NC State basketball falls at Notre Dame as Fighting Irish pull away in second half
This game was billed as a showcase between two super freshmen, but it was the veterans who made the difference.
Notre Dame senior Nate Laszewski had the biggest impact during the 73-65 win by the Irish on Wednesday at Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Ind. Laszewski, who came into the game averaging 8.4 points, finished with 18 to lead the Irish.
“I didn’t think we were sharp or played the way we’ve been playing on the offensive end,” Wolfpack head coach Kevin Keatts said. “Unfortunately, I didn’t think our big three had a great game. That being said, I thought we had our chances in the game.”
N.C. State’s Terquavion Smith and Notre Dame’s Blake Wesley — two of the top freshman faces in the ACC — were averaging 14.6 and 15.1 points, respectively. Smith struggled (4 points) after averaging 19.2 in his last four games. Wesley got it going late (15 points). It was the senior, though, who turned the tide of the game.
After missing its first four shots to start the second half, Laszewski went on a personal 8-0 run to put Notre Dame (13-6, 6-2 ACC) ahead by three.
Laszewski hit back-to-back 3-pointers, then drove the lane for an uncontested dunk, forcing N.C. State coach Keatts to take a timeout. The 6-foot-10 forward had 11 points during a 15-0 run that put the Irish ahead by 10.
N.C. State (10-11, 3-7) went more than two minutes between field goals, both by sophomore Cam Hayes, who scored for the first time in two games.
“I was happy to see the ball go in the hole for Cam,” Keatts said after Hayes finished with 10 points. “I think through this process he lost his confidence a little bit, but he has worked hard in practice to get in back.”
Casey Morsell, who sat most of the first half with two fouls, scored five points during a 9-2 Pack run to cut the lead to single digits.
The Irish, in an attempt to keep N.C. State out of the lane, went to a zone defense that led to two Pack turnovers. Notre Dame turned those into points, extending the lead to 10.
N.C. State had 20 points in the paint in the first half, but was limited to 16 in the second.
Like they’ve done most of the year, especially in ACC play, the Pack made a late run to make things interesting. Dereon Seabron, who had 11 in the first half, scored three straight to make it a six-point game with 3:39 to play.
Notre Dame’s three seniors in the starting five combined for 46 points. Dane Goodwin’s corner 3-pointer with 55 seconds remaining was the knockout blow to the Pack comeback attempt. Seabron finished with a game-high 21 points. He was one of four State players in double figures.
The two teams were dead even at the half, tied at 30. N.C. State and Notre Dame shot an identical 38% from the field and 50% from the foul line. The Irish had a slight edge from behind the arc, shooting 33% to the Wolfpack’s 21%.
“Our main focus was to guard the three-point line tonight,” Hayes said. “They just hit more 3s than us and capitalized off that.”
N.C. State’s largest lead was five points, and that lasted one possession as Notre Dame cut it to two with a Laszewski 3-pointer. The first six points of the game for the Wolfpack came on second-chance shots. N.C. State was aggressive on the offensive boards early, but at the half, just like the score, the teams were even in offensive rebounds (6) and second chance points (8). The Pack had a one-rebound edge (21-20).
The Wolfpack struggled from 3-point range in the first half, knocking down just 3 of 14 attempts. It finished the game 6 of 19 in 3-point shooting.
“When we have success is when we are able to shoot the basketball,” Keatts said. “We didn’t have a great night shooting the ball and they did.”
The Irish knocked down 11 3-pointers, improving to 9-0 when they make 10 or more from deep.
“I think that was the big difference in the game,” Keatts said. “When you look at the stat sheet they went 11-28 from the 3-point line.”
Notre Dame remained perfect at home (8-0) with Wednesday’s victory. Their win snapped a four-game losing streak to N.C. State, which is 4-2 overall under Keatts against the Irish.
The Pack returns to action on Saturday against rival North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
This story was originally published January 26, 2022 at 11:12 PM.
