Notre Dame men’s basketball controlled the game from start to finish against Dartmouth on Wednesday night, claiming a 77-65 victory for their second straight win. The Fighting Irish (6-5) continued their dominance at Purcell Pavilion, improving to 5-1 at home, and maintained their impressive historical record against Ivy League opponents, moving to 48-4 all-time.
Shrewsberry Stays Hot
Sophomore Braeden Shrewsberry extended his career-high streak of double-digit scoring games to seven with a 22-point performance, marking his first back-to-back 20+ point outings. Shrewsberry shot 4-for-9 from beyond the arc and has now gone 10-for-20 from three over the past two games, racking up a combined 47 points.
Davis’ Double-Double Dominance
Tae Davis delivered his sixth consecutive double-figure game, notching his first career double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Davis was a model of efficiency, shooting 9-of-13 from the field and dominating inside.
Allocco's All-Around Effort
Matt Allocco added 16 points on 6-for-10 shooting while contributing a team-high five assists. His timely scoring and playmaking helped Notre Dame maintain its advantage throughout.
As a team, Notre Dame shot 52.5% from the floor (31-59) and clamped down defensively, holding Dartmouth to just 18.2% from three-point range (6-33).
How It Happened
Notre Dame set the tone early with Shrewsberry and Davis leading the charge. Shrewsberry scored 10 points in the first half, including a pair of three-pointers that pushed the Irish ahead 30-23 with 4:31 remaining. Meanwhile, Davis was nearly unstoppable, going 7-for-8 from the field to tally 14 first-half points.
Fueled by their efforts, the Irish shot 63% (17-of-27) in the first half, scoring 28 of their 39 points in the paint to take a commanding 39-28 lead at halftime.
The momentum carried into the second half as Shrewsberry, Davis, and Roper II sparked a 6-0 run to open the period, forcing Dartmouth into an early timeout. Notre Dame later strung together six consecutive made field goals, capped by back-to-back three-pointers from Allocco, building a 55-37 lead at the 15:03 mark. Allocco stayed hot, scoring 10 points in the first 10 minutes of the second half to push the Irish ahead 68-50.
Dartmouth made a late push with a 9-0 run to trim the deficit to nine points with 2:12 remaining, but Notre Dame sealed the victory by converting five clutch free throws down the stretch.
Up Next
The Fighting Irish will take a break for finals before returning to action on Sunday, December 22, to wrap up non-conference play against Le Moyne. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. ET on the ACC Network.
Check out Len Clark's full analysis here!