Written By: Kristian Torres
Flashback to January 18th, the first matchup between the Florida State and Notre Dame Men’s Basketball teams of the 2017 season. The then perfect Notre Dame suffered a 3-point loss at the hands of the Seminoles, resulting in a tie in the ACC standings at 5-1. The game was very much close for much of the first half as the lead changed eight times within the first eight minutes of the game. Neither team was able to separate however, until FSU guard PJ Savoy orchestrated a 9-0 run, by himself, with just a little over five minutes left in the first half, to give FSU a 9-point advantage.
Notre Dame would only be able to close the gap down to six before the end of the half, going into the break losing, 39-33. FSU would continue to control the game for much of the second half, until Notre Dame fought to gain a 2-point lead with just over seven minutes left. It would only be about two minutes before FSU seized the lead back from the Fighting Irish and maintained control for the rest of the game.
Despite Notre Dame draining 15 three-pointers on the Seminoles defense, stretching their streak of games with a three-pointer to 600, the Seminoles edged out the Fighting Irish 83-80 in that game. This marked Notre Dame’s first conference loss on the season. That game began what would become a slew of four more conference losses, with only two wins for Notre Dame. Meanwhile, Florida State has gone 4-2 in the conference and holds the number two spot in the standings, behind only conference leader North Carolina.
If Saturday’s game goes anything like the teams’ last matchup, this could be a thriller. FSU guard Dwayne Bacon, a NCAAM Player of the year finalist and the Seminoles are red hot, having won three games in a row in dominant fashion. Notre Dame Junior forward Bonzie Colson, also recognized as one of the top 20 players in the nation, hopes to lead the Fighting Irish to their second consecutive win, after defeating Wake Forest 88-81 on Tuesday.
With both teams coming off impressive wins, the competition should be tight. Expect to see a barrage of three-point attempts by Notre Dame in the opening stages of the game, much like last time. Both teams will battle to set the pace of the game and try to establish an early commanding lead in order to avoid the stress they both experienced last game.
Saturday February 11th will mark only the sixth matchup of all-time between these two sports giants in NCAA basketball history. The game will air on ESPN at 6:00 p.m. Eastern time from Notre Dame. This is a chance for FSU to secure another victory in pursuit of the top spot atop the Atlantic Coast Conference. In contrast, the Fighting Irish hope to rain on the Seminoles’ parade closing the gap between the two teams to just one game, if they are able to secure a win. After Notre Dame Head Coach Brey’s historic start to the season and the recent spell of misfortune, the Fighting Irish hope to right the ship with a big statement victory over FSU on Saturday. FSU is determined to make sure that does not happen as they are in pursuit of the number one spot in the ACC conference.
Notre Dame would only be able to close the gap down to six before the end of the half, going into the break losing, 39-33. FSU would continue to control the game for much of the second half, until Notre Dame fought to gain a 2-point lead with just over seven minutes left. It would only be about two minutes before FSU seized the lead back from the Fighting Irish and maintained control for the rest of the game.
Despite Notre Dame draining 15 three-pointers on the Seminoles defense, stretching their streak of games with a three-pointer to 600, the Seminoles edged out the Fighting Irish 83-80 in that game. This marked Notre Dame’s first conference loss on the season. That game began what would become a slew of four more conference losses, with only two wins for Notre Dame. Meanwhile, Florida State has gone 4-2 in the conference and holds the number two spot in the standings, behind only conference leader North Carolina.
If Saturday’s game goes anything like the teams’ last matchup, this could be a thriller. FSU guard Dwayne Bacon, a NCAAM Player of the year finalist and the Seminoles are red hot, having won three games in a row in dominant fashion. Notre Dame Junior forward Bonzie Colson, also recognized as one of the top 20 players in the nation, hopes to lead the Fighting Irish to their second consecutive win, after defeating Wake Forest 88-81 on Tuesday.
With both teams coming off impressive wins, the competition should be tight. Expect to see a barrage of three-point attempts by Notre Dame in the opening stages of the game, much like last time. Both teams will battle to set the pace of the game and try to establish an early commanding lead in order to avoid the stress they both experienced last game.
Saturday February 11th will mark only the sixth matchup of all-time between these two sports giants in NCAA basketball history. The game will air on ESPN at 6:00 p.m. Eastern time from Notre Dame. This is a chance for FSU to secure another victory in pursuit of the top spot atop the Atlantic Coast Conference. In contrast, the Fighting Irish hope to rain on the Seminoles’ parade closing the gap between the two teams to just one game, if they are able to secure a win. After Notre Dame Head Coach Brey’s historic start to the season and the recent spell of misfortune, the Fighting Irish hope to right the ship with a big statement victory over FSU on Saturday. FSU is determined to make sure that does not happen as they are in pursuit of the number one spot in the ACC conference.