Mitchell, Foster help No. 9 Duke push past Notre Dame 71-53 to regroup from UNC loss
Posted February 7, 2024 11:55 p.m. EST
Mark Mitchell had 13 points and 10 rebounds to help ninth-ranked Duke beat Notre Dame 71-53 on Wednesday night.
Freshman Caleb Foster added 13 points for the Blue Devils (17-5, 8-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who were coming off an emotional loss at third-ranked rival North Carolina. That was a performance that left second-year coach Jon Scheyer frustrated by his team’s inability to raise its intensity in in a marquee road matchup to match that of the Tar Heels.
The Blue Devils got out to a quick lead in this one, running off 17 straight points that included a layup, jumper and 3-pointer from Foster for a 20-5 lead. Notre Dame got no closer than eight again (33-25 at halftime), with Duke keeping a solid grip on a double-digit lead even while being unable to put together a knockout burst.
Duke shot 43% overall and rode a 43-35 rebounding advantage to a 21-2 edge in second-chance points, though the Blue Devils had a second straight rough night from 3-point range (4 for 18) and made just 15 of 25 free throws.
Markus Burton scored 19 points for the Fighting Irish (7-16, 2-10), who continued a tough opening season for coach Micah Shrewsberry by going 8 1/2 minutes without a basket early as Duke ran out to its big early lead.
Notre Dame shot just 33.9% for the game.
BIG PICTURE
Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish arrived with nearly a month passing since its last win at Georgia Tech on Jan. 9. Offense was again a problem; the Fighting Irish came in ranked 305th nationally in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency (99.1 points per 100 possessions), then missed 12 straight shots early and went another 5 1/2 minutes without a basket midway through the second half.
Duke: Preseason Associated Press All-American Kyle Filipowski didn’t have a strong bounceback from the UNC loss, when he was soundly outplayed in a marquee post matchup by Armando Bacot. The 7-footer sat early with two first-half fouls Wednesday, picked up his third before scoring his first basket early in the second half and finished with eight points on 2-for-9 shooting.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish host Virginia Tech on Saturday.
Duke: The Blue Devils host Boston College on Saturday to continue a three-game homestand.
