30. Irish Face Top-10 Challenge At #7 North Carolina

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Notre Dame men’s basketball team have won five of their last six. Last week at home, the Irish might have popped Wake Forest’s NCAA bubble with a 70-65 victory, then followed that up with a 69-62 win over NCAA Tournament-bound Clemson. Up next, the current ACC measuring stick: first-place North Carolina who is 15-3 in league play and 23-6 overall. That match will tip off at 7 p.m. ET on ACC Network.

Coach Shrewsberry is looking to earn his first top-10-ranked victory as a head coach with UNC entering at No. 7 in both polls. If successful, it would mark Notre Dame’s first top-10 win since No. 10 Kentucky on Dec. 11, 2021. It would be the first true road top-10 win since knocking off No. 9/6 Duke on Jan. 16, 2016.

Tuesday night will feature the league’s No. 1 offense in UNC vs. the league’s No. 2 defense in Notre Dame. The Tar Heels are averaging 81.4 ppg, which ranks 28th in the country. The Irish are allowing just 65.4 ppg, which ranks 22nd in the country. The Irish will also have to deal with North Carolina’s rebounding ability, as their 40.9 rpg ranks 8th in the nation.

The Irish defense will have to slow down RJ Davis, as his 21.4 ppg leads the ACC and ranks 10th in the country. Then there’s Armando Bacot and his 14 double-doubles on the year. And of course, a familiar face in ND transfer Cormac Ryan.

Notre Dame is just 1-8 all-time in Chapel Hill, with the lone victory happening back on Jan. 5, 2015.

ND’S 5-1 SURGE

From Feb. 1 to March 1, Notre Dame was the biggest mover in kenpom AdjEM across the Power-Five conferences. Another fun stat: when the first NET rankings came on Dec. 4, the Irish were 238. After beating Clemson on March 2, the Irish are up to 125.

The culture has set in and the guys don’t want the season to end. Notre Dame is playing its best basketball of the season and that includes freshman sensation Markus Burton. During Notre Dame’s 5-1 surge, Burton is averaging 21.7 ppg. He’s followed by Braeden Shrewsberry’s 12.5 ppg and Tae Davis’ 10.8. Burton has also recorded 31 assists, 20 steals and 22 rebounds during this six-game swing.

During this stretch, Notre Dame’s offense is averaging 71.3 ppg compared to its season average of 63.6. They are shooting 43.6 percent compared to the season’s 40.6 percent. Another big difference is the fact that the Irish are taking better care of the basketball, averaging just 8.5 turnovers compared to the season’s 12.7.

BURTON LEAVING A FRESHMAN YEAR LEGACY

Freshman guard Markus Burton is grabbing the attention of Irish fans, ACC opponents and the national media, but what’s crazy about it all is that he’s doing something that has never been done before in the history of the program.

Burton is currently averaging over 17.0 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals. If that stat line holds up upon the season’s end, he’ll be the first player to put up those numbers in Notre Dame history (aka at least 17 points, 4 assists and 2 steals). ND great Chris Thomas would be the closest one to that with his 15.6 points, 7.6 assists and 2.2 steals for the 2001-02 season.

Burton is the only rookie in the country and just 1-of-2 Power-Five players overall (other being Syracuse’s Judah Mintz) averaging at least 17p-4a-2s. In fact, Burton and Mintz are just 2 of 4 total ACC players to produce that stat line since 1996 (Duke’s Jason Williams & Maryland’s Steve Francis).

BURTON SURGING

Burton has produced an incredible 80 points over the last three games. That’s 26.7 ppg on 52.9 percent shooting, plus a 20-24 from the free-throw line. He’s also totaled 15 assists, 6 steals and 12 rebounds. Burton and Mississippi State’s Josh Hubbard are the only 2 freshmen in the country to record at least 80 points in a three-game swing this season.

Last game vs. Clemson – Burton dropped 17 points in the first half before finishing with 21.

Vs. Wake Forest on Feb. 27 – poured in a career high 31 points, which included 19 in the first half. He converted a career best 11-for-11 from the free throw line. He also tallied three rebounds, three assists and four steals. Burton became 1-of-4 ND freshman all-time to record a 30-point game, joining the likes of Troy Murphy, Chris Thomas and Adrian Dantley.

At Syracuse on Feb. 24 – dropped 28 points which included 20 points in the 2nd half.

ACC ROOKIE OF THE YEAR?

Notre Dame has never taken home an ACC Rookie of the Year award and Markus Burton is looking to change that. He has proven himself to be one of the most dynamic freshman guards not just in the ACC, but in the entire country. Here are some quick hitters for those who haven’t been paying attention:

• His 17.3 ppg leads all ACC freshmen, with the next highest being Pitt’s Carlton Carrington at 13.4. He also ranks 4th nationally amongst DI freshmen.
• ACC freshman rankings: 1st in scoring, 2nd in assists/game (4.3), 1st in steals/game (2.0).
• Double-digit points in all but 2 games. He’s currently riding a 22-game streak.
• He’s scored at least 16 points in 9 straight games. At least 20 points in 3 straight.
• ACC play only rankings: 17.6 points (5th), 2.3 steals (1st), 4.8 assists (3rd), .814 FT% (11th).
• Overall rankings: 7th in the ACC in scoring, 5th in Assists (4.3), 4th in Steals (2.0), 11th in FT% (.814).
• Only rookie in the country and 1-of-2 P5 players averaging at least 17 points, 4 assists and 2 steals.
• Produced two games with 15+ point, 5+ assists, 5+ steals. Since 1996, only one other Irish player (Chris Thomas) had produced two games in the same regular season with at least 15 points, 5 assists and 5 steals.
• Burton is 1-of-3 Power Five players this season with multiple 15p-5a-5s games.
• Averaging 8.9 points in the 2nd half – has scored double-digit points 12 times in the 2nd half alone this season, including a season high of 20.
• Averaging 18.1 points at home, shooting 44.5 percent from the field.
• 58 steals (1 away from cracking the program top-10 for a season); 2.0 spg — would become just the 4th player in program history to average 2 spg in a season (Chris Thomas, David Rivers, Jerian Grant).
• Four-time ACC Rookie of the Week – set a new ND record.

1ST YEAR STAMP ON THE PROGRAM – DEFENSE

The year one Coach Shrewsberry stamp on the program has been the defensive intensity. 18 ACC games and 13 different ACC opponents – all but one (Syracuse on Feb. 24) were held under their season average, with Miami, Duke and Louisville each held to season low point totals.

Of the 18 ACC matchups that have already happened, only 4 opponents have reached the 70-point park against the Irish defense.

Notre Dame’s scoring defense of 65.4 ranks 22nd in the country, plus 2nd in the ACC. According to KenPom, Notre Dame’s defensive efficiency ranks 25th nationally.

In ACC play only, Notre Dame ranks 2nd in scoring defense (64.5) and 2nd in field goal percentage defense (.413).

FRESHMAN RECORD WATCH

We are officially on Burton freshman scoring record watch as we head into the final week of the regular season. The freshman guard enters Tuesday’s matchup with 502 points on the season – which already puts him in the No. 5 spot and striking distance of No. 1 Troy Murphy and his 519 points. From a scoring average perspective, Burton’s 17.3 ppg ranks 3rd all-time behind Troy Murphy (19.2) and Adrian Dantley (18.3).

SHARPSHOOTER SHREWS

Markus Burton won’t be the only freshman leaving his name in the ND record book this season after Braeden Shrewsberry continues to light it up from three.

Shrewsberry has knocked down 54 three-pointers in ACC play, breaking the Notre Dame ACC record. The previous record was 51 held by Prentiss Hubb, Matt Farrell and V.J. Beachem.

FYI – those 54 threes in ACC play are tied for the fourth most this season and sit six behind UNC’s RJ Davis (60) for the most.

Shrews’ 71 made threes on the year are the 3rd most by a freshman in the entire country. Same goes for his 2.5 made threes/game.

As far as individual games – Shrewsberry tied the program record for made three-pointers by a freshman after draining seven against the Louisville Cardinals. He tied the likes of Pat Connaughton, Chris Thomas and Ryan Hoover. Shrews’ 23 points marked his second highest points total on the season.

Lastly, Shrewsberry is shooting 42.9 percent from deep in ACC play – that number ranks 3rd amongst ACC players and would rank 5th all-time in Notre Dame ACC program history. His 3.0 made threes/game in league play ranks 4th.

YOUNG BUT NOT AFRAID

Two young freshman guards in Burton and Shrewsberry have proven they aren’t afraid of a hostile environment. In true road games, Burton and Shrewsberry are averaging 16.2 points and 13.4 points, respectively.

Most recently for Burton – 28 points at Syracuse, 16 points at Louisville, 17 points at Pitt, 19 points at Duke.

For Shrewsberry, we’ve already mentioned his 18 points in the 2nd half at Syracuse and his 23-point showing at Louisville with seven made threes. Both of those were outdone by his season high 25-point effort in the OT win at Georgia Tech. He’s averaging 3.4 made threes/game in road games.

#TRENDING

Here are some other under-the-radar stats to keep an eye out for this week.

• Tae Davis has recorded four double-digit scoring performances over the last five games. Davis is coming off an 18-point second half performance in the win over Clemson.
• In addition, Davis has made 29 of his last 33 from the free-throw line, raising his percentage from .618 to its current .716.
• Braeden Shrewsberry has produced three double-digit scoring performances over the last four games, totaling 60 points with 17 made three-pointers.
• Carey Booth has totaled 44 points over the last 4 games (11.0 ppg). He’s seeking his third straight game in double figures on Tuesday at UNC, which would mark a season best.
• Team-wise, Notre Dame is 6-0 this year when limiting their turnover total to single digits.  They have produced single-digit turnovers five times over the last six games, with the lone double-digit one being Syracuse.

IN YOUR BAG

Speaking of trending, Markus Burton has ratcheted up his defensive intensity down the final stretch. The starting point guard is now up to 58 steals (1 away from cracking the program top-10 for a season).

He’s averaging 2.0 spg. If that holds, he would become just the 4th player in program history to average 2.0 spg in a season (Chris Thomas, David Rivers, Jerian Grant).

His 2.0 steals per game ranks 4th in the ACC. Furthermore, his 2.3 steals/game in league play leads all ACC players.

— ND —