Notre Dame’s 75-70 victory over Miami on Saturday improved its record in close and/or overtime games to 5-2 this season, close defined as games decided by 6 points (two possessions) or less.

I doubt that record is a surprise to Notre Dame fans given the team’s success to date, but I don’t think many Irish fans know how successful their team has been in close games over an extended period of time. Over the last five seasons, ND is 31-15 in close and overtime games, a .674 winning percentage. That includes last season’s 7-7 record in close game situations. Without Notre Dame’s anomalously poor 2013-14 season, its record is 24-8 (.750) over that time frame.

I asked Mike Brey about close game success after Saturday’s game.

“We do game situations every day,” he answered. “Down one. Up one. What are we going to run against zone? Man? Getting the ball in bounds at the end when we know they’re going to foul. Three or four (situations) every day starting with the first day of practice.

“And you know what’s so funny?” he asked rhetorically. “Many times in a game, the game situation that is up on the board, we’ve done it; and we may have done it the day before. I’ll say to the guys, ‘Fellas, does this look familiar?’ And they’ll say ‘Oh (poop) coach, we did that one yesterday.’ So there’s a comfort level because we rep it in practice’

“And we’ve had really good guards,” Brey added. “In close games that helps.”

Brey’s teams have been especially successful in overtime games. According to Statsheet.com, his career record in overtime games is 23-12, a .657 winning percentage. That compares favorably to some of the best coaches in college basketball. Jim Boeheim is a winner in overtime 62.1% of the time throughout his career. Mike Krzyzewski has won 57.1% of his overtime games. Tom Izzo has won 55.6% of his games that have extended into overtime, and Bo Ryan has won 52.0% of his games with reprieve periods. Rick Pitino’s overtime record is below .500, 18-20.

It is going to take some NCAA Tournament success to get Notre Dame fans to appreciate how good Brey’s coaching has been during the regular season. Here’s hoping.

Commence Firing

Shooting slumps, more precisely the end of shooting slumps, were the story of Saturday’s game. As a team, Notre Dame made only 2 of its 13 three point shots in the first half; and as an individual, Jerian Grant had converted 2 of 14 three point attempts in conference games while being held 9 points below his season scoring average over the prior three games.

After going 0-4 in the first half, V.J. Beachem’s confidence was unshaken.

“My teammates trust me. Coach Brey trusts me,” Beachem said after the game. “I feel like I have the green light. If I have an inch to take a jump shot, I think I can take it and knock it down.’

I asked Beachem if, after missing a few, he becomes hesitant to take shots.

“Not anymore,” he said. “Last year, definitely; but not now. I know after hours in the gym and the trust these guys have in me that I can just rise up and shoot another one.”

Beachem was 3-3 from long range in the second half. He has made 51.8% of his three point shots for the season, 54.5% in conference games. Grant can’t stoke his confidence with that kind of shooting success. Many Notre Dame fans remember Grant’s occasional three point outbursts and think of him as (a) a good three point shooter and (b) a guy who takes a lot of threes, but neither is the case.

Grant entered the game a career 35.1% three point shooter, and he had made only 32.2% in conference games. His game is driving into the lane to score or pass. He has averaged only 4 three point attempts per game over the course of his career, and he doesn’t generally take three point shots when he isn’t making them. In fact, Grant limited himself to fewer than 3 long range attempts per game during his shooting slump.

Then came the Miami game. Grant hardly missed a shot. He made 8 of 10 shots from the field and 2 of 3 from three point range. When the Irish were down 8 points in the first half, he made three jump shots in four ND possessions (with an assist on Bonzie Colson’s basket) to lead the team back into the game. One of the three jumpers was from three point range.

“Today they backed off of me and my looks were clear,” Grant told me after the Miami game. “I was able to knock down my open looks; and when I get (make) my open looks, that’s when I can create for myself off the dribble.”

I asked Grant if he consciously checks early in the game to see if his shot is on and adjusts his game accordingly.

“A little but,” he answered. “If you hit one or two early you feel like you can force a couple, but if you don’t you have to get to the basket to get easier looks.”

For his part, Brey doesn’t want his team to hesitate.

“They play for a heck of a coach because they are not looking over their shoulders,” Brey joked. “I’m a firm believer in the law of averages. We can shoot the ball.

“What helped us out was the smaller lineup,” Brey continued. “It spread the floor our, and we were getting cleaner looks because we were getting drives from Jerian and D (Demetrius Jackson) and kicking to guys for really clean looks.

“But we’re a good shooting team, and you just feel that eventually we’ll make some. Our guys are kind of poised. They don’t panic. They keep taking them. Coach is a little nervous, but they keep taking them.”

Don’t panic would be a good theme for this season.

The ACC

Notre Dame is the ACC’s surprise team as most of the conference arrives at the one third point of the conference schedule. Most fans expected Notre Dame to improve, but 5-1 in the ACC with a victory at North Carolina is an eyebrow raiser.

There are other interesting stories unfolding.

Consider Louisville at 3-2. Losses at North Carolina and at home to Duke are no cause for shame; but Duke held the Cardinals to 52 points at the Yum! Center after allowing Miami to score 90 points at Cameron. UL’s offense has been terribly inconsistent all season with lots of games in the 80s but also games with sputtering offense like Cleveland State (45 points), Kentucky (50), Clemson (58), and Duke.

Louisville has a return game with Carolina, a pair of games against Miami, home and home with Virginia, and home games vs. Notre Dame and North Carolina State. UL has little wiggle room if it hopes to contend for a conference title. Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh is crucial, the kind of a game that any good team can lose but that Louisville must win to be considered a contender.

Syracuse is the second interesting story of the ACC season. The Orange is 14-5 overall and 5-1 in the conference, but they have been living on the edge in conference games with a 68-66 win at Virginia Tech, a 46-45 win at Georgia Tech, and an 86-83 home victory over Wake Forest. Non-conference losses came at the hands of a very good Villanova team and three pedestrian squads – California, Michigan, St. John’s.

The Cuse’s games against the top teams in the ACC are yet to come, starting with the upcoming Saturday-Monday pairings at home with Miami and on the road vs. North Carolina. We’ll know a lot more about Syracuse by this time next week. I do not expect to be impressed.