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No. 10 Irish storm back after slow start to close out Senior Night victory

Junior Kylee Watson (right) posted the first double-doujble of her career Thursday night in helping to led Notre Dame to a 76-53 victory over Georgia Tech.
Junior Kylee Watson (right) posted the first double-doujble of her career Thursday night in helping to led Notre Dame to a 76-53 victory over Georgia Tech. (Matt Cashore, USA TODAY Sports Network)

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Game time was 6 p.m. Thursday night at Purcell Pavilion — and Notre Dame was a no-show.

That can happen on Senior Night.

Coaches understand it, almost expect it, and Niele Ivey didn’t let it linger when an average Georgia Tech team, now 13-15 (4-13 Atlantic Coast Conference) hit the No. 10-ranked Irish (23-4, 14-3, tied for first) with an 8-0 run to start the game.

She called a timeout two and a half minutes in.

It was a reset of sorts, and it worked to restore order in Notre Dame’s eventual 76-53 victory.

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“We had some good looks — my goal was to go inside early,” Ivey said about the message during the early timeout. “Our first three touches, I think, were in the paint, but we had no offensive rebounds. We were one and done, so I kind of talked about that — executing in crashing the boards and then obviously our defense, giving them quick points.

“I talked to them about just locking in defensively, and we changed a little bit of the rotation. I think that worked, but I just think it's always like that, the emotion of Senior Night. And they (Georgia Tech) came out on fire, and we had to adjust.“

This club must be coachable.

The response was immediate, and by the 5-minute mark it was tied at 8-8, with four different players scoring. By the end of the quarter Notre Dame was up 17-12 and clearly had a road map to the win.

The Irish had a 45-33 rebounding edge, including 18-10 on the offensive end and they dominated points in the lane, 44-18. That’s about what is expected from this team, which ranks 263rd in the country in 3-pointers per game at 4.8, but 17th in field goal percentage at 46.5.

They were 4-for-13 on 3s against Georgia Tech for 30.8%.

Two seniors with no remaining eligibility were honored in Dara Mabrey, who walked across the floor on crutches because of her season-ending knee injury, and 6-4 center Lauren Ebo, who continues to build up her minutes while recovering from a lower-leg injury.

She started and played 14 minutes Thursday, finishing with a subpar shooting night of 3-for-9 for eight points to go with five rebounds, three on the offensive end.

“I always love being a part of these type of moments, honoring two gifted young women who have done so much for me and so much for the program,” Ivey said.

The big push from the Irish to assert control didn’t really hit its stride until the third quarter, when they broke from a 33-27 halftime lead to a 55-39 edge.

Points came from all directions.

Guard Olivia Miles’ shooting slump continued (5-for-15) but she had a team-high 13 points. Kylee Watson, the 6-4 transfer from Oregon, has hit a new comfort level in the lane and had 12 points, almost double her average. She came in shooting almost 60% from the field. She also had 10 rebounds for her first career double-double.

“She's been playing so well and has just really been a spark for us, even in the beginning of the game,” Ivey said.

“I'm mainly just focusing on my mental game and that comes from just getting more shots up, and a lot of just me working on being better at like self-talk and stuff like that,” Watson said. “... And I'm surrounded by so many great people that it's really made it easy for me.”

Easy or not, her continued assertiveness and scoring success will be critical to how far the Irish can go in next week’s ACC Tournament, in which they already have a double-bye locked up with one game still to play, as well as the NCAA Tournament.

In the last four games Watson has totaled 53 points and 27 rebounds, especially important as Ebo recovers.

Notre Dame center Lauren Ebo (33) drives on Georgia Tech's Nerea Hermosa (20) during an Irish Senior Night win at Purcell Pavilion on Thursday night.
Notre Dame center Lauren Ebo (33) drives on Georgia Tech's Nerea Hermosa (20) during an Irish Senior Night win at Purcell Pavilion on Thursday night. (Matt Cashore, USA TODAY Sports Network)

The Irish also got 12 points from guard Sonia Citron, 11 from forward Maddy Westbeld and 10 from guard KK Bransford, who turned in a 5-for-7 shooting night to help the Irish get to 44.3% for the game.

Georgia Tech is no juggernaut offensively, averaging 61.7 points a game (245th in the country), but the Irish were solid on the defensive side, forcing a 39.7 shooting night, including 25% from the 3-point line at 6-for-24, and 16 turnovers.

Only Cameron Swartz reached double figures for the Yellow Jackets with 10 points.

Ivey took special delight in Notre Dame’s turnover total of nine. The Irish average 15.5 and Ivey has been hard at work to shift a negative trend which reached a serious stage in the middle of the season.

They have been over their average only once in five games since committing 22 against Boston College on Feb. 2.

“Yeah, I'm super proud of that stat,” Ivey said of the nine turnovers. “We talk about having a positive assist-to-turnover ratio a lot, and we went through a couple stretches a couple of weeks where that was something that we were focused on — making better plays and better decisions.

“We’re putting them in a lot of scenarios with our practice team for them to handle pressure and then again making decisions. So it looks like the work’s paying off.”

Notre Dame’s showdown Sunday at rival Louisville will be televised nationally on ESPN. Game time is noon (EST). It’s the final regular-season game of the season and just 10 days removed from an overtime victory over the Cardinals, 78-76.

Louisville will come into the game at 12-5 in the league, tied for fourth with Florida State, and 21-9 overall.

Ivey took a minute following the game to thank the Purcell crowd of 5,297 for its support throughout the season. Average attendance this season is 5,236.

NOTRE DAME 76, GEORGIA TECH 53: Box Score

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