COLUMBIA, S.C. – In the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge, the Notre Dame men’s basketball team (3-3) suffered a 65-53 defeat to South Carolina (6-0) in the first true road game of the season for the Irish on Tuesday evening.
Three players finished in double figures for Notre Dame, led by Tae Davis’ 15-point effort which marked a career high for the sophomore. Junior Konieczny added 11 points and Julian Roper II chipped in 10.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Irish opened strong as the Irish offense was sparked by a J.R. Konieczny three and then Julian Roper followed with back-to-back buckets to put the Irish up 8-0 in the early stages. The Gamecocks knocked down two free throws to put themselves on the board with 14:51 left in the first half.
As the Irish led 11-4, South Carolina made their first bucket from the floor with 13:01 on the clock, meanwhile, the Irish were shooting 40% from the field. The Gamecocks’ offense continued to roll as they claimed their first lead of the game at 14-13 with just over ten minutes left in the half.
With South Carolina in front at 4:08, another Konieczny three evened the score at 24-24. Tied up at 28-28 with just under a minute left in the half, the Gamecocks scored one last basket from behind the arc to take the 31-28 advantage heading into halftime. Konieczny led the charge offensively with 10 points in the first half.
The Gamecock offense would strike first in the second half as they extended their lead to 38-33 to start. Baskets from Roper, Shrewsberry, and Davis put the Irish back in front as they reclaimed the lead at 35-34 at the 17:07 mark. At 38-all, Shrewsberry knocked down a jumper to give the Irish a 40-38 edge.
Unfortunately for the Irish, that would be the last time they held a lead in the contest. South Carolina outscored Notre Dame 13-1 over a seven-minute stretch to go on top by a score of 51-41 with seven minutes left in regulation.
Notre Dame trimmed the lead to six at 51-45 with six minutes to play but that was as close as the Irish would get, as the Gamecocks pulled away late in the 65-53 victory.
UP NEXT
The first game of ACC play awaits. The Irish ditch the snow for palm trees to head to No. 8/8 Miami on Saturday, Dec. 2. That matchup will tip-off at Noon ET on the CW.
— ND –