Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 30, 2024 47 BY JACK SOBLE O n North Dakota's first possession of the second half Nov. 19 at Purcell Pavilion, junior Fighting Hawks guard Eli King snuck behind sophomore Notre Dame guard Braeden Shrewsberry for an offensive board and a quick bucket. As soon as he saw that, a furious Irish head coach Micah Shrewberry told his starting two guard and first-born son to take a seat. Junior guard J.R. Konieczny came in for Braeden Shrewsberry. But on his first defensive possession, he made the same mistake. King went up for the re- bound, Konieczny failed to put a body on him and back to the bench he went. "That's the most disappointing thing for me," Micah Shrewsberry said. "For a team that played with so much maturity on Saturday, I thought we played with a lot of immaturity today." The most disappointing part: Shrews- berry had warned his players about King specifically, who wound up with a whop- ping 6 offensive rebounds. This guy, Shrewsberry told his players during film study. This guy will crash the glass every time. He even reminded them at halftime; the last thing he said before the Irish broke the huddle was, "The first time that shot goes up, I better see some bodies moving." It didn't happen. That, the second-year head coach explained, was immaturity. "Get a foul," Shrewsberry said. "At least you're setting the tone and say- ing, 'Ain't no way in hell you're getting the offensive rebound right here to start this second half.' I don't care. Take the ball out of bounds, but I need to see that dude flying into the stands." That was all Shrewsberry could think about after Notre Dame beat North Da- kota 75-58 and improved to 4-0. Win- ning by 17 points against the North Da- kotas of the world is no longer the bar. Starting 4-0 for just the second time since 2016 is no longer the bar. Shrewsberry's message after the Irish beat the Fighting Hawks signaled higher expectations than most outside Rolfs Athletics Hall realize. "We can't get too big-headed," soph- omore guard Markus Burton said. "Ob- viously, 4-0 is great, but there's still a lot more work to be done." Burton came to play against North Dakota, nearly matching his career high (31) with a frighteningly efficient 29 points on 13-of-20 shooting. He also grabbed 9 rebounds and dished 3 as- sists, bringing his season averages through four games to 20.5, 6.0 and 5.3. He and Shrewsberry had seen the Irish play better throughout their hot start. "I didn't think we prepared the same way that we prepared for our last game, or other games that we've played this season," Shrewsberry said. In particular, Notre Dame blew the doors off Georgetown in Washington, D.C., winning 84-63 and picking up its third road win since Feb. 12, 2022. In smashing the Hoyas, the Irish showcased their quality depth up and down the lineup. With Burton and Braeden Shrewsberry starting slowly from the field, graduate student guard Matt Allocco came out with a flame- thrower from behind the three-point line. He finished with 17 points while shooting 4 of 8 from beyond the arc. Notre Dame brought in Allocco from Princeton in the transfer portal this off- season, and Micah Shrewsberry is thrilled with what he's brought to the table. "Allocco is just a gamer," Shrews- berry said. "When the lights come on the brightest, he's at his best. He was an absolutely great pickup for us this summer." Graduate transfer forwards Nikita Konstantynovskyi (Monmouth) and Burke Chebuhar (Lehigh) contributed to the Georgetown win, too. The for- mer scored 8 points and corralled 8 rebounds in 15 minutes, and the latter made 3 three-pointers in 10. Against North Dakota, another depth piece stepped up: Senior guard Julian Roper II, who came in for Konieczny after he was pulled early in the second half. Roper picked up 5 steals, but more than that it was the energy he brought on a night when Notre Dame didn't have much of it. Roper was an opening-night starter on last year's team. Now, he's a seldom- used spark plug. But he did his job when called upon. "You see it all the time on different teams, everybody could have a day," Roper said. "I know I can contribute in multiple ways, so whenever I get out there, I just pride myself on doing something to help us win." Notre Dame expects to win a lot this season. It will need performances like that from its many reserves to do so. ✦ Micah Shrewsberry Raises Expectations Amid 4-0 Start Sophomore point guard Markus Burton averaged 20.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game in Notre Dame's season-opening four-game win streak. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS MEN'S B A S K E T B A L L