Notre Dame's boys did enough in the recent postseason to gain a home game Wednesday in the state tournament, but their reward was hosting the No. 4-ranked team in the Associated Press Division II state poll. And technically, Goodpasture's Cougars are the top-rated Class A team, considering the three ranked ahead of them are all Class AA schools.
The Fighting Irish hung tough for a quarter and a half before Goodpasture began to get some separation and eventually went on for a 52-37 victory.
Goodpasture (30-2) was up 19-16 before going on a 12-0 run starting midway through the second quarter.
Of the key stretch, Cougars coach Adam Sonn said: "They do a good job of changing defenses. We knew that. But we felt like if we kept our heads up and kept exploring that something would open up, potentially. We got some defensive stops, some rebounds, and we were working for a couple of open shots. It's a state-tournament game on the road. Things aren't going to be easy. But mainly there we just hit some timely shots."
The key was Goodpasture's 6-foot-plus players being able to shoot over the top of the Notre Dame defenders.
"What do you do when your guy looks at you, other than say, 'Good D,'?" Notre Dame coach Jonathan Adams said.
He later added: "When their point guard is taller than your post players, you're in for some problems. I have a tough, scrappy team with an average of 5-8 per player. They're starting 6-2 at the point guard. I thought we did a great job. I'm proud of my guys. But at some point, nature plays a part."
The Irish held the Cougars to four points in the third quarter but couldn't close the gap much. Notre Dame twice got within eight points of the lead in the fourth, but a three-point play combined with a technical foul on Adams with 3:40 to go got Goodpasture back into a double-digit advantage it kept the rest of the way.
"We made our free throws, capitalized on the technical foul, and I thought we took care of the ball for most of the game," Sonn said. "We turned it over some there in the fourth quarter. That was probably part fatigue, but also just them being good at what they do."
C.J. Greer led the Irish with 11 points. Fellow seniors Joey Cochran, Nolan Corbitt, Jake Mossing and Akil Sledge were also key players in helping Notre Dame (23-13) advance to a state tournament for the first time in 15 years.
"This senior group, really all these kids, are special," Adams said.
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.