22. Saturday Night Inside The Dome

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Notre Dame men’s basketball has a sour taste in its mouth and is eager to get back on the court. This program, which is without the 2025 ACC leading scorer Markus Burton, along with four-year veteran Kebba Njie, is learning, growing, and improving together as the season progresses. They flashed that against No. 17 Virginia on Tuesday in a 97-100 heartbreaking double overtime loss.

And now the bounce back test this Saturday — heading on the road to challenge Syracuse. Tipoff inside the JMA Wireless Dome is set for 6 p.m. ET on the CW.

The Irish are looking to capture their third road win of the season, tying last year’s mark with little over a month left in the regular season. In order to do so, they’ll need to break their current four-game skid against Syracuse inside the JMA Wireless Dome. Notre Dame trails in the overall series, 24-35.

Syracuse is currently riding a four-game losing streak heading into Saturday’s matchup, falling to Boston College, Virginia Tech, Miami & NC State. Their record sits at 12-9 overall and 3-5 in ACC play.

The Orange are averaging 76.4 ppg in league play on 46.6% shooting from the field and 37.5% from three. They are in the negatives in both rebound margin (-2.0) and turnover margin (-1.5). They are led by Donnie Freeman’s 19.9 ppg & 8.5 rpg. Former Notre Dame guard JJ Starling is next at 11.9 ppg.

If successful, Notre Dame would achieve a Quad 2 win on Saturday with Syracuse’s NET at 83. Notre Dame’s NET now sits at 81.

LAST TIME OUT

It was a game in which the Irish let it all out on the court. A game they wanted so badly, but it ultimately turned into more fuel in the fire. It was a night in which Notre Dame battled No. 17 Virginia into two overtimes, but fell 97-100. It was a game in which the Irish tasted victory on multiple occasions. It was a game that saw the Irish build a 19-point first-half lead, fall into a four-point deficit in the second half, rally back to go up six points with two minutes remaining, had a shot at the end of regulation to walk it off, and then was one defensive stand away at the end of the first overtime.

“Not into moral victories, but we are about the process. We are about using every opportunity to learn and get better,” Glenn & Stacey Murphy Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry said. “These dudes keep coming, keep fighting, keep competing and try to play their best basketball as the season goes on. I wanted this so bad for them with how hard they’re working. They put it out there, all on the line, against a really good team.”

Cole Certa went off with a career high 34 points on 10-19 shooting from the floor, 5-13 from three and 9-11 from the free-throw line. Certa’s 34 points are the most by a Notre Dame player against an AP-ranked team since Nov. 26, 2008, when Kyle McAlarney scored 39 in a loss to No. 1 UNC. His 34 points were also the third most by a Notre Dame player in an ACC game, trailing just Markus Burton (43 vs Cal) and Matt Farrell (37 vs Boston College).

The game also witnessed a tremendous showing from freshman Brady Koehler. The 6-10 forward out of Fishers, Indiana, dropped his first career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Koehler also recorded a season-high three steals and season-high tying four blocks.

Jalen Haralson notched his fourth game of 20 or more points, his first in an ACC contest. The freshman earned 20 points on 6-11 shooting, 8-10 from the stripe, plus seven assists.

Braeden Shrewsberry was the fourth and final Irish in double figures, supplying 18 points, 15 of which came in the first half behind a 4-4 effort from three.

BOTTLING THAT 2ND HALF

Notre Dame ended its five-game skid with a 68-64 victory over Boston College this past Saturday. The Blue & Gold will look to bottle the offense it displayed in the second half, where they outscored Boston College, 44-29, shooting 50% from the field. The 44 points were the most ND has scored in any half of an ACC game this season.

Braeden Shrewsberry finished with a game-high 22 points, marking his second-highest scoring output of the season and second ACC game with 20+ points. The junior found success driving into the paint & midrange, making 6-8 from two. Though Shrewsberry’s biggest shot of the night was a three-pointer with 1:26 remaining to push the Irish up five.

Jalen Haralson recorded 11 of his 17 points in the second half and finished 8-13 overall on the night. Carson Towt reeled in 13 boards, seven offensive, to go along with his six points and two assists.

TEAM POSITIVES

The above notes have talked mainly about the individual positives from the last week’s worth of games, and now here’s from a larger team perspective.

Against Boston College, Notre Dame erased a 13-point deficit, marking not only their largest comeback of the season but their third double-digit comeback victory of the year.

From halftime of Boston College to now, the Irish have shot 49.4% from the field, up from their season average of 44.8%. They have shot 37.5% from three, slightly up from their season average of 35.5%.

Notre Dame has also done a much better job of holding on to the basketball. Heading into the North Carolina game, ND averaged 12.2 turnovers per game. Over the next three games, they recorded 5 turnovers vs UNC, 8 vs. Boston College and 10 vs. Virginia. As a result, their turnover average has dipped to 11.5 per game.

Lastly, free-throw shooting has been a point of contention as well, but it was a strong asset for the Irish against Virginia, where they went 28-34, aka 82.4%. The 28 made free throws were a season high that raised the team’s free-throw percentage from 68.8% to 69.9%.

FRESHMAN STANDOUT JALEN HARALSON

Jalen Haralson’s play deserves mention amongst the ACC’s outstanding freshman class. Jalen is currently averaging 15.0 ppg, which ranks fifth amongst ACC freshmen. He’s registered double-digit points in 18 of his 21 games played. He averages a team-best 15.5 ppg in ACC play, shooting 49.5% from the floor.

Jalen has been consistent no matter the opponent as well, for the 6-7 guard is averaging 15.7 ppg against ranked opposition.

Jalen is strong and shifty when attacking the rim, converting 69.2% from within 4.5 feet. The Fishers, Indiana, native shoots 52.0% overall from two-point range. In addition, he leads the team in FT attempts, averaging 5.9 per game.

SEEKING RECORD BOOK #1

Notre Dame fans know Cole Certa can get hot from three and light up the scoreboard in multiple fashions, but I bet they don’t know that the sophomore guard currently ranks 4th in the country in free-throw percentage.

Certa started the year 27-27 from the stripe and is now an impressive 59-63 on the year. His 93.7% from the free-throw line leads all ACC players.

If he can keep up this pace from the line, he would rank first all-time for a season at Notre Dame. The current placeholder is Steve Vasturia at 91.0%.

KOEHLER SHOWING HIS POTENTIAL

Freshman Brady Koehler was awarded his first career start at North Carolina, and it was properly deserved. In the game prior at Virginia Tech, the Indiana native was ND’s best player, scoring 15 of his career high 17 points in the 2nd half. Overall, he was 5-7 from the field, plus 2-3 from three & 5-6 from the stripe.

Fast forward to Virginia on Jan. 27 and the freshman impressed yet again. Koehler was all over the stat sheet, recording his first career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds (career high). He got it done from the free-throw line, where he was a personal best 9-10. He also tied his career high of 4 blocks and set a new high for steals with 3.

Koehler is shooting 48.4% from two-point range on the year, but he’s been at his best in the midrange, where he’s 53.8%.

But don’t let the 6-10 frame fool you, for Koehler can knock it down from three. He may own fewer three-point attempts than most of his Notre Dame teammates, but with that said, he boasts the 2nd best three-point shooting percentage at 41.4%.

Lastly, Koehler is averaging 7.6 points in ACC play on 47.5% shooting, plus 7-15 (.467) from three.

SHREWSBERRY LEADING FROM THREE

Braeden Shrewsberry continues to prove he’s one of the best from deep, leading the ACC in three-point shooting percentage at 42.0%. That number also ranks 29th in the country. He’s converting 2.8 made threes per game, which ranks 4th in the league.

Shrewsberry’s sweet spot? The corner three – where he’s draining 55.6%, which is 19.9% above the Division I average.

Braeden opened the Virginia game with a 4-4 start from three, pouring in 15 of his 18 points in the first half.

Against Miami on Jan. 13, Braeden reached the 200 career made threes milestone, becoming the 14th Irish player all-time to do so. He now sits at 208 in his career.

His best performance from beyond the arc came against Evansville when Shrewsberry scored a career-high 26 points behind a career-high 8 three pointers, shooting 80% from three (8-10). His 8 made triples tied for the 7th most in a game all-time in program history.

REBOUNDING TRANSLATES

Towt’s current rebounding rankings:

• 9.6 rpg ranks 24th nationally, 4th in the ACC
• 3.8 offensive rpg – 1st in ACC/12th in country
• 5.8 defensive rpg – 5th in ACC
• 1,280 career rebounds – leads all active players
• His 1,280 career rebounds have pushed him into the top-100 all-time list.

NOTRE NOTABLES

• The Irish are 11 wins away from 2,000 all-time. They would become the eighth program to achieve this feat.
• Haralson over last 3 games – 50 points (16.7 ppg) on 50.0% shooting. Team best 10 assists.
• Certa is averaging 17.0 ppg against ranked teams this year – a team best.
• Shrewsberry in the last 2 games — 40 points on 14-32 (.438) shooting, 7-18 (.389) from three.
• 3 Irish average double figures now in ACC play: Haralson (15.5), Certa (12.9) & Shrewsberry (10.4).
• CBB Analytics: Off Rebound Pct of 17.5%, ranks in 99th percentile.
• Sundra is 80.0% from two over the last 5 games.
• Frost has recorded a three-pointer in 3 of the last 4 games.
• NET is at 82 — 1-8 in Quad 1 // 2-1 in Quad 2// 2-0 in Quad 3 / 6-1 in Quad 4.
• KenPom is at 79 — ORtg ranked 90 at 114.4 — DRtg ranked 78 at 104.2.
• Notre Dame’s defense’s proximity allowed ranking according to Haslam Metrics is 9th in the country. ND’s 2.16 rating is based off of the following: shooting proximity vs. the average opponent (1.0 = All near-proximity; 3.0 = All three-pointers).

CERTA-FIED SHOOTER

Cole Certa has flashed NBA Jam on fire like moments at different points of this season. The sophomore sharpshooter flashed it in the season opener when he dropped 22 points on a 6-9 night from three-point range. He showed it vs. Mizzou when he converted three triples in the final 4:35 of the game, including the game-winning three with 17 seconds left. He showed out at TCU, where he drained four triples in a row, ultimately converting five in the half and six in the game to finish with 20 points.

But nothing will top his 34-point game vs. #17 Virginia on Jan. 27 because he did a little bit of everything. Sure, he was great from distance, draining five triples, but he also drove to the basket and converted 5-6 from two. He also got it done from the free-throw line, where he was 9-11.

— ND —