Notre Dame jumped out to an early 11 point first half lead over top ranked, defending national champion Villanova Saturday afternoon. The Irish, however, were unable to hold on to their lead in the second half before finally falling to the #1 team in the country 74-66.
The Irish lead throughout much of the game but fell behind in the final 10 minutes and were unable to battle back. Jason Hart and the Wildcats proved to be just too much as Hart almost single handily doomed with the Irish with 37 points. No other Villanova player reach double figures.
A sluggish second half on the offensive side of the ball is what really did in Notre Dame on Saturday. After scoring 41 points in the first half, the Irish managed just 25 over the final 20 minutes.
Matt Farrell and Steve Vasturia paced Notre Dame with 18 a piece with Bonzie Colson chipping in 11 points and 8 rebounds. V.J. Beachem on the other hand had a cold shooting afternoon with just 4 points on 2 of 11 shooting including missing all five three point attempts.
The loss is the first of the year for the Irish who came into the contest at 9-0 and ranked 23rd after cracking the Top 25 for the first time this season earlier this week. Even with the loss, the close contest with the #1 team in the country could end up helping them in the rankings this week.
Notre Dame will have a full week off to regroup from their first loss of the season. The Irish will be in action against next Saturday against #17 ranked Purdue in the Crossroads Classic. Tip off is set for 2:00 from Indianapolis and the game will be televised on ESPN2.
Frank Vitovitch has been Co-Owner and Editor in Chief of UHND.com since joining forces with Kyle Flavin in 1999. Since that time, he has written over 2,000 articles covering Notre Dame football, recruiting, and basketball. He also works with all staff and external writers on all articles published on UHND.com. Frank's love for Notre Dame football started at a young age watching Rocket Ismail give opposing coaches ulcers in the late 1980's. By day Frank works in marketing and holds a degree in Digital Media from Drexel University. Frank's work has been cited by online/print editions of NBC Sports, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated and has been quoted on air by ESPN's Collin Cowherd. He's conducted interviews with Notre Dame legends Rocket Ismail, Randy Kinder, Lee Becton, Reggie Brooks, Michael Stonebreaker, and Ned Bolcar among others over his 20+ years of covering Notre Dame football. He's also been published in the print edition of USA Today Sports Weekly and the USA Today College Football Preview multiple times. Other Published Works/Citations for Frank Three Reasons Notre Dame Will Beat Alabama - USA Today Notre Dame Suspends WR Kevin Stepherson, RB C.J. Holmes Indefinitely - Bleacher Report Notre Dame / Ohio State Fiesta Bowl Preview - Eleven Warriors Brace Yourself: The Fighting Irish are Relevant Again - Sports on Earth Interviews with the Enemy: A Q&A with Frank Vitovitch of UHND - Yahoo! Sports Five Good Minutes: Notre Dame Football Preview With UHND.com - BC Interruption Vicious Electronic Questioning with UHND - MGO Blog
I think the Irish proved they can at least hang with the big boys. They are a threat to beat any team in the country, though I agree with Mike that they are probably not quite at the Final Four level.
But at the end of the day, Villanova is the number 1 team in the country right now for a reason. They were able to wait out ND and wear them down toward the end. But I still have high hopes for this team and I think another ACC championship is not out of the question. The upcoming game against Purdue will be another test and we’ll see how they respond.
Why didn’t Farrell get the ball in His hands at crunch time? Instead it was Bonzie and Beachem throwing bricks.Vasturia and the Lithuanian stiff were regularly getting beaten by Hart. I don’t see a Final four for this team, but if they can get to elite 8 again it will be a success.