SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Game two of the Coach Shrewsberry era almost followed a similar script as the season opener. The Notre Dame men’s basketball team (1-1) fell down by double-digits in the first half and clawed its way back into the game late in the second. In fact, the Irish trailed by as much as 17 points to rally within three, but Western Carolina (2-0) produced one final push late to take it 71-61.
The game standout was freshman Carey Booth. The 6-11 forward came off the bench and poured in a team high 20 points, shooting 6-of-12 from the field and an impressive 4-for-8 from beyond the arc.
Freshman point guard Markus Burton followed up his 29-point record breaking debut with 17 on Saturday on 6-of-15 shooting. Julian Roper II was the third and final Irish player in double figures with 12 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the floor. Roper also came one rebound shy of tying his career best with eight. Lastly, Logan Imes may have finished with just two points, four rebounds and three assists but he was the lone Irish player with positive plus-minus on the final stat sheet at +7.
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a first half in which Notre Dame just couldn’t sink in and find a rhythm. Western Carolina started 8-for-17 versus Notre Dame’s 4-of-15 and jumped out to a double-digit lead up 23-12 at 9:24.
Next, the Irish showed some life with a 10-2 run over the next several minutes, cutting it to one possession, down 25-22. Burton, Imes, Zona and Booth all contributed baskets during this stretch.
However, a few short moments later, the Catamounts got hot and fired off 11 unanswered points over a two-minute 24-second stretch. They maintained that 13-point advantage at the half, up 42-29.
Burton and Booth led the Irish at the midway point with 10 and 9 points, respectively. Together, they were 7-of-13 from the field while the rest of the squad was 4-of-17.
Around the 16-minute mark in the second half, the Irish offense got a little boost and it started with Matt Zona getting offensive rebounds. That ignited second-chance points on back-to-back possessions which led to three-pointers from Roper and Burton. Ultimately, an 8-0 Irish run to cut it to single digits at 46-37.
Yet, the momentum was instantly stymied with an unfortunate media timeout then ensuing Western Carolina 6-0 run.
What came next though was nothing but fight from the home squad as they held the Catamounts scoreless for over a six-minute stretch. Notre Dame cut a 17-point deficit to just three points with 4:48 remaining. The highlight of the 15-3 Irish run – freshman Carey Booth.
In three straight offensive possessions, Booth caught fire with back-to-back-to-back three-pointers. Tae Davis also came up big to make it five straight made Irish field goals.
Yet, the Irish just couldn’t get over that final hump as Western Carolina retaliated with an 8-0 run, with six of those points coming from the free-throw line. WCU then rode that to the 71-61 final.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Irish hit the road for the first time this season when they head to the bright lights of New York. The Irish will compete in next week’s Legend’s Classic emanating from the Barclays Center. Notre Dame will challenge Auburn first on Nov. 16 at 9 p.m. ET, then either Oklahoma State or St. Bonaventure the next day depending on results.
— ND –