and [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] had identical shooting nights of 5 for 12 while scoring 12 and 11 points respectively. All three of the above players tied for the team lead with three assists, and Starling led the Irish with eight rebounds. As a whole, the Irish did perhaps their most damage with points off turnovers, holding a 17-5 advantage there.

Make no mistake: This was an ugly game that the Irish easily could have let slip away as has been the case throughout the nonconference schedule and the early part of the ACC schedule. Shooting 40.3% from the field won’t cut it against the best teams in the conference, and [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] appears to still be figuring out the right regular lineup for his patented seven-man rotation. That shouldn’t be the case at this point in the season, but here we are.

The big boys will be coming for the Irish soon enough, and no one is going to feel sorry for them if they’re unprepared. A strong conference showing is a must, especially in another down season for the ACC, which has no top-10 teams right now. If something is to happen for this Irish team, it would help to have an upset Friday against No. 14 Miami.

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