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End of 2nd Half: Wichita State Shockers 70 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 81
2nd Half, 21.0: Auguste is fouled, sinks free throw, 81-70 ND
2nd Half, 39.0: Carter hits three, 80-70 ND
2nd Half, 53.0: Cotton hits layup, 80-67 ND
2nd Half, 58.8: Vasturia is intentionally fouled, nails both free throws, 80-65 ND
2nd Half, 1:14: Zach Auguste fouled on the defensive rebound, sinks one of two free throws, 78-63 ND
2nd Half, 1:27: Jerian Grant just does beat the shot clock again, hits jumper, 77-63 ND
2nd Half, 2:06: Brown lays it up and in, 75-63 ND
2nd Half, 3:18: VanVleet again with another layup, 75-61 ND
2nd Half, 3:48: Fred VanVleet makes the layup AAAND ONE, 75-59 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State 56 Notre Dame 75
2nd Half, 4:36: Demetrius Jackson is fouled on the shot, money on both free throws, 75-56 ND
2nd Half, 5:15: Vasturia nails the three point dagger, 73-56 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State 56 Notre Dame 70
2nd Half, 6:23: Pat Connaughton hits the three and the Irish are rolling, 70-56 ND
2nd Half, 6:57: ZACH AUGUSTE CATCHES THE ALLEY-OOP PASS AND JAMS IT HOME, 67-56 ND
2nd Half, 7:10: VanVleet answers right back 65-56 ND
2nd Half, 7:33: Auguste makes the layup, 65-54 ND
2nd Half, 8:19: Grant just beats the shot clock and hits the three, 63-54 ND
2nd Half, 8:56: Kelly with another layup, 60-54 ND
2nd Half, 9:26: VanVleet with the steal and layup, 60-52 ND
2nd Half, 9:35: Kelly makes the layup, 60-50 ND
2nd Half, 9:44: Auguste lays it in, 60-48 ND
2nd Half, 10:23: Connaughton scoops it up and in, 58-48 ND
2nd Half, 10:47: Cotton is hacked on the shot, sinks both free throws, 56-48 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State 46 Notre Dame 56
2nd Half, 11:52: Colson lays it up and in, 56-46 ND
2nd Half, 12:17: Carter is fouled and sinks both free throws, 54-46 ND
2nd Half, 12:38: Connaughton nails the layup, 54-44 ND
2nd Half, 13:34: Jackson answers quickly with a layup of his own, 52-44 ND
2nd Half, 13:40: VanVleet lays it in, 50-44 ND
2nd Half, 14:02: Grant drives it strong and lays it in, 50-42 ND
2nd Half, 14:47: Steve Vasturia with another Irish THREEEE, 48-42 ND
2nd Half, 15:10: Carter hits the jumper, 45-42 ND
2nd Half, 15:27: Colson makes a layup of his own, 45-40 ND
2nd Half, 15:37: Cotton makes the layup, 43-40 ND
2nd Half, 15:46: Jackson AGAIN FOR THREEE, 43-38 ND
2nd Half, 16:00: Jackson hits the THREEE, 40-38 ND
ND Timeout: Wichita State Shockers 38 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 37
2nd Half, 16:37: Carter hits the hook shot and gives the Shockers their first lead of the game! 38-37 WICH
2nd Half, 17:11: VanVleet is fouled on the shot off the steal, sinks both free ones, 37-36 ND
2nd Half, 18:10: Carter takes advantage of the height miss-match, 37-34 ND
2nd Half, 18:21: Vasturia with the layup, 37-32 ND
2nd Half, 19:02: Jackson hits the jumper, 35-32 ND
2nd Half, 19:25: VanVleet starts off right where he left off, 33-32 ND
Start of the 2nd Half
End of the 1st Half: Wichita State Shockers 30 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 33
1st Half, 35.9: Fred VanVleet is fouled once again on the layup, nails both his free throws, 33-30 ND
1st Half, 1:08: VanVleet pushes it and lays it in off the glass, 33-28 ND
1st Half, 1:27: VanVleet is fouled on the layup, hits one of two free throws, 33-26 ND
1st Half, 1:40: Bonzie Colson is fouled on the shot off the offensive rebound, sinks both free throws, 33-25 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State Shockers 25 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 31
1st Half, 3:26: VanVleet answers and hits a jumper of his own, 31-25 ND
1st Half, 3:37: Pat Connaughton hits the fading jumper, 31-23 ND
1st Half. 4:22: Fred VanVleet is fouled on his shot, nails one of the two free throws, 29-23 ND
1st Half, 4:31: Jackson takes it to the hole and lays it in beautifully, 29-22 ND
1st Half, 6:35: Vasturia on the drive and the layup, 27-22 ND
1st Half, 7:20: Carter makes the tough layup, 25-22 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State Shockers 20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 25
1st Half, 8:37: Jerian Grant is fouled on the shot and sinks both free throws, 25-20 ND
1st Half, 8:57: Baker with another threeeeeeeeeeeeee, 23-20 ND
1st Half, 10:00: Ron Baker hits the three pointer and gets the Shockers within 6, 23-17 ND
1st Half, 10:25: Steve Vasturia nails the layup AAAND ONE with the free throw, 23-14 ND
1st Half, 10:43: Baker fouled on the shot, makes both free throws, 20-14 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State Shockers 12 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 20
1st Half, 11:37: Carter gets the offensive rebound and gets the follow, 20-12 ND
1st Half, 12:32: Carter makes the layup, 20-10 ND
1st Half, 13:12: Ron Baker is fouled while shooting, maes one of two free throws, 20-8 ND
1st Half, 13:36: Pat Connaughton lays one in off from a great back cut, 20-7 ND
1st Half, 13:52: Morris banks one in for the Shockers, 18-7 ND
1st Half, 14:43: Auguste fights throught contact and hits the layup AAAND ONE, 18-5 ND
Media Timeout: Wichita State Shockers 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish 15
1st Half, 15:31: Zach Auguste with the MONSTAAA slam, 15-5 ND
1st Half, 16:13: Connaughton hits the layup, 13-5 ND
1st Half,16:35: Carter is fouled and makes one of two free throws, 11-5 ND
1st Half, 16:52: Connaughton keeps the Irish hot! 11-4 ND
1st Half, 17:07: VanVleet with the short jumpers, 8-4 ND
1st Half, 17:22: Jackson again FOR THREEEE, 8-2 ND
1st Half, 17:53: Darius Carter gets the Shockers on the board, 5-2 ND
1st Half, 18:01: Jackson FOR THREEEE, 5-0 ND
1st Half, 18:54: Zach Auguste gets the scoring off with an easy layup, 2-0 ND
Start of the 1st Half
Wichita State are the 2 point favorites in this contest. This is no suprise after they handled powerhouse Kansas last game on Sunday. But a 2 point favorite is a slim margin to be favored and we are in for one spectacular game.
My name is Karl Capen and I will be your host tonight for this matchup. We are about 20 minutes from the tip-off of the 2015 Sweet Sixteen. Buckle up, settle in, and enjoy the ride!
These two teams have contrasting styles of play. Notre Dame is more of a fast-paced offensive team as they average 78.8 PPG. The Shockers of Wichita State like to slow it down and play defense as they hold opponents to an average of 55.8 PPG. Wichita State has a little more size, but both teams start four guards. This game will come down to which teams guard play is better. Fred VanVleet (22.0 PPG, 5.0 AST) and Jerian Grant (16.5 PPG, 5.0 AST) are two of the best scoring and ball-handling guards in the country, which leader will best lead his team to victory? This game is very evenly matched and both teams have experienced rotations. It will come down who knocks three-pointers and which team will win the 50-50 balls.
Wichita State has become a powerhouse mid-major basketball program under head coach Gregg Marshall. This is their fourth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, and in three of those seasons they have won at least 30 games. Yes, they play in the Missouri Valley Conference but they have dominated that conference the last four seasons with a record of 63-9, winning the conference three of those years. Marshall has really built a phenomenal program and during his eight-year tenure he has a record of 204-75 (.731).
Not many people had Notre Dame as a legitimate title contending team to begin the season. However, with the great coaching job of Mike Brey and the play of senior guard Jerian Grant, this Notre Dame team has a legitimate chance to reach the Elite Eight for the first time since 1979. This is the 15th season head coach Mike Brey has been at Notre Dame, and this is the most wins (31) the Irish have ever won under his tenure.
This is the first time since 2003 Notre Dame has reached the Sweet 16. That season they lost to the Arizona Wildcats in convincing fashion, 88-71. This will be the third time in 10 seasons the Wichita State Shockers have reached the Sweet 16. The last came in 2013 where they defeated La Salle, 72-58. The Shockers would go on and advance to the Final Four where they would lose to the eventual champion Louisville Cardinals, 72-68.
Both teams are coming off emotional victories. Wichita State had their chance to beat an in-state rival, and they did so handedly. While Notre Dame beat a very tournament experienced Butler team, but it was an off the court event that made this special for Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey. After their overtime victory Brey mentioned to the media that his mother passed away that morning. The players didn’t know till after the game, but knowing that information and the fact Brey was able to lead his team under that emotional stress makes the outcome very special for the Irish.
Notre Dame defeated 14-seeded Northeastern Huskies in the round of 64, and went on to win against the six-seeded Butler Bulldogs in the round of 32. Both games were closer than the Fighting Irish would have liked, but they showed how mentally tough they are as they came alive in the waning moments. Forward Zach Auguste led the Irish in scoring with 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting in a 69-65 win against Northeastern. It was close game throughout, but Notre Dame had enough talent to push on. There next game against Butler was a lot tougher as it took an overtime period to take down the Bulldogs. Steve Vasturia led the way with 20 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including a couple three-point buckets. Jerian Grant was consistent again as he scored 16 points and dished out five assists. However, the player of the game was Pat Connnaughton who did a little bit of everything with seven points, nine rebounds, and five blocks. Connaughton blocked a key shot as Butler guard Kellen Dunham had an open look which could have won the game, and then in overtime he drained his only three-pointer that gave the Irish a lead they would hold on to and win.
Wichita State is coming off wins against the number 10-seeded Indiana Hoosiers and the number two-seeded Kansas Jayhawks. In the round of 64 Wichita State defeated Indiana, 81-76 thanks to a sparkling performance by junior point guard Fred VanVleet who led all scorers with 27 points, tying his career-high, on 9-of-18 shooting, including four assists and two steals. The Shockers were down at halftime, but were able to grab a 55-54 lead with 10:24 remaining and never relinquished the lead. Wichita State would then have to face in-state rival Kansas in the round of 32, the first time these two teams have faced each other in the tournament since 1981 where the Shockers defeated the Jayhawks 66-65. Wichita State defeated Kansas, 78-65, where all five starters scored in double-figures. This was an anticipated game not only because of the in-state rivalry but the fact that they don’t schedule many games against each other in the regular season. The Shockers were very focused and they handled the Jayhawks for most of the game.
The seventh-seeded Wichita State Shockers (30-4) will face the number three-seeded Notre Dame Fighting Irish (31-5) in one of the Midwest Region Sweet 16 games. The game will be Thursday, March 26, 2015 at 7:15 PM EST at the Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, Ohio. The winner of this game will face the winner of fifth-seeded West Virginia Mountaineers vs. the number one-seeded Kentucky Wildcats.