Notre Dame Comes From Behind to Beat Duke in OT Thriller, 84-79

By Ellen Burr
Photo from und.com

WASHINGTON, D. C. - After trailing by 16 points midway through the second half, Notre Dame (21-10) staged a furious comeback against Duke (23-10) to send the game into overtime and defeat the Blue Devils, 84-79 in an ACC Tournament quarter final game, Thursday afternoon.

With 11 minutes left in regulation, the Irish went on a furious 14-0 run to get back in the game. That run was highlighted by the three-point shooting of junior V.J. Beachem, who drained one from behind the arc to tie the game at 70 with one minute remaining. Beachem finished the game with 19-points.

The junior guard had one more opportunity to complete the comeback in regulation, but the ball rattled out. Duke had one more shot to walk away with a win as well, but with two seconds left in regulation a lay-up attempt by freshman Luke Kennard rolled off the rim.

"I really thought that we had that double-digit lead, it impacted our defense, which is what happens with a young group," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the loss. "Those six to eight minutes, we were really young. We were real young."

The trend continued in overtime as the defending ACC Champions outscored the Blue Devils 14-9 to beat Duke for the second year in a row in the conference tournament.

"I thought we ran out of gas in overtime," Coach K said. "We have to manage that."

Duke Clicks Early

Notre Dame jumped out early, but a 13-2 run late in the half gave Duke a 47-35 lead going into the break. Sophomore Grayson Allen lit up the boards for the Blue Devils in the first 20 minutes of the game, knocking down 4 out of 8 of his threes and finishing the half with 18. Allen finished the afternoon with a game-high 27 points.

"Grayson was a battering ram like he's been for us all season, tried to carry us," Krzyzewski said. "It wasn't enough."

Auguste in March

Forward Zach Auguste had a career game for the Irish as he finished with 19 points and 22 rebounds. The senior had 13 points and only 6 rebounds in the first half.

"Got to give a lot of credit to [Duke]," Auguste said following the game. "Big bodies, physical, love to battle in the paint. I took that challenge upon myself individually."

"This guy is unbelievable at controlling a defensive backboard," Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said of his senior after the game. "I don't think anyone is playing better than Zach Auguste in the country right now."

Up Next

Notre Dame looks to return to the ACC Championship as it advances to the ACC Tournament semifinal to play North Carolina. That game is scheduled for Friday at 7.

Duke returns home to prepare for the NCAA tournament, which starts next week.