When Micah Shrewsberry and the Irish tipped off against Missouri, the start went sideways fast, and they headed into halftime down seven. Even so, Notre Dame kept grinding their way back. It was only their second meeting this century, but Missouri’s 7–2 series lead, plus winning both earlier ACC/SEC Challenge matchups, gave the matchup some rivalry vibes. On the court, though, it didn’t really feel like one.

What stood out was the moment when Shrewsberry walked to the sideline toward Dennis Gates. The two head coaches then hugged and shared a laugh.

“We’ve kind of come up through the same path,” Shrewsberry said in the post-game press conference. “We were assistants for a long time at the same time. You see him on the road recruiting all the time… And he’s just like, you’ve got to have p

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