Notre Dame knocks off No. 15 Marquette
Pat Connaughton scored seven of his game-high 23 points during an 18-2 second-half run to pace Notre Dame to a 76-59 win over No. 15 Marquette on Saturday in South Bend. The freshman posted double figures for the first time since Nov. 30 and finished just two points shy of his career high, set Nov. 16 against Sam Houston State. Connaughton was deadly from the floor, making 9 of 12 overall and 5 of 8 of his 3-pointers, and added 11 rebounds. Notre Dame led 50-46 with 10:30 remaining before its scoring spree. Four different players drained a 3-pointer over the next five minutes that gave the Fighting Irish (15-8, 7-3 Big East) the momentum for its fourth straight win. Three other Notre Dame players scored in double figures: Eric Atkins with 16, Jerian Grant with 12 and Scott Martin with 11. Each had a 3-pointer during the decisive scoring run. Marquette (19-5, 8-3 Big East) saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end. The Golden Eagles were led by Darius Johnson-Odom and Vander Blue with 12 points each.
