Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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ACC games to begin conference play 3-8 and stood 12-12 overall in what appears to be, at best, an NIT-bound season. The Irish were winless on the road in league play through Feb. 9 (0- 5) and were to face a brutal stretch in late February with three consecutive games away from home (Boston Col- lege, Miami and Virginia). "When you haven't come into the locker room and enjoyed a win con- sistently, it takes its toll," head coach Mike Brey admitted. "Just to get to that feeling is some real medicine to kind of help you feel good moving forward." In the absence of senior guard Jer- ian Grant, the veteran trio of senior guard Eric Atkins (14.0 points and 4.8 assists per game through Feb. 9), fifth-year senior center Garrick Sher- man (14.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game) and junior guard/forward Pat Connaughton (13.1 points and 7.5 re- bounds per game) have elevated their play, but it has not been enough to win consistently. This year has also represented a youth movement for the squad, with a trio of freshmen playing significant minutes. While guard Steve Vasturia (3.8 points in 19.4 minutes per contest) and forward V.J. Beachem (2.0 points in 8.3 minutes per game) continue to trend upward, McDonald's All-Amer- ican guard Demetrius Jackson has struggled to transition from dominat- ing the high school game to contribut- ing in the ACC. He attempted only 39 shots in the first 11 ACC games despite averaging more than 22 minutes per contest in league play. The Irish have lost a number of close conference games, specifically on the road. Notre Dame had oppor- tunities to win each of its five road games, even at No. 1 Syracuse Feb. 3 2013-14 SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Nov. 8 Miami (Ohio) W, 74-62 Nov. 10 Stetson W, 80-49 Nov. 17 Indiana State L, 83-70 Nov. 22 Santa Clara W, 84-69 Nov. 24 Army W, 93-60 Dec. 1 Cornell W, 101-67 Dec. 3 at Iowa L, 98-93 Dec. 7 Delaware# W, 80-75 Dec. 9 Bryant# W, 70-59 Dec. 11 North Dakota State# L, 73-69 Dec. 14 Indiana^ W, 79-72 Dec. 21 Ohio State# L, 64-61 Dec. 29 Canisius W, 87-81 (OT) Jan. 4 Duke* W, 79-77 Jan. 7 North Carolina State* L, 77-70 Jan. 11 at Georgia Tech* L, 74-69 Jan. 15 at Maryland* L, 74-66 Jan. 19 Virginia Tech* W, 70-63 Jan. 21 at Florida State* L, 76-74 Jan. 25 at Wake Forest* L, 65-58 Jan. 28 Virginia* L, 68-53 Feb. 1 Boston College* W, 76-73 (OT) Feb. 3 at Syracuse* L, 61-55 Feb. 8 North Carolina* L, 73-62 Feb. 11 Clemson* 7 p.m. Feb. 16 at Boston College* (ESPNU) 6 p.m. Feb. 19 at Miami* (RSN) 9 p.m. Feb. 22 at Virginia* (ESPN/ESPN2) 2 p.m. Feb. 26 Georgia Tech* (ESPN2) 7 p.m. March 1 Pittsburgh* (ESPN/ESPN2) 2 p.m. March 3 at North Carolina* (ESPN) 7 p.m. March 12-16 ACC Tournament! TBD # Gotham Classic; ^ Crossroads Classic (Notre Dame, Indiana, Purdue, Butler); * ACC game; ! at Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C.