Following head coach Micah Shrewsberry’s viral postgame rant after Sunday’s defeat to Louisville, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish men’s basketball team was back in action at Purcell Pavilion on Wednesday night. The three-game homestand rolled on with NCAA Tournament hopeful SMU paying a visit to South Bend.
The would be the first conference matchup ever between the Irish and Mustangs after SMU joined the ACC last summer following an 11-year stint in the American Athletic Conference. Wednesday’s affair would also mark the first meeting in South Bend between the two programs since January of 1989, when Ring of Honor member LaPhonso Ellis, who was in attendance for the game, led the Irish to a 67-45 victory.
The Mustangs have first-year leadership, with bench boss Andy Enfield taking the reins prior to the season after a successful 11-year tenure at USC. His first campaign at the helm in Dallas has been marked by resurgent success for the Pony Express, as their 19-6 record has them knocking on the door of their first trip to the postseason since 2017.
The Ponies have been galloping at a high speed all year long, as six double-digit per game scorers lead the ACC’s most-prolific offense, which averages over 82 PPG on efficient 48% shooting from the field and a 38% clip from beyond the arc. Conducting the Express has been the transfer backcourt duo of Boopie Miller and Chuck Harris, who average 13.4 and 12.5 points per game, respectively.
For the Irish, it has been the Markus Burton show all year long, with the Mishawaka product leading the ACC in scoring at 21.3 PPG. Since returning in early January from a lower-body injury suffered in a November loss against Rutgers, the 5’11” sophomore guard has been in impeccable form, setting a Notre Dame record by scoring 20+ in five straight games from January 11th to January 28th. The preseason all-ACC honoree also recorded a career high 32 in last Wednesday’s double-overtime triumph at Boston College.
Despite Miller missing his second straight game with a foot injury, the Express were rolling early, racing out to a quick 6-0 lead after connecting on their first three field goals. A Markus Burton turnover led to a transition dunk for senior guard Kario Oquendo, and after four Irish players failed to hustle back, Shrewsberry burned an early timeout.
Junior forward Tae Davis drained a triple directly out of the stoppage, but that would remain the sole made field goal for the Irish across the first 10 minutes of action, and Shrewsberry’s ire eventually resulted in the rare five-man line change substitution.
Among those who entered off the Irish bench was graduate guard Matt Allocco, making his first appearance following a four-game absence after injuring his right wrist in the Feb. 1 loss at Miami. Since transferring in from Princeton last offseason, Allocco has emerged as the Irish’s on-court leader, while also providing steady play in the backcourt alongside Burton, averaging 9.4 points per game and topping the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio.
Allocco couldn’t provide the necessary spark however, as a 21-4 SMU run would ensue over the succeeding eight minutes, giving the Mustangs a three-touchdown lead of 28-7 nearly 12 minutes into the contest.
The disastrous opening frame mercifully came to a close with the Irish trailing 50-25 following Harris’ buzzer-beating runner. The 25-point deficit was the largest Notre Dame has faced all year, and it didn’t help that Burton was just 1-5 from the field with two points. After converting on their final six attempts of the half, SMU entered the intermission shooting an incredible 21-29, compared to just 7-22 shooting from the Irish. They scored 30 points in the paint, led by Oquendo who tallied 15 on a perfect 6-6 shooting.
Speaking postgame about their sluggish start, sophomore guard Braeden Shrewsberry said, “We didn’t come out ready to go. We played lazy, we weren’t tough, and we weren’t competing.”
Coach Shrewsberry agreed, adding, “For us, the last two days we have focused on urgency. It’s been on the whiteboards, discussed in the huddles, but we didn’t have it today. This is new territory for us.”
Notre Dame was also outrebounded 18-8, and only totaled four assists to SMU’s nine. The lone bright spot for ND in the foremost 20 minutes was Shrewsberry, who snapped out of his slump by swishing two treys en route to 12 points.
It was yet another lackluster second half for the Irish, particularly on the defensive end, as the Mustangs never relinquished their huge lead on the way to a resounding 97-73 victory. It marked the most points allowed in the Shrewsberry era, as well as the second-largest loss of his Notre Dame career. SMU, whose lead grew to as much as 34 early in the second half, was led by 25 points from Oquendo, which is the most in a game by a Mustang this season.
Questioning the lack of defensive resolve, Coach Shrewsberry admitted, “I’ve done a poor job defensively with this group from the start. We don’t have that same grittiness, toughness or identity as last year.” He continued by saying, “This is rock bottom. The lack of effort is a slap in the face to the guys who put blood, sweat and tears into building this program. That isn’t Notre Dame basketball. I apologize to them and to the fans who have stuck with us.”
“I want to apologize to the former players who have stuck with us in our corner during this stretch. I can promise them that this s— will never happen again,” Braeden Shrewsberry concluded.
In his postgame press conference, Enfield addressed Oquendo and the backcourt’s ability to bounce-back following Saturday’s loss to Wake Forest, saying, “When you go on the road, guys have to step up and play. Our guards were 5-25 from three in our last game, so I was proud of how they responded and played together today. Kario was really efficient and played a great game.”
Shrewsberry led the charge for Notre Dame, scoring 21 on 5-8 shooting from three-point territory. Freshman forward Garrett Sundra also equaled his career-high with 11 points off the bench. It was a career-worst performance for Burton, who recorded just two points on six shots, while only playing nine minutes in the second half.
Speaking on the defensive gameplan against the standout Irish guard, Enfield said, “We tried to make him put it on the floor, and our bigs did a nice job of sliding over and forcing him to give it up.”
A point of concern for the Irish was the domination on the glass. SMU, the ACC’s best rebounding team, outrebounded Notre Dame 43-20. Coupled with 59% shooting from the Ponies, the Irish defense lacked resistance all night long.
Having now reached the 20-win plateau, the fourth-place Mustangs will return to Dallas this weekend for a huge matchup with second-place Clemson in a game that could make or break their NCAA Tournament aspirations.
The homestand will conclude for Notre Dame on Saturday when the Pittsburgh Panthers, another NCAA Tournament hopeful, travels to Northern Indiana. After dropping five of their last six and sitting at 5-10 in conference play, the stakes are high for the Irish as they aim to secure their spot in the 15-team ACC Tournament.
Saturday’s showdown is set for a 2:15 p.m. tip-off inside Purcell Pavilion with the national broadcast provided by The CW.
