Princeton Grad Transfer Matt Allocco Commits to the Irish

The 6’4” guard brings length, shooting, and experience to an Irish team that could use all those things

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

After a generally busy last few weeks of the Transfer Portal period that actually seemed pretty quiet for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish men’s basketball program specifically, Micah Shrewsberry and his Irish staff have finally managed to lock-in one of the 2-3 key transfers they’re hoping to add for the 2024-2025 season.

Matt Allocco, a senior guard from Princeton who entered the Portal as a graduate transfer about a month ago, has officially committed to play for Notre Dame this upcoming season, choosing the Irish over Ohio State, Villanova, and Butler.

The 6’4”, 197-lb. guard brings a wealth of experience and lots of skills to like to an ND squad still very young and in need of help, especially on the wing. Allocco averaged 12.7 points per game and shot 42.7% from long range last season, helping drive the Tigers to a 24-5 overall record and 12-2 record in Ivy League play.

He’s not just a spot-up shooter, though, as he shot over 50% from the floor last year while also averaging 2.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game, showing the ability to use his length, body control, and ball handling to beat defenders off the dribble, find open teammates, and also finish at the rim.

As an unranked shooting guard recruit out of Hilliard, Ohio in the 2020 class, Allocco didn’t have any listed offers on his 247sports or ESPN recruiting profiles. However, some articles from his high school days list offers from the likes of Miami Ohio, Akron, Kent State, and Stony Brook, and also mention several other schools showing some interest, including Purdue, Vanderbilt, Davidson, Dayton, and Notre Dame — the alma mater of his uncle Frank Allocco, who played both basketball and football for the Irish, including being a member of the 1973 national champion Ara Parseghian squad.

At Princeton, he did not play his freshman season before carving out a solid role as a sophomore, which led to him playing 33 minutes per game on a Tigers squad that went to the 2023 Sweet Sixteen.

He continued to be a leader and key contributor for Princeton in 2023-2024, turning in some really nice performances against some quality competition and in Ivy League play:

• 21 points, 9/13 shooting, and 9 rebounds vs. Rutgers
• 23 points, 10/13 shooting, and 3 rebounds vs. Duquesne
• 25 points, 5/6 shooting from long range vs. Dartmouth
• 18 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists vs. Yale
• 20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists vs. Brown in the Ivy League semifinal

Another fun fact you might have gleaned from his Twitter name — Allocco oftentimes goes by “Mush” thanks to his dad calling him “Mush Mouth” growing up (on account of him “always running his mouth”). So if his shooting/scoring, length, and experience aren’t enough to get you excited for him to play for Micah Shrewsberry, that should help get you there.

The Irish are hopefully not done adding Portal commitments to their squad for next year, especially with the departure of Carey “On My Wayward Son” Booth to play for the Illinois Fighting Illini. There are a handful of big men in the Portal the Irish have reached out to and a few that have visited, so stay tuned as some of those recruitments develop — ND really wanted at least one high-quality big man and an experienced guard/wing, so they’re 50% of the way there.

Current Scholarship Players/Projected Depth Chart for 2024-2025:

Potential Starters

• Markus Burton, G (assuming he comes back after entering his name in the NBA Draft)
• Braeden Shrewsberry, G
• Matt Allocco, G
• Tae Davis, F
• Kebba Njie, F

Reserves

• J.R. Konieczny, G/F
• Julian Roper II, G
• Sir Mohammed, G
• Logan Imes, G
• Cole Certa, G
• Garrett Sundra, F
• Tony Sanders Jr., F