Jerian Grant puts away his last dunk in front of Irish fans at Purcell Pavilion. The senior finished with 19 points in Notre Dame’s 81-67 win over Clemson. Damien Dennis/The Pit
[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t was a storybook ending that any team would hope for as the regular-season comes to its finale.
On a night when seniors are honored, old leaders are remembered and Purcell Pavilion is packed to the gills, Jerian Grant and Zach Auguste power Notre Dame to an impressive 81-67 victory over Clemson.
“I don’t know if we could have scripted a senior day any better. I thought we really played well and I thought we started the second half really well to kind of give us distance,” Irish head coach Mike Brey said following the victory.
Grant finished the contest 6-for-11 with one three and eight assists for 19 points in another outing that arguably makes him the ACC Player of the Year. Fans in attendance witnessed the last dunk of Grant’s collegiate career at Purcell Pavilion and watched as the senior weaved his way in and out of Clemson defenders to put the game away for the Irish.
“Obviously early on I was thinking this is my last home game,” Grant said. “I was thinking this was it for me, but to see the fans support and my family’s support it goes a long way and it helped me out.”
“Number 22 is the difference maker. We’ve won a lot of close games. We’ve stolen wins. When you have Jerian in crunch time and at end of game situations, that’s where I think we are all very confident,” Brey said of the senior’s career. “Last year, we couldn’t finish games. We were in a lot of close game situations, but we didn’t have the closer. Now, we’ve got the closer who can score it or make a play, and I think all the other guys are really confident when he has it in his hands. They get their hands ready, and they’re ready to attack.”
Zach Auguste finished with 19 points to lead the Irish over Clemson. Damien Dennis/The Pit
Zach Auguste also finished with 19 points, shooting 9-for-13 on the night with four rebounds and three assists.
“Once I saw him come out with his own post move I knew he was ready to play,” Grant said of his teammate. “Previous games, when he got in the post, I felt like he was looking to pass, but when he is aggressive like he was today, it gives us another weapon which makes us that much harder to stop.”
Before Saturday’s game, Notre Dame honored senior team managers alongside Pat Connuaghton and Grant as well as the late Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, who passed away Feb. 26 at the age of 97.
Demetrius Jackson struck first for Notre Dame, sinking two buckets at the charity stripe following a foul by Clemson’s Landry Nnoko.
The Tigers tied the game on four occasions early in the game, but failed to ever take a lead. Jaron Blossomgame dropped two shots to tie the game at 4-4 before Connaughton and Auguste put away baskets for an 8-4 advantage. Blossomgame would answer with a three to cut the deficit by 1.
Blossomgame was an issue for the Irish all game, with the forward leading all scorers with 22 points and posting the double-double with 10 rebounds. Brey mentioned Blossomgame crushing the Irish and how he had thought to start Steve Vasturia on him, but went against that idea.
“In hindsight we should have started Steve on him and we debated that, but Steve to the rescue again,” Brey said. “He’s just so reliable defensively, so solid. I thought he did a really good job.”
Blossomgame finished 9-for-12 and sinking his sole three. He was 3-for-5 at the line and had three assists.
Nnoko nearly posted the double-double himself, finishing with 19 points and one rebound shy of the mark. He was 7-for-12 with a 5-for-5 tally from the stripe.
Clemson would tie the game again just under 10 minutes into the first half when Rod Hal hit a jumper to even the tally at 19-19.
Notre Dame pulled away in the final half of the first period, extending their lead to 38-31 entering the break.
While Nnoko would be the first to sink a bucket in the second half, Notre Dame went on a 12-4 run over 4:04 to extend their lead by 14. The Irish would continue to pull away from the Tigers, leading by as much as 21 later in the game.
“Defensively, we were better in the second half. Offensively, I thought we were really good the whole game. I’m really thrilled with how we’re playing offensively as we head to Greensboro (for the ACC Tournament),” Brey mentioned. “I think we’re at a really high level there. I was anxious today, not about if we could beat Clemson. I just wanted it to be a good day for our seniors, because, my gosh, they deserve it.”
With a bit more than two-minutes left in the game, Coach Brey took Connaughton and Grant out of the game to a standing ovation for the two seniors. Notre Dame would cruise on without the two, finishing 81-67.
The win puts Notre Dame at 26-5 overall with a 14-4 mark in the ACC. The 14th conference victory is tied for the most in school history, matching Mike Brey teams from 2010-11 and 2007-08. The last time the Irish earned 26 wins in a season was in 1973-74.
Notre Dame will head into the New York Life ACC Tournament Thursday with a double-bye as the No. 3 seed.
“I think offensively I feel really good about where we’re at heading down there. We’re healthy, our frame of mind is good and we’re confident,” Brey said about the upcoming tournament. “We couldn’t being going into the postseason in a better mode so I’m thrilled where we’re at as we head to Greensboro.”
Grant echoed that same confidence.
“We are 100 percent focused on getting wins in the postseason. We know we can do it too,” the senior said. “We are stressing to the team to play our game. We are a top-10 team in the country so if we play our game, we will be there in the end.”
