SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Glenn & Stacey Murphy Notre Dame men’s basketball head coach Micah Shrewsberry stated in his post-game press conference that it felt like Groundhog’s Day. The Fighting Irish (7-13, 2-7) were yet in another single-digit game down the final stretch but couldn’t get over the final hump against the Eagles (12-8, 3-6) of Boston College, falling 61-58. The six losses in the month of January have been by an average margin of 6.3 points.
The Fighting Irish almost pulled off a late flurry to send the game to overtime, down six with 13 seconds left. Braeden Shrewsberry hit a corner three then with 0.8 seconds left the Irish earned a steal off a deflection out of bounds. Notre Dame then found a wide-open Kebba Njie at the top of the key whose three-point attempt rimmed out at the buzzer.
J.R. Konieczny produced a 13-point first half and finished with 15 – a team high. Konieczny finished in double figures for the fourth time over the last five games.
Braeden Shrewsberry notched his fifth double-digit scoring performance over the last six games with 14 on Saturday. Shrewsberry went 4-of-9 from deep and recorded his sixth straight game with multiple three-pointers. He’s now 19-of-42 from beyond the arc during the stretch.
Lastly, Markus Burton kept his double-digit scoring streak alive with 10 points – his 13th straight game in double figures. The freshman dished out seven assists, one shy from his season high.
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a cold offensive start for the Irish, as an early 6:45 scoring drought allowed the Eagles to garner an 11-5 lead at the 9:56 mark. However, the defense was doing its part, biding time for the offense by limiting Boton College to a 4-for-18 start from the field.
J.R. Konieczny lit a fire in the offense by going on an individual 8-0 run over a two-minute span, giving the Irish their first lead at 13-11 with 7:52 remaining. Keep in mind, Konieczny had 11 of those 13 points.
Logan Imes and Matt Zona each added a three-pointer in the closing minutes and Notre Dame took a 23-23 tie into the halftime locker room.
Konieczny and the team defense were the first half talking points. Konieczy scored 13 points (five shy of his season high) on 4-of-10 shooting. Defensively speaking, it marked the third time this season in which Boston College couldn’t score more than 30 points in a half – two of which were now against Notre Dame.
The Irish shared the offensive wealth to start the second half, for the first 11 points were scored by five different players. It went back and forth for most of the second half as it mainly stayed a one-possession game.
Fast forward to the 7:54 media timeout and the Irish trailed 48-42. That’s when Shrewsberry connected on his third trey of the game to pull within one possession once more. Moments later, Burton kept the Irish close with a key steal and breakaway layup.
Yet, the Irish just couldn’t push through to reclaim the lead. Boston College recorded a stretch in which they converted 6-of-8 from the field to go up 54-47 with four minutes left on the clock, marking the largest lead of the game for either team.
Later, Imes would convert two free throws and Davis as well, but the Irish still faced a deficit, down 57-53 with under two minutes remaining. The defense did its part again, giving the offense a chance. Enter Burton who came off the bench and responded with a big bucket.
It’s now Boston College basketball with the Eagles up two with 36 seconds left. Out of a BC timeout, Jaeden Zackery drove the paint and got the roll to push the lead to four. Now it’s Notre Dame working out of a timeout with 23 seconds on the clock. Imes drove down the lane and pitched to Shrewsberry who lofted up a three but it was too strong. BC’s Zackery then knocked down two from the free-throw line to make it a six-point game.
Shrewsberry did convert his next three-point attempt and on Boston College’s attempt to in-bounds the ball it was deflected out-of-bounds. The refs reviewed and it was Notre Dame basketball with 0.8 seconds left. The Eagles pressed and took away the corner looks but that left Njie open at the top of the perimeter, but his shot just missed.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame will look to cause some havoc on the road with three straight games away from Purcell, starting with at Virginia on Jan. 31. That match will tip off at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
— ND –