Notre Dame may have entered Monday night’s contest at the Donald L. Tucker Center with a losing record, but the Fighting Irish gave No. 18 Florida State all it wanted. Notre Dame led by as many as 10 in the first half and by as many as eight in the second, but in the end, the Seminoles found a way to emerge victorious, 68-61.
The Fighting Irish (13-15, 3-12 ACC) used a slew of 3-pointers and FSU turnovers to take an early 27-17 lead. For the second straight game, FSU (22-6, 10-5 ACC) closed the first half on a 16-6 run as things were even 33-33 at the break.
Notre Dame opened the second half on a 12-4 run and FSU didn’t gain its first lead of the second half until the 6:35-mark when Devin Vassell knocked down a triple from straight on to make it 57-55. After John Mooney laid it in to tie the game, a Trent Forrest runner on the next possession put FSU ahead for good.
FSU extended the lead to 60-57 on a Mfiondu Kabengele free throw before a Terance Mann 1-handed put-back slam extended the lead to five with 1:21 to play. Notre Dame got as close as two in the final minute on a slam by Mooney, but the Seminoles made five of their final six free throws to ice the contest.
Notre Dame started 6-for-12 from beyond the 3-point arc, but missed seven of its final nine attempts from deep. As a team, the Fighting Irish shot just 39 percent. FSU shot 45 percent, but just 6-for-21 from deep and turned the ball over 14 times to nine for Notre Dame. FSU did hold a 42-28 rebounding advantage.
Vassell, a freshman, led FSU with 13 points on 5-for-6 shooting and seven rebounds. Christ Koumadje finished with 12 points for the Seminoles, but was not a factor down the stretch. Kabengele added 10 points, but on a dismal 3-for-11 from the field.
D.J. Harvey paced Notre Dame with a game-high 18 points. Prentiss Hubb added 17 points with most of his damage coming in the first half. Mooney finished with 14 points on an efficient 5-for-9 to go with a game-high eight rebounds, but missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw attempt with a chance to make it a 1-possession game with less than 10 seconds to play.
With the victory, FSU clinches a winning record in conference and will remain home to face NC State on Saturday. Notre Dame remains on the road to face Louisville on Sunday.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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