The Notre Dame WBB team's 2024 season ended Friday afternoon with a 65-70 loss to Oregon State in the Sweet 16. Side note: This was the Beavers' first win against the Irish in their six-game head-to-head history. The cycle of retribution continues in perhaps the least well-known Notre Dame sports rivalry, as the ND football team earned its first postseason win this year against Oregon State.
My fellow OFD writers and the community have been pretty well chronicling the WBB team's run leading up to the 2024 tournament, so I'm here for a team-level review of the regular season and a look at this year's results and next season's I'm here to explain a little more about prospects. It may look like this.
So let's dig in.
Season overview
This year marks head coach Neale Ivey's fourth season at the helm of the program. In 2021, the Ivy's first season, the team had a 0.5 GPA, which was a significant improvement. The 2022 season ended with a 0.73 record, the 2023 season ended with a 0.818 record, and the Irishman finished 2024 with an overall record of 0.8. They were a No. 5 seed in 2022, a No. 3 seed in 2023, and a No. 2 seed in this year's tournament. All three games played in the tournament were eliminated in the regional semifinals.
Ireland's WBB team won 23 of 29 regular season games and had an overall GPA of 0.79. The team lost one game in November and December, and two games in January and February.
point difference
The team's goal differential in regular season games was approximately 18.8 points.
It all started with a 71-100 loss to South Carolina. The -29 point differential in this game was the steepest the Irish had experienced. In December, they lost -5 to Syracuse, followed immediately by a -4 loss to the Orange. The Tar Heel State team has been a thorn in the team's side, with North Carolina losing -14 in late January and North Carolina State (on the way to the Elite Eight) coming away with a 7-point win in February. There was found. The team's last loss before being eliminated from the tournament was a -16-point loss to Louisville in mid-February.
Notre Dame's point differential was 78-4. His 78-point blowout win came in his 113-35 rout of Chicago State earlier in the season, and his closest 4-point win came in his 98-94 2OT loss against Florida. Obtained in battle. What it looks like in February.
To summarize, they are losing games by an average of 12.5 points and winning games by an average of 27 points, and their winning percentage has started to decline since mid-January.
field goal
In general, the Irish had the edge when it came to field goal efficiency comparisons. They had a 19-game advantage in the regular season, winning every game with high field goal shooting efficiency.
They were at an efficiency disadvantage in 10 games, losing 6 of them and winning 4 of them. This field goal efficiency disadvantage in his 10 games ranged from -21.5% to -0.5%.
In both teams' wins, the difference in field goal efficiency ranged from -12.9% (mid-February win over Florida State) to 35.2% (Chicago State debacle). In losses, field goal efficiency differentials ranged from -21.5% to -2.1% (81-86, loss to Syracuse in late December).
3PT
The Irish's performance in terms of 3PT shooting efficiency was inconsistent throughout the season, ranging from -33.3% to 34.5%.
Efficiency differences in November ranged from -28.6% to 20.5%. Although the values ​​varied widely, the overall results were not materially affected. In its only loss of the month against South Carolina, Notre Dame had a -1.3% disadvantage in his 3PT efficiency, but in his 74-69 win against Tennessee he had a -28.6% disadvantage. Ta.
For December, all games had a 3PT efficiency advantage ranging from 0.6% to 16.7%.
In six of the eight games played in January, WBB teams had the advantage in 3PT efficiency. The differences ranged from -9.6% to 34.5%.
Two of the worst 3PT games by comparison were two-game losses in February. When he lost 66-73 to Louisville, ND had a -27.8% disadvantage in his 3PT efficiency, and when he lost 43-59 to NC State, ND had a -27.8% disadvantage in 3PT efficiency. It was 33.3%.
assist
The assist numbers for the 2024 WBB team were very strong throughout the first two months of play. In November, he averaged +7 assists per game, but his -17 performance against South Carolina significantly lowered that number.
From an assist standpoint, things got even more shaky in January. The Irishman averaged +2.6 assists in January and +1.7 assists in February.
Despite having a relative assist advantage, the team lost only one game. This comes from a +1 assist differential in a 57-61 loss to North Carolina in early January. In the seven games in which they were at an assist disadvantage, the team lost four and won three.
total rebounds
Notre Dame's total rebound trends were very similar to their assist trends.
They averaged a total rebound advantage of approximately +5.7 during the regular season, with the most notable advantages occurring in November and December.
The team lost one game in which it had a relative advantage in total rebounds. This loss follows a 43-59 loss to North Carolina State in mid-February. In the 11 games in which they had a rebound disadvantage, they had five wins and six losses.
block
The team was consistent in terms of blocks through the first two months of the regular season, and although it faced challenges in January, it generally found its direction in February.
He had a relative block disadvantage in six of the eight games played in January. They were at a disadvantage in four of the nine games played in February. From a strictly numerical perspective, their performance in this area had no decisive impact on the final game outcome.
foul
The Irish had a consistent advantage in fouls throughout the regular season. His team's overall foul differential was -1.6 per game, and he never dropped a game even when he committed fewer fouls than his opponent.
They had a relative foul disadvantage in 11 games. The team lost four of those games, but ultimately won seven games despite being at a foul disadvantage. The worst games in terms of relative fouls were against ACC opponents Boston College, Miami, UVA and Wake Forest.
amount of sales
Log – Sales
Similar to fouls, 2024 WBB teams had a consistent advantage in terms of turnovers. They averaged -4.2 turnovers per game during the regular season and lost three games in which they had a turnover advantage. Two of those losses were to Syracuse, and the third came against Louisville in early February.
The team was at a turnover disadvantage in seven games. Three people lost and four people won. The Irish's relative worst turnover game was a +8 against Ball State in November, which ND still won 90-59.
final thoughts
It was another strong season for the Not Dame WBB program. They performed consistently well throughout the regular season, with their only real challenge game being a relatively close one against a conference opponent, other than a head-to-head showdown with a powerhouse in South Carolina.
Ivey, who enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed, appears to have a program on track to maintain the Irish's status as a WBB powerhouse. Stay tuned for a detailed breakdown of player-level data.
Cheers and let’s go Irish!!