Notre Dame men's basketball seizes moment in win over Georgia Tech
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — A plague all too familiar to Notre Dame men's basketball this season reared its head again on Wednesday night.
After holding a three-point lead at halftime, the Irish found themselves down five with under 13 minutes left in the game.
But Notre Dame didn't hit the panic button.
Instead of falling off the rails, as they did in the second half of losses to The Citadel and Duke earlier this season, Notre Dame showed growth by clawling back and earning a 58-55 win.
Freshman Markus Burton continued his presence as a pest defensively with five steals to along with a game-high 18 points.
The 6-foot-9, 208-pound Tae Davis scored 17 points, two shy of his season-high, and flashed his talent as a penetrator and defender that made him such a coveted piece out of the transfer portal last summer for head coach Micah Shrewsberry.
Kebba Njie — arguably the team's most experienced player, as a sophomore — dominated the glass with seven rebounds, including six in the second half.
It all culminated in a game-clinching sequence with less than 10 seconds left in regulation, in which Njie tipped a 50-50 ball toward halfcourt that ultimately led to another possession for the Irish (9-16, 4-10 ACC). Notre Dame then proceeded to complete a season sweep of Georgia Tech (10-15, 3-11 ACC) after Burton sank two free throws with 1.2 seconds remaining.
"That's just a game-winning play, is what it was," Shrewsberry said. "Last possession, and the shot goes up ... he had played the whole second half. He was battling and battling and battling, [and] never gave up at any point in time.
"And just made that play, made that tip-out, which was big time. And Logan [Imes] for running through that pass and going and getting it when the ball's on the ground."
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"But I talked to our guys about it ... we said before the game that like, 'Do whatever it takes today from you individually to help us win,'" Shrewsberry said. "And Kebba didn't get a field goal attempt tonight ... some dudes will pout when that happens, and he just kept playing and kept making big-time plays and that was great.
"I thought his defense was good. We quit letting them score layups and dunks. He was a big part of that."
Njie, who followed Shrewbserry to South Bend after spending his freshman season at Penn State, isn't known for his scoring — his 11-point performance in ND's win vs. Virginia Tech on Saturday was his second game in double-figures all season — but he impacts the game in other ways.
Notre Dame outrebounded Georgia Tech, 40-31, and had 16 offensive rebounds to the Yellow Jackets' five. Davis and Julian Roper II each brought down six rebounds, while Imes finished with five, three of which were offensive and happened in the second half. While Shrewsberry's scheme lacks the traditional center, the Irish have only lost the rebounding battle in four of their 14 ACC games so far.
"I feel like that's just been a lot of who we are this whole year ... just trying to crash the glass and get more possessions," Njie said. "By doing that, we win the possession battle at the end of the game."
Davis shines in spotlight
With starting freshman forward Carey Booth relegated to 14 minutes and shut out in the scoring column, Notre Dame needed a sparkplug in addition to Burton, and the Irish offense received it through Davis' performance.
The Indianapolis native, who was recruited out of high school by Shrewsberry at Penn State before ultimately signing with Seton Hall, has started all but one game for Notre Dame this season. Davis' scoring has fluctuated, and before Wednesday night the sophomore hadn't taken at least 10 field goal attempts in a single game since December.
Davis played aggressively from the tip against the Yellow Jackets and filled up the scoring column, going 6-of-12 from the field and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. He also made his first 3-pointer since Jan. 3 against NC State.
"I was just pretty much trying to do whatever was needed on the court, honestly," Davis said. "Coach got on me a little bit. You gotta respond in the best way and just play the right way, so I just tried to play the right way."
Shrewsberry said he thought Davis drove the ball passively in the first half but shifted gears and began to finish, draw fouls and convert at the free-throw line in the second half.
Davis' final bucket of the game came with under 90 seconds remaining, when he saved a broken offensive passion by driving in the lane and making a contested layup as the shot clock expired.
Davis also made life difficult for Georgia Tech's offensive players with one steal, one blocked shot and no fouls committed, despite defending guards on the perimeter and bigs inside the paint.
"His ability as a defender is special," Shrewsberry said. "He can play, because he can guard anybody. And he's gonna have a chance now, when he's doing that. And on the other hand, he's attacking the rim and scoring, getting on the offensive glass. That's really helpful for us."
The Yellow Jackets were led in scoring by Ibrahima Sacko with 13 points, while Miles Kelly and Baye Ndongo were close behind with 11 apiece. Notre Dame held Georgia Tech to its second-lowest scoring output of the entire season and two made field goals in the final seven minutes.
"One thing that's not talked about enough that I think is a college thing is as you move up levels, you gotta go create your own space sometimes," Georgia Tech coach Damon Stoudamire said. "And we're learning. That was essentially the issue, but it wasn't the game. For me, the game ... I'm looking at 16 offensive rebounds as the game for me."
Notre Dame will have a full week off before traveling to Lousiville (8-17, 3-11 ACC) next Wednesday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST on ESPNU.
The last time Shrewsberry's squad had a week off, the Irish came out of the extended break and dropped five consecutive games (Miami, Boston College, Virginia, Pittsburgh and Duke).
"I've actually looked at this as a time of like when we add stuff," Shrewsberry said. "Now we gotta keep getting good at the stuff we're doing well, but I think there's small things that we can add that can help us even more here down the stretch."
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