NOTRE DAME, IN — John Mooney secured a double-double with 28 points and 10 rebounds to help the Notre Dame Fighting Irish take down the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 80-72 inside Purcell Pavilion on Saturday afternoon. The day was also noteworthy because Notre Dame inducted legendary alum Kelly Tripucka into the Ring of Honor at halftime.
Notre Dame improved to 13-8 overall and 11-3 at home with the victory.
The Fighting Irish had four players score in double figures, led by Mooney’s 28 points. T.J. Gibbs tacked on 19 points while Dane Goodwin (14) and Rex Pflueger (13) also made an impact on offense.
KOBE!!! I remember watching every single one of your games and highlights since I can remember… always practicing my “Kobe” fade-away in my front yard! This one was for you Mamba❤️🐍
Also great two game win streak but we have to keep going!!!🍀 pic.twitter.com/jLoobb3Aci— Rex Pflueger (@rexpflueger) February 1, 2020
HOW IT HAPPENED
After falling behind 32-29, Notre Dame went on a 5-0 run with 2:20 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Mooney, to take a 34-32 lead. The Fighting Irish then added one point to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 36-33 advantage. Notre Dame relied on its three-point shooting in the period, knocking down six shots beyond the arc to account for 18 of its 36 points.
Notre Dame kept its lead intact before going on a 5-0 run to grow the lead to 58-50 with 10:04 to go in the contest. The Fighting Irish held onto that lead for the rest of the game en route to an 80-72 win.
PLAYER OF THE GAME
Mooney had one of the best games of his career on the offensive end on Saturday, matching his career high in points with 28. The senior finished 50 percent from the floor, going 9-of-18. Mooney also excelled from the free-throw line, finishing 8-of-9 on the afternoon. The forward recorded another double-double, grabbing a team-high 10 rebounds in his impressive performance.
☘️ @jmoon32 drains a three and becomes the 25th player in the Mike Brey era to reach 1,000 points!#GoIrish pic.twitter.com/f7qtDrfEcV
— Notre Dame MBB (@NDmbb) February 1, 2020
Saturday was also a notable day for the senior big, as Mooney became the 64th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point milestone. Mooney currently has 1,009 career points.
STAT OF THE GAME
The Irish continued their stretch of excelling from the free-throw line, finishing 23-of-28 (82.1 percent) in the game. The senior trio of Mooney, Pflueger and Gibbs combined to shoot 20-of-23 from the line.
NOTES
- Notre Dame improves to 11-10 against Georgia Tech in the all-time series, including a mark of 9-5 in ACC regular-season play.
- For the 11th time this season, the Irish finished a game with less than 10 turnovers, giving up just eight on Saturday.
- Mooney recorded his 17th double-double in just 20 games this season and the 38th of his career.
- Gibbs notched his 18th double-digit scoring performance of the season and 74th of his career.
- Goodwin finished in double figures in the scoring column for the 15th time this season and 23rd time in his career. The sophomore has recorded six straight games of at least 10 points.
- Pflueger finished with 13 points, marking the fourth time this season and 23rd time in his career he has scored at least 10 points.
UP NEXT
The Fighting Irish are back in action at Purcell Pavilion at 6:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 5 as Notre Dame hosts Pitt. The game will air on ACCN.