Riding a three-game winning streak, all coming at home, Stanford hopes to change its fortunes on the road to conclude the regular season.
Meanwhile, winning anywhere remains a struggle for Notre Dame.
The Cardinal look to avoid a fourth straight road loss when they meet the Fighting Irish for Wednesday night’s ACC contest in South Bend, Ind.
Stanford (19-10, 11-7) has been solid during its first ACC season thanks to a 9-1 home record, capped by Saturday’s 73-68 win over SMU. In Kyle Smith’s first season as coach, the Cardinal have secured their first winning season since 2020-21 and seek their second 20-win campaign in the last 11 years.
“It feels good to win,” said senior Maxime Raynaud, the team leader with 20.2 points and 10.9 rebounds. “I think we did a great job of setting a new culture (with the new coaching staff). … People all bought in together.”
Raynaud averaged 23 points during the three-game sweep at home, but just 15 per game during the current three-game road slide for Stanford, which is 2-6 away from home in the ACC. The Cardinal allowed an average of 64.8 points in league home games, but that number balloons to 81.4 per game on the road.
Notre Dame (12-17, 6-12) has split its eight ACC home games to date. The Irish snapped a three-game home skid with their 76-72 win over Pitt on Feb. 22, but they’ve dropped games at then-No. 13 Clemson and Wake Forest since.
Perhaps the only constant positive factor for Notre Dame is sophomore guard Markus Burton, the ACC’s leading scorer at 21.1 points per game. He scored 59 points in the last two games, highlighted by 9-for-16 shooting in a 29-point effort during Saturday’s 74-71 loss at Wake.
“He’s been pretty consistent with what he’s doing,” Irish coach Micah Shrewsberry said. “He’s ready to go for the next practice, and the next game, and keep fighting, keep competing.”
–Field Level Media
