Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/651219
MEN'S BASKETBALL estimated average of roughly 66 pos- sessions per game, which ranked 317th nationally (out of 351 schools) on the final day of the regular season accord- ing to KenPom.com. The pace in the 18-point destruction at the hands of Miami ended in a crawl- ing 57 possessions. So Brey decided to shake it up a bit. The Irish brought sophomore guard Matt Farrell — who had been rarely utilized since non-conference play — off the bench for 15 minutes in the regular- season finale against NC State, and both he and junior guard Demetrius Jackson pushed the ball up the court quick for Notre Dame. It worked. The game ended with a speedy 72 possessions, and the Irish scored 89 points and sent senior for- wards Zach Auguste and A.J. Burgett out with a 14-point win over the Wolf- pack on Senior Day. "The guard tempo was key," Brey said. "We played faster in practice, with a 20-second shot clock for two days. De- metrius and Matt did a great job push- ing the pace, and it had us in attack mode. "Matter of fact, on Thursday, we played a five-minute period with an 18-second shot clock. But I think it really helps us. It gets Demetrius [Jackson] go- ing, you're playing downhill and you're attacking. Maybe we take some semi- bad shots — I don't care. We're going to roll; we're going to go for it. "The 'Running Irish' head to D.C." Can the new, up-tempo Irish continue that success and style into the postsea- son after just one game? That remains to be seen. One thing seemed certain, though: There were no reins on the Irish when they headed into the ACC Tournament and beyond. ✦