Late rally by Notre Dame sinks Georgia Tech

Staff Reports

South Bend, Ind. – Georgia Tech men’s basketball led or tied for the first 38 minutes of the game, but went scoreless for a 5-minute stretch late in the game and succumbed to Notre Dame in a 71-68 decision Tuesday night at Purcell Pavilion.

Looking for first win in South Bend since the Fighting Irish joined the ACC, Tech (9-12, 3-7 ACC) opened the second half scoring the first six points to break a 37-all tie and led by as many as seven at 62-55 after Naithan George made a pull-up jumper at the 5:35 mark. George led the Jackets with 20 points and five assists.

But the Jackets missed their next eight shots from the floor, and the Fighting Irish (9-10, 4-5 ACC) scored 13 straight points to grab the lead and steal the win. Braeden Shrewsberry started the rally with a three-point basket, and Notre Dame’s leading scorer, Markus Burton, drained a pair of three-pointers on the Fighting Irish’s next two possessions to put the home team ahead for good, 64-62, with 1:49 to go.

After Kebba Njie scored a layup with 37 seconds left, the Irish sealed the game at the free throw line, making 5-of-6, sending the Yellow Jackets to their 11^th consecutive loss at Purcell Pavilion.

Tech shot 49.1 percent from the floor and turned the ball over just eight times in a losing effort. Duncan Powell scored 18 for the Jackets, and Baye Ndongo added 10.

Burton scored a game-high 26 points for Notre Dame, 18 of them in the second half, while Shrewsberry chipped in with 15.

Tech returns to action Saturday, Feb. 1 at 3:45 p.m. EST when it hosts No. 25 Louisville at McCamish Pavilion. The game will be televised live on The CW Network.