SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Notre Dame men’s basketball rode a fired-up six-man rotation in the second half against Miami on Wednesday night, erasing an eight-point halftime deficit with an 11-2 start. However, the Fighting Irish (7-12, 2-6) ran out of steam down the final stretch, falling to the Hurricanes (13-6, 4-4) by the final of 73-61.
Three Irish finished in double figures led by Markus Burton’s 15 points. It marked Burton’s 12th straight game with double digit points.
Braeden Shrewsberry kept his hot hand with 10 points. It marked his fourth game in double figures over the last five games and his fifth consecutive game with multiple treys.
J.R. Konieczny rounded out the trio with 13 points and a team high six rebounds. In addition, Logan Imes produced a season best four assists – a team high.
HOW IT HAPPENED
There were six lead changes in the first five minutes until Miami produced a 7-0 run to go up 16-10.
Burton, who picked up two early fouls and sat for a few minutes, re-entered the game to give the Irish an offensive spark. He scored eight straight points to pull the Irish within one possession, down 26-24 with 7:01 remaining until halftime.
Enter Miami’s Norchad Omier who took flight, recording three straight trips down the court with thunderous dunks. Burton would keep the Irish close with his third three of the half, reaching double figures at the 4:31 mark with the Irish down 32-29.
Next, the Irish defense forced three straight turnovers but came up empty on the offensive end each time. In fact, Burton’s three at 4:31 was Notre Dame’s last set of points in the first half. The one positive after the cold shooting stretch was the fact that the Irish were only down 37-29 at the half.
Burton was the only Irish player in double figures at the break with 11 points while Miami was powered by Omier and his 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting.
Now, second half starts have plagued the Irish in the past but not tonight. Notre Dame came out with a fire, outscoring Miami 11-2, as a Davis putback gave the Irish their first lead (40-39) since the 15:52 mark in the first half.
Omier continued to be a problem, scoring his season high 28th point of the match at 12:19 on yet another dunk to put the Hurricanes up 46-42. Julian Roper II then responded with a big three and immediately took a charge on the defensive end to send the crowd to their feet.
In fact, Notre Dame recorded a 5-for-5 field goal stretch which was capped by a Konieczny three, pushing the Irish ahead 52-49 with 9:24 left.
Next, Miami fired off seven straight to regain the lead at 56-52. Freshman Logan Imes had a basket at 6:45 but the Hurricanes ultimately rattled off a 12-2 run to go up 61-54, prompting a Coach Shrewsberry timeout with 4:01 remaining.
Miami extended the run to 17-2, earning the first double-digit lead of the evening. The Hurricanes then rode that momentum to the 73-61 final behind a 33-point, 10-rebound, double-double from Omier.
UP NEXT
The Irish remain home for a Saturday matinee and another return game – this time welcoming Boston College to Purcell Pavilion. That contest will tip off at Noon ET on Jan. 27, airing live on ESPNU.
— ND –