6. ACC/SEC Challenge - South Carolina

COLUMBIA, S.C. – In a year with several firsts for Notre Dame men’s basketball, it’s only appropriate that this week we have the first ACC/SEC Challenge. The first opponent for the Irish (3-2) in the inaugural event – the South Carolina Gamecocks (5-0). The Fighting Irish look to win their third straight and first true road game, while handing SC its first loss of the season. It’ll come to a head on Tuesday, Nov. 28, inside Colonial Life Arena, tipping off at 7 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.

ACC/SEC CHALLENGE

The Irish look to get a bad taste of SEC hoops out of their mouth from earlier this month when they fell to a talented Auburn squad in the Legends Classic. The Fighting Irish are 10-5 against the Gamecocks in their all-time rivalry with a 4-3 mark in South Carolina. However, the two sides have not met on the hardwood since Feb. 4, 1984.

The ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge will take place over back-to-back days Tuesday, Nov. 28 and Wednesday, Nov. 29, and be broadcast across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ACC Network and SEC Network.

2023 ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge

Tuesday, Nov. 28

LSU at Syracuse, 7 p.m.

Missouri at Pitt, 7 p.m.

Mississippi State at Georgia Tech, 7 p.m.

Notre Dame at South Carolina, 7 p.m.

Miami at Kentucky, 7:30 p.m.

NC State at Ole Miss, 9 p.m.

Clemson at Alabama, 9:30 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 29

Tennessee at North Carolina, 7:15 p.m.

Texas A&M at Virginia, 7:15 p.m.

Florida at Wake Forest, 7:15 p.m.

Duke at Arkansas, 9:15 p.m.

Virginia Tech at Auburn, 9:15 p.m.

Georgia at Florida State, 9:15 p.m.

Boston College at Vanderbilt, 9:15 p.m.

TREYS FROM BREA

It was only a matter of time for freshman guard Braeden Shrewsberry to have the breakout game he’s been searching for in the win over Maryland Eastern Shore on Nov. 22. Shrewsberry scored a season-best 13 points and he did so behind a 4-for-6 night from beyond the arc. He hit all four three-pointers in a five-minute span in the first half. In fact, he scored 10 straight points for the Irish from 7:35-5:51.

HITTING THE MARK(US)

Everyone is starting to take notice of freshman point guard Markus Burton. To help you get more acquainted, read up on the following stats:

• His 18.0 ppg leads all ACC freshmen and ranks 5th nationally amongst DI freshmen.
• Overall his scoring average ranks 8th in the ACC.
• Burton has started his career with five straight games in double figures. He still has a ways to go if he wants to break the freshman record for most to start your Irish career. Here are the top-3: Troy Murphy (12 in ‘98-99), Laphonso Ellis (9 in ‘88-89) and Adrian Dantley (8 in ‘73-74).
• Burton picked up his second game of 20 or more points against Oklahoma St on Nov. 17. The following is a list of the most 20-point games by an Irish freshman: Adrian Dantley (13 in ‘73-74), Troy Murphy (10 in ‘98-99) and David Rivers (10 in ‘84-85).

THAT’S IRISH BASKETBALL

There was a lot to be happy with after the 75-55 win over UMES. For starters, the ball was moving quickly and efficiently on the offensive end as Notre Dame posted a season-best 18 assists on 28 made field goals.

The ball movement then directly led to better looks from three, as the Irish hit double-digit treys for the first time this season – 13 to be exact. What was also great to see was nine different Irish recorded a made three.

“We’ve put a huge emphasis on it,” Shrewsberry said. “Guys are doing it. I thought we passed up average or OK shots for great shots. We need to be this kind of team.”

Next, the defense was stifling, allowing just 55 points – a season-best for ND.

Burton continued to impress with season highs in rebounds (6), assists (5) and steals (3). He recorded his first 5-5-5 stat-sheet stuffer game after earning 12 points as well.

Lastly, welcome to the lineup Kebba Njie. The sophomore returned from injury and made his Irish debut with a solid seven points and four rebounds.

“Every little thing that happens is just more and more belief,” Shrewsberry said. “More and more belief in what we’re doing, how we’re playing, what we’re talking about.”   

LEGENDS CLASSIC TAKEAWAYS

A couple of Irish standouts from two games in Brooklyn during the Legends Classic. First, let’s look at All-Tournament Team selection Markus Burton. The freshman took over the end of the Oklahoma State game scoring 16 of his team-high 20 points in the second half plus overtime (10 in 2H + 6 in OT). He averaged 16.0 points over the two games.

Next, it was a breakout week for Konieczny, as he produced back-to-back double-doubles, averaging 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds. He also earned his first career start in the win over Oklahoma State (11/17). J.R. entered the Legends Classic week with 15 points and 3 rebounds to his name thru 8 career ND games. Then over those 2 games, he produced a total of 29 points and 21 rebounds. J.R. constantly attacked the offensive glass, grabbing 8 O-Boards over the 2 games.

Last but not least, there was Tae Davis who averaged 10.0 points on 57.1 percent shooting (8-14 FG), along with 5.0 rebounds per game. Davis recorded a career high 13 points against the Auburn Tigers.

CLUTCH DOWN THE STRETCH

Speaking of Burton, he was clutch down the stretch in the win over Oklahoma State. As previously mentioned, he scored 10 points in the second half and then six in overtime.

Burton has really found another gear in the second half. The Oklahoma State game was his second double-digit scoring effort in a second half – he previously recorded 18 in the 2nd half vs. Niagara.

All-in-all, he’s totaled 48 2nd half points this season, which equates to a 9.6-point average.

TABLE OR BOOTH

Freshman Carey Booth has come off the bench in all five games, yet currently ranks second on the team in scoring with 8.8 ppg. In terms of ACC freshmen, Booth’s scoring average ranks fourth.

Booth’s best game — Western Carolina (11/11) — where he poured in a team high 20 points. There was a three-possession stint in the second half in which he hit three three-pointers in a row.

With that said, Booth is Notre Dame’s best three-point shooter right now. He leads the team in made threes per game (1.6) and 3PT FG% (.400).

ROPED INTO A (SCORING) SITUATION

During the preseason when a media member pointed out that not a single member of the roster averaged more than five points per game a year ago, Coach Shrewsberry simply replied, ‘Well we are going to score more than 12 points per game. Players will step up.’ One of those people making the most of his opportunity – Julian Roper II.

The Northwestern transfer has started all five games and averaging the most minutes at 30.3 He’s also averaging the third most points (8.2) and second most rebounds (5.2).

He has tied his career high of 12 points twice this season, with the most recent one being in the win over Oklahoma State.

Lastly, he’s starting to heat up from three, going 4-for-6 over the past two games.

— ND —