Notre Dame's sweet (16) dreams unravel in final minutes
Gameday thread below:
No. 11 seed Notre Dame (24-10) will take on No. 3 seed Texas Tech (26-9) at 7:10 p.m. EDT in San Diego for a spot in the Sweet Sixteen. The Irish haven't advanced that far into the NCAA Tournament since back-to-back Elite Eight finishes in 2015 and 2016.
Defense is the name of the game for Texas Tech. The Red Raiders entered Sunday ranked No. 10 in Division I in scoring defense (60.4 points per game) and No. 6 in field-goal percentage defense (38.4%). Texas Tech uses size on the perimeter with three starting guards at 6-foot-6 and a pair of 6-8 forwards.
Forward Bryson Williams leads the team with 13.9 points per game as the best shooter from range (42.7%). He led the Big 12 in field-goal percentage at 54.1%.
Guard Terrance Shannon Jr., the team's second-leading scorer with 10.8 points, also shoots well from 3 at 39%.
They both scored 20 points in Texas Tech's 97-62 rout of Montana State in the first round.
The rest of the offense is pretty balanced with four players — guard Davion Warren (9.9), forward Kevin Obanor (9.9), guard Kevin McCullar (9.7) and guard Adonis Arms (8.5) — all averaging between 8-10 points. Warren, a 6-6 guard who transferred from Hampton, comes off the bench.
Notre Dame's projected starters: guards Prentiss Hubb, Blake Wesley, Dane Goodwin and Cormac Ryan and forward Paul Atkinson Jr.
Ryan has 65 points in last three games (20 vs. Virginia Tech, 16 vs. Rutgers and 29 vs. Alabama). His 29 points, which included seven 3s, against Alabama were the most by a Notre Dame player in an NCAA Tournament game since Adrian Dantley's 31 in 1976. Can Ryan stay hot tonight?
Wesley scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half against Alabama. His shot hasn't been clicking, but he can make things happen off the dribble for the Irish. Notre Dame needs the second-half version of Wesley against Texas Tech.
Atkinson had difficulties with Alabama's size, but he managed 13 points thanks to foul trouble for 7-foot center Charles Bediako. Atkinson needs to take better care of the ball after five turnovers against the Crimson Tide.
Hubb couldn't find his shot against Alabama on 1-of-8 shooting, but he finished with the second-best plus/minus at +16. Hubb contributed five points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. The Irish need him to be a distributor.
Goodwin, the team's second-leading scorer this season (13.6 points per game) has been mysteriously quiet for Notre Dame. He attempted just three shots and scored three points against Alabama. He only recorded one rebound and didn't register an assist. Goodwin hasn't hit his season average in points since scoring 17 points in the Georgia Tech game on Feb. 26. There has to be room in the offense for Goodwin to be more productive even if Ryan's the hot hand.
Forward Nate Laszewski has been Notre Dame's only difference maker off the bench. He had 10 points, six rebounds and three assists against Alabama after scoring 18 against Rutgers. His sharp shooting and physical presence on the boards will be critical for the Irish to pull off an upset.
TV: TBS with Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Steve Smith (analyst), Avery Johnson (analyst) and Lauren Shehadi (sideline).
Streaming: https://www.ncaa.com/march-madness-live/watch
Radio: Live locally on WSBT-AM 960/FM 96.1 with Tony Simeone (play-by-play) and nationally on Sirius/XM Channel 84 with Dave Pasch (play-by-play) and PJ Carlesimo (analyst).
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