From the beginning of the season, [autotag]Mike Brey[/autotag] has lauded the experience on Notre Dame’s roster. However, one basic rule of sports is that if a team is young and talented enough, it can be a serious threat to experience. That threat played out Sunday at Purcell Pavilion. In the end, [autotag]John Shumate[/autotag]’s Ring of Honor induction at halftime was the only experience worth celebrating in a 79-64 loss to Marquette.
The story of this game was that the Irish (7-3) were outplayed and outhustled by a younger and hungrier opponent. The Golden Eagles (8-3) turned up the defensive pressure and forced the Irish into ugly shots and poor decision-making, ultimately resulting in 10 Irish turnovers to the Eagles’ three.
Even when they found openings in that defense, the Irish weren’t able to make enough shots regardless of distance. They somehow only trailed by five at halftime, but the Eagles finally made them pay with more offensive power afterwards, and it was their fans rocking Purcell Pavilion before the game even ended.
Kam Jones led all scorers with 25 points. Oso Ighodaro had a double-double of 16 points and 18 rebounds, seven of them coming on the offensive end. which undoubtedly contributed to the Eagles’ 22-7 advantage in second-chance points. Olivie Prosper scored 14, and Tyler Kolek had 11 points to go with a game-high six assists.
Although [autotag]Nate Laszewski[/autotag] and [autotag]JJ Starling[/autotag] scored 20 and 12 points, respectively, they combined to shoot 11 of 27 (40.7%) from the field. No one else on the Irish scored more than eight points. That’s not exactly a recipe for success, and the chances for that success won’t get any easier with Georgia awaiting in Atlanta next week.
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