SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-16, 3-12) fell 56-100 to the top-ranked No. 1 Duke Blue Devils (26-2, 14-1) on Tuesday evening.
Brady Koehler and Cole Certa led the Irish with 14 points apiece. Koehler finished the night 5-9 from the field while also chipping in 5 boards for the Irish. Koehler registered his sixth game in double figures, fifth in ACC play.
Certa extended his career-high double-digit scoring streak to six games. He has totalled 115 points in that span.
Sir Mohammed was the third and final Irish in double figures, recording 11points on 5-8 shooting.
“We wanted to play well, and we didn’t, and Duke had a lot to do with it. There’s a reason they are the number one team in the country. We didn’t play as well as we wanted to, but this won’t be the worst thing to happen to them. So embrace the next opportunity. Embrace tomorrow. And if we keep getting chances, we are going to keep fighting and see what happens,” Glenn & Stacey Murphy Head Coach Micah Shrewsberry said.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Halfway through the first half, it was Duke 22, Notre Dame 9, as Brady Koehler scored all nine points for the home team. The Blue Devils had started 6-6 from the field.
Over the next three minutes, Duke drained four consecutive shots, which included three triples to open up a 33-14 advantage.
Duke went on to claim a 54-22 halftime lead, spearheaded by Cameron Boozer’s 20 first-half points. Boozer was 4-6 from the field and 10-12 from the free-throw line. Cole Certa scored 11 of the team’s final 13 points of the half, going 6-6 from the stripe.
The Blue Devils shot 51.7% from the field and 8-16 from three compared to ND’s 26.1% and 2-13.
Sir Mohammed tallied 9 of his 11 points in the second half. Matt MacLellan subbed in late and registered six points. As a team, the Irish shot 44.8% to Duke’s 40.0% in the second half, though the Blue Devils edged the Irish in scoring, 46-34.
Six Blue Devils finished in double figures, led by Boozer’s 24 points. Duke converted 15 ND turnovers into 23 points.
UP NEXT
The Irish will host NC State on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 12:00 p.m. on The CW. The Irish will honor seniors Carson Towt, Kebba Njie, and Matthew MacLellan, as well as their senior managers, pregame.
– ND –