Irish Outrace Greyhounds 83-48 at Purcell Pavilion

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The result of Friday night’s game was pretty simple. Notre Dame (3-0) shot the ball well (48%) and Loyola Maryland (1-3) did not (29%), as the Irish cruised to a 83-48 win at Purcell Pavilion.

"I loved how we defended and we were flying all over the place," Notre Dame head coach Mike Brey said after the game."We were getting deflections, rotating and we had 13 steals. We had a couple sequences where guys were diving on the floor. I loved the energy. I am hoping we can be a really good defensive team to help us on nights when we aren’t making shots."

Notre Dame used two 18-3 runs to pull away from the Greyhounds in the game. The second run came in the second half to put the visiting squad away.

Senior VJ Beachem hit a jumper to push the lead to 56-29 with 12:33 remaining in the game to complete the second of the runs.

Beachem would finish the night with 21 points, four rebounds and three buckets from behind the arc.

"Right now he is just so darn confident," Brey said. "He’s doing a great job of mixing it up with slicing, slashing, dirivng and shooting his jump shot. He’s a really confident senior.

"I give credit to our big guys. They are screening and getting him looks. Matt Farrell is finding him on penetration. He’s a moving target. As a young player he didn’t move well with the ball. He’s cutting and putting it on the floor."

Loyola Maryland would pull the game to 62-39 on a bucket from Austin Harriott with just over ten minutes remaining, but Bonzie Colson would put a quick end to that.

Colson would lead a quick 8-0 run with two buckets to push the lead to 70-39 with a little over seven minutes remaining.

The Greyhounds opened the game on fire, as they took an early 10-6 lead when Andre Walker hit his second three-pointer of the game. It was short lived as the Irish turned up the heat defensively and Loyola Maryland really struggled with Notre Dame’s length around the basket all night.

In the first half alone, Notre Dame finished with five blocks, including three from Bonzie Colson. Walker only scored two more points the rest of the half, as he finished with eight points in the game.

Notre Dame held the Greyhounds scoreless for 2:39 and took the lead a 14-10 lead on Vasturia three. The offensive struggles would continue for Loyola Maryland as Notre Dame would go on an 18-3 run over the course of six minutes and increase the lead to 27-15 after eight straight points from Beachem.

A 8-0 run by Notre Dame would push the lead to 38-21 with just over three minutes in the first half on a jumper by Vasturia. During the run, Notre Dame held Loyola Maryland scoreless for 4:15.

However, the Irish had trouble scoring themselves and they ended the half on a 3:02 scoring drought. Notre Dame took a 38-24 lead into the break.

Beachem led the Irish with 13 points on 5 of 8 shooting in the first half, which included two three-pointers.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Bonzie Colson. The junior forward dropped 19 points on 8 of 12 shooting with seven boards, three assists and four blocks.

"I feel like at times if I have my shot and I can score, then I have to attack," Colson said. "I have to stay in character and do what I can do. I feel like that gives us confidence as a team and gives us an edge."

STAT LINE OF THE GAME: The Greyhounds were outmatched from a physical standpoint all night and at one point, the tallest guy on the floor was 6-foot-6. Notre Dame used that to its advantage with eight blocks on the night, but more importantly outscore Loyola Maryland 36-16 in the paint.

TURNING POINT: The two 18-3 runs were key, as Notre Dame got stops in the first and second half of the game. While the Irish had a substantial lead in the second half, the Greyhounds had got some momentum, but Notre Dame was able to put them away.

"I think our ball pressure is good," said Brey. "We have guys with active hands. We do have great length- we’re long. We get in passing lanes and get deflections. We have a number of nose for the ball guys.

"TJ and Rex have a great nose for the ball. If it’s near them and it’s loose, they’re getting it. That’s great defensive energy. Those guys are flying around and kicks our defense to a new level."

WHAT’S NEXT: The Irish will head off to Brooklyn for the final two games of the Legend’s Classic early next week. On Monday, Notre Dame will play Colorado and then on Tuesday, the Irish will play either Texas or Northwestern.