Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 DECEMBER 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED In the blink of an eye, he pulled up and stepped back. And as he hit the deck after releasing his falling-away heave from beyond the arc, he watched it fly into the basket. "AGAIN!" TBS play-by-play an- nouncer Brian Anderson shouted. "Matt Allocco again!" Before that, Allocco had the ball with 13 seconds to go in regulation and Notre Dame trailing by three. He pulled up from the left wing and did a ballet rou- tine to keep his toes behind the three- point line. Somehow, he willed the shot to go in as it rolled around the rim and through the net. "Trust, belief from my teammates," Allocco said. "They trust me to get the ball in my hands, make a couple shots. Ultimately, it wasn't enough." After Allocco's game-tying three with 15 seconds left in overtime, freshman guard Cole Certa did not know the score and intentionally fouled freshman Rut- gers guard Dylan Harper. Harper made 1 of 2 free throws, scoring his 36th and final point of the night, and gave the Scarlett Knights an 85-84 lead. The Irish gave it one last shot with the ball in Allocco's hands. He got a look from the top of the key at the buzzer, but he hit the back rim. As for Certa, Micah Shrewsberry de- fended his freshman after the game. "Just an unfortunate situation," Shrewsberry said. "It's not the first time it happened. It's probably not the last time it's ever going to happen. … I lose no faith in Cole Certa." "I'm going to take it on me, too," Al- locco said. "If I'm going to fancy myself a leader, I have to communicate right there that the game is tied." Allocco finished with 24 points, shooting 6 of 9 from three-point range. He also quietly notched a double-dou- ble, grabbing 10 rebounds and adding a team-high 5 assists. And he never left the floor. By night's end, the country — or at least the part of it insane enough to watch regular-season college basketball at 1:45 a.m. ET on a weeknight — was introduced to Allocco. The Irish hoped to parlay Allocco's near-heroics into a win over No. 6 Houston the next day, but without Bur- ton, they went completely cold in the second half. Despite 22 points, 8 re- bounds and 4 assists from junior for- ward Tae Davis, Notre Dame lost 65-54 to one of the best defensive teams in the country. A comeback attempt against No. 21 Creighton Nov. 30 fell short in a famil- iar, close-but-no-cigar fashion and dropped the Irish to 4-4. GOING FORWARD During that second half against the Cougars, Notre Dame scored only two points between 9:41 and 3:17. Each time down the court, Irish fans — or at least those who stayed up at around 2 a.m. ET — had to be thinking, "I wish we had No. 3." Throughout the past year and change, Notre Dame had a fail-safe when it needed a bucket: Let Burton cook. Without that luxury, when faced with Houston's suffocating defense, the Irish were helpless. Assuming "several weeks" includes the month of December, Notre Dame will need to survive without Burton for at least five games. Shortly after returning home from Las Vegas, the Irish will be back on the road and visit Georgia Dec. 3. A home game — their first since Elon — and ACC opener against Syracuse is on tap for Dec. 7. Games against Dartmouth and Le Moyne should be wins, but a road game at Georgia Tech awaits on New Year's Eve. This portion of the schedule seems manageable. Early January — which in- cludes No. 20 North Carolina, North Carolina State (which is coming off a Final Four appearance) and No. 9 Duke — does not. Burton's pledge to return means that all is not lost for the Irish. But if they can't figure out how to win without him and do it soon, dreams of meaningful games in March might be nothing more than that. ✦ 2024-25 NOTRE DAME MEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Nov. 6 Stonehill W, 89-60 Nov. 11 Buffalo W, 86-77 Nov. 16 at Georgetown W, 84-63 Nov. 19 North Dakota W, 75-58 Nov. 22 Elon L, 84-77 Nov. 26 vs. Rutgers^ L, 85-84 (OT) Nov. 28 vs. Houston^ L, 65-54 Nov. 30 vs. Creighton^ L, 80-76 Dec. 3 at Georgia% (ESPNU) 7 p.m. Dec. 7 Syracuse* (CW) 12 p.m. Dec. 11 Dartmouth (ACCNX) 7 p.m. Dec. 22 Le Moyne (ACCN) 6 p.m. Dec. 31 at Georgia Tech* (ACCN) 2:30 p.m. Jan. 4 North Carolina* (CBS) 12 p.m. Jan. 8 at NC State* (ESPN2/U) 7 p.m. Jan. 11 at Duke* (ESPN) 12 p.m. Jan. 13 Boston College* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Jan. 18 at Syracuse* (ACCN) 4 p.m. Jan. 25 at Virginia* (ESPN/2) 6:30 p.m. Jan. 28 Georgia Tech* (ACCN) 9 p.m. Feb. 1 at Miami* (ESPN2) 8 p.m. Feb. 4 at Florida State* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Feb. 8 Virginia Tech* (CW) 1 p.m. Feb. 12 at Boston College* (ESPN2/U) 9 p.m. Feb. 16 Louisville* (ACCN) 8 p.m. Feb. 19 SMU* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Feb. 22 Pittsburgh* (CW) 2:15 p.m. Feb. 26 at Clemson* (ACCN) 7 p.m. Mar. 1 at Wake Forest* (CW) 5:30 p.m. Mar. 5 Stanford* (ESPN2/U) 9 p.m. Mar. 8 California* (ESPNU) 8 p.m. Mar. 11-15 ACC Tournament$ TBD ^ Players Era Festival in Las Vegas; % ACC/SEC Challenge; * ACC game; $ at Charlotte, N.C. Through eight games, graduate student guard Matt Allocco had made 16 of 33 three-point attempts for an outstanding 48.5 percent accuracy rate. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS