“Written by Aaron Beard, an AP basketball writer.”

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Mark Mitchell had 13 points and 10 rebounds to help ninth-ranked Duke beat Notre Dame 71-53 on Wednesday night.

Caleb Foster, a first-year player, contributed 13 points to the Blue Devils (17-5, 8-3 Atlantic Coast Conference). This came after their previous game against their rival North Carolina, which ended in a loss and had an emotional impact. Coach Jon Scheyer, in his second year, expressed frustration over his team’s lack of intensity compared to the Tar Heels in this important away game.

Duke’s early momentum propelled them to a strong start, scoring 17 consecutive points highlighted by Foster’s layup, jumper, and 3-pointer which gave them a comfortable 20-5 advantage. Despite Notre Dame’s efforts, they were unable to close the gap and went into halftime trailing by eight (33-25). Duke maintained their lead throughout the game, although they were unable to make a decisive run to put the game out of reach.

Duke had a shooting percentage of 43% and used their 43-35 rebounding advantage to gain a 21-2 lead in second-chance points. However, the Blue Devils struggled with their 3-point shots (4 for 18) and only made 15 of 25 free throws.

Markus Burton put up a total of 19 points for the Fighting Irish (7-16, 2-10). This was a difficult start to the season for coach Micah Shrewsberry, as his team went 8 and a half minutes without scoring a basket while Duke took a commanding lead.

The game saw Notre Dame only shooting 33.9%.

BIG PICTURE

The Notre Dame basketball team, known as the Fighting Irish, had not won a game in almost a month since their victory against Georgia Tech on January 9th. Their offense continued to be an issue, as they were ranked 305th in the country for adjusted offensive efficiency according to KenPom (scoring 99.1 points per 100 possessions). In their most recent game, they missed 12 consecutive shots and went over 5 minutes without scoring in the second half.

Unfortunately, Kyle Filipowski, a Preseason Associated Press All-American, did not perform well after the loss to UNC. He was outplayed by Armando Bacot in a highly anticipated post matchup. Despite being 7 feet tall, he had to sit out early in the game due to two fouls in the first half. He also received his third foul before scoring his first basket in the second half. In the end, he only scored eight points and shot 2-for-9.

UP NEXT

The University of Notre Dame’s football team, known as the Fighting Irish, will be hosting a game against Virginia Tech this coming Saturday.

Duke will face Boston College at home this Saturday, in the second game of their three-game series.

Source: wralsportsfan.com