Notre Dame upset by St. Joseph’s in Big Apple
By DOUG GRIFFITHS
ISL Assistant Editor
The 20th-ranked Fighting Irish saw an eight-point lead evaporate and were upset by St. Joseph’s 79-70 in overtime in the semifinals of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic Friday night in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Notre Dame appeared to be in control of the game leading 66-58 with four minutes to play. Unfortunately for the Irish’s sake, they forgot to finish.
St. Joseph’s ended regulation with an 8-0 run to force the extra session.
What an unbelievable November game, said Irish coach Mike Brey, whose team fell to 2-1 on the young season. We’re disappointed because we were in a good position up eight, but they got some offensive rebounds and second shots and that hurt us.
If you were a Notre Dame fan, you had to be concerned heading into overtime because the Hawks had all the momentum.
They carried the mojo they snatched late in regulation into overtime, scoring the first five points and never really were threatened by the Irish. St. Joseph’s outscored Notre Dame 13-4 in overtime.
The Irish would never have been in overtime had they not gone ice cold from the field. They just couldn’t buy a bucket down the stretch.
We had good looks but we just couldn’t knock them down in a timely manner at the end of the game, said guard Eric Atkins, who started the overtime session on the bench as he was battling leg cramps.
They did a great job defending us the whole game.
We had some really great looks, and if we hit one of them maybe we escape, but we couldn’t, said Brey, whose team endured a seven-minute scoreless streak, which proved fatal.
Shooting wasn’t Notre Dame’s only problem. It had a long night on the glass as St. Joseph’s front line was a handful to say the least. The final stats showed the Irish were outrebounded 40-38, but it sure felt more one sided than that.
I’m disappointed with our effort against their front line, which is a very good one, Brey said. I’m disappointed in our toughness in the lane against their front line. They were more men than us tonight and that’s why they won.
Forward Jack Cooley, who fouled out in overtime, was impressed with the Hawks’ big men.
They are really good and are extremely athletic, Cooley said. It was a challenge and a different look than we’ve seen in our first few games.
It was a physical affair, one that both teams showed just how much they wanted to win with great effort.
One fight for a loose ball resulted in St. Joseph’s Langston Galloway losing one of his front teeth as he dove for the ball and had an Irish player land on the back of his head, which drove his teeth into the Barclay’s Center hardwood.
It was Galloway who tied the game at 66 with just over 90 seconds remaining.
The Irish had a chance to win it at the end of regulation. Atkins drove, but missed the shot and Cooley couldn’t corral the rebound before time expired.
Overtime was dominated by the Hawks’ Ronald Roberts, who scored the first seven points in the extra frame to finish with 21 points to go along with his 16 rebounds.
St. Joseph’s was playing without guard Carl Jones (17.0 points per game), who has been the Hawks’ leading scorer the last two seasons. He was serving the final game of a three-game suspension after a violation of community standards.
Cooley ended with 14 points and 14 rebounds (his 15th double-double of his career). Scott Martin chipped in 13 points and Atkins added 12 points and 10 assists. Pat Connaughton and Jerian Grant also scored in double figures with 11 and 10, respectively.
Notre Dame shots just 39.1 percent from the field (27-of-69), including 35.7 percent from three-point land (10-of-28). It missed all six of its three-point shots in overtime.
The Irish were outscored at the free throw line 19-6 as St. Joseph’s shot 24 freebies compared to Notre Dame’s nine.
Notre Dame now faces 2-1 BYU at 7 p.m. tonight (on TruTV) in the consolation game of the Coaches vs. Cancer Class. Florida State beat BYU, 88-70, in the semifinals on Friday.
