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Notre Dame Basketball: Beachem’s Six Threes Lead #15 Irish Past Syracuse

By Noah Strackbein

Jan 21, 2017; South Bend, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward V.J. Beachem (3) reacts after a dunk in the first half against the Syracuse Orange at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 21, 2017; South Bend, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward V.J. Beachem (3) reacts after a dunk in the first half against the Syracuse Orange at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /
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Notre Dame basketball bounces back from their first ACC loss by blowing out Syracuse.

Despite a three-year losing streak to Syracuse, Notre Dame and their seniors decided they weren’t going to finish their career 0-4 against the Orange.

Behind V.J. Beachem’s 30 points and seven rebounds, and Bonzie Colson’s 13th double-double of the season, Notre Dame gave Syracuse a run for their money right out of the gate.

Only leading by nine at the end of the first half, Notre Dame turned on the jets in the start of the second and didn’t look back. Besides the three Syracuse stars, Andrew White, Tyler Lydon, and Tyus Battle, the Irish shut down the Orange completely through this game.

Must Read: Notre Dame Finding Success Through Unsung Heroes

Outside of White’s 16 points, Battle’s 17 points, and Lydon’s 24 points, Syracuse only had two other players even score. With only a 41.8% shooting percentage, the Orange could find no success on the offensive end.

In the paint, Bonzie Colson and Notre Dame dominated. Behind Colson’s 14 boards, the Irish out rebounded Syracuse 28-39. By adding seven rebounds from Beachem, Notre Dame was nearly unstoppable in the paint.

What really gave Notre Dame the advantage in this matchup, though, was their shooting. With Beachem’s six threes, the Irish finished 11-26 from deep, doing a majority of their scoring from outside. Against Syracuse’s zone, hitting from three-point range is a huge factor in the outcome of the game.

When this team clicks the way they did in this game, they’re nearly unstoppable. Out of every team in the top 25, no one has the chemistry and the drive that Notre Dame does. When it starts to count, the Irish will be able to play as well as they need to.

Overall, Notre Dame walked into an easy matchup and took advantage of it. There was no denying that the Irish were going to win this one. Once Matt Farrell starting finding open players and Beachem began to hit every shot he took, this game was over.

Must Read: How the Irish Will Come Back Stronger

Up next, Notre Dame will take on #16 Virginia before traveling to Georgia Tech. From there, the Irish begin a stretch of games that include Duke, North Carolina, Wake Forest, and Florida State.