17. ND vs. BC Rivalry Renewed

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – In the post-Duke locker room speech to the team, Glenn & Stacey Murphy Notre Dame Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry stated that he wished there was more time on that clock for his team to compete and he was glad they had a short turnaround this week so they could get right back out on that court. The Fighting Irish (7-9, 1-4) look to snap their four-game skid when Boston College (9-7, 1-4) rolls into town for a Big Monday matchup. Tip is slated for 7 p.m. ET inside Purcell Pavilion, and will air live on ACC Network.

The Notre Dame Fan Experience staff will give away two PS5s (one to students and one to the general fan base in attendance) during tonight’s contest.

MONDAY’S TABLE SETTER

Notre Dame owns a 27-17 lead in the overall series. However, the Eagles have been a thorn in ND’s side as of late. The Irish have lost six of the last seven against BC.

Both battles against Boston College were close last season. First, the Irish lost 59-63 in Chestnut Hill, then lost 58-61 at home just two weeks later.

In two games last year against BC, the Irish were led by their two stellar guards Markus Burton and Braeden Shrewsberry, who averaged 14.5 and 13.0 ppg respectively. However, there was a third Irish player who averaged double figures against BC as well and that was J.R. Konieczny and his 11.5 ppg.

TAKING THE POSITIVES WITH THE NEGATIVES

A terrible sense of deja vu. First, it was North Carolina on Jan. 4. The Irish fought hard and erased a 12-point deficit to claim a three-point lead with under 20 seconds to go. That’s when Elliott Cadeau converted a four-point play to give UNC the eventual 74-73 win. The returning Markus Burton drove the length of the court with four seconds left but couldn’t convert a very tough contested driving layup.

The positive is that the Irish were finally back to full strength and what a gutsy return it was for Burton. Playing in his first game back since injuring his knee against Rutgers on Nov. 26, the All-ACC guard registered 23 points in 23 minutes.

Then four days later it happened again. The Irish were up four with two minutes left but NC State rallied to take a 66-65 lead. With 10 seconds left the ball was put in Burton’s hand but he was double-teamed and was forced to take a tough step-back jumper.

The positive here – all five starters finished in double figures for the first time in the Shrewsberry era. Junior forward Kebba Njie was the highlight with his first career double-double. Njie posted 10 points behind 5-8 shooting, plus a career-high tying 11 rebounds. Tae Davis tallied a career high six assists to go with his 14 points.

On Jan. 11, the Irish then competed at #4 Duke. Despite Cooper Flagg dropping 42 points, the Irish fought hard the whole way. They cut what was an 18-point deficit to a four-point game late in the second half with a 15-1 scoring run.

BURTON IS BACK

After 39 days away rehabbing his knee injury, Burton returned and amplified the ND offense. Before Vegas, Burton was the only player in the country averaging 20+ points, 5+ assists, and 5+ rebounds.

If you discount the Rutgers game since Burton got injured in the first four minutes, the sophomore has recorded 20+ points in four of his last five games. Even despite that 2-point game dragging down his scoring average, he is averaging 18.9 ppg.

Burton is coming off a 23-point performance at #4 Duke in which he tied his career high in made three-pointers with four.

THE TAE-KOVER

Tae Davis has really stepped up and balled out as of late, emerging as one of the top talents in the ACC. Scoring wise, Davis had the fourth best December in the ACC, averaging 20.0 ppg on last month. Since he came back from the holiday break, Tae has averaged 17.3 ppg in that four-game span. He’s also averaging 5.3 rpg and 3.3 apg.

He’s ultimately riding a career best 11 straight games in double figures.

With all that said, Tae is now averaging a career best 16.1 ppg, which ranks 10th in the ACC. He’s shooting a career best 51.5 percent which ranks third in the league.

EVOLVING

When Burton went down, the Irish not only had to make up his 20+ points per game, but also his ability to create shots for his teammates.

Three players in particular stepped up to fill the void. Both Tae Davis and Braeden Shrewsberry are posting career highs in both points per game and shooting percentage. Then there’s Matt Allocco who is on pace to have the highest assist-to-turnover ratio in program history.

Davis is averaging 16.1 ppg, which is up from last year’s 9.2 ppg. Tae has been highly proficent around the rim where he’s 60-of-89 (.674). Tae, who very much like Markus Burton, has this explosiveness and innate ability to attack. He’s been using that to his advantage and getting to the foul line. He’s averaging 6.4 FD/40 which ranks 55th nationally according to KenPom. The Indy native ranks fourth in the league in FT attempts and eighth in makes. He’s shooting a career best 76.0 percent from the stripe.

Next is Braeden Shrewsberry, who is averaging 15.8 ppg (11th in the ACC). He’s shooting 44.0 percent, which is up from last year’s 39.8.

He’s connecting on 3.0 threes per game this season, with a .378 clip from beyond the arc. In particular, Shrewsberry is hot from corner threes this year, knocking down 46.7 percent (14-for-30), which is 11.5 percent above the D1 average.

In ACC play, Shrewsberry ranks first in 3pt FG% (.476) and second in threes/game (4.0).

However, it’s important to point out that he’s added to his overall arsenal with a dangerous floater that keeps defenders guessing. He’s shooting 50.0 percent from the mid-range and he’s 13-16 around the rim. He’s 53.7 percent overall from two.

Last but not least is grad transfer Matt Allocco. The 6-4 guard is averaging 9.9 ppg on 44.3 percent shooting from the floor and a career best 46.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Allocco owns a 3.8 assist-to-turnover ratio which ranks sixth in the nation and first in the ACC. It’s obviously way too early for comparisons, BUT, the highest A/TO ratio in program history for a season was 3.16 by Martin Inglesby back in 2000-01.

NOTRE NOTABLES

• Notre Dame is shooting 42.2 percent from three in ACC play – leads all schools.
• Yes Sir! – The freshman guard impressed at #4 Duke, recording his first double-digit scoring performance with 11 points on 4-7 shooting, plus 2-4 from three.
• In league play, Shrewsberry is averaging an impressive 4.0 threes/game.
• J.R. Konieczny and Matt Allocco co-lead the team in +/-.
• Kebba Njie recorded his first career double-double at NC State with 10 points and 11 rebounds. The latter tied his career high.
• Burton is shooting 51.5 percent from the mid-range, which is 15.9 percent above the D1 average.
• Notre Dame’s three-point percentage defense of .308 ranks second in the ACC.
• Notre Dame continues to improve its KenPom Offense Adj. efficiency. It just moved from 56th to 45th place in the nation.
• Burton is averaging a team best 20.3 ppg over the last four games.
• Julian Roper II leads the team in steals with 1.3/game.

— ND —