The Miami Hurricanes bounced back in South Bend with a 73-61 win over Notre Dame after dropping four of their last five conference games. They look to get back on track in hopes of securing a spot in the NCAA Tournament down the road.
The Fighting Irish kept the first half competitive due to the offensive intensity of freshman guard Markus Burton, who scored 15 points in a team-high 36 minutes played. The Hurricanes were able to build a comfortable lead of eight going into halftime.
“Markus Burton is not just one of the best players in the ACC, but he’s one of the three or four best freshmen in the country,” Miami head coach Jim Larranaga told reporters after the game.
The Irish began the second half on an 11-2 scoring run and led 52-49 with 9:28 remaining, though it was all Hurricanes down to the buzzer.
Freshman guard Kyshawn George knocked down a huge three to extend UM’s lead to seven at the four-minute mark. Burton was called for his fourth foul with four minutes to go, which eliminated an offensive threat from the floor. The Canes continued a 14-2 scoring run, and it was Bensley Joseph who hit the dagger three with 1:30 to go to extend the lead to nine. George doubled down and hit again from long range at the 40-second mark to conclude the 73-61 Hurricanes victory.
Norchad Omier shot a lights-out 12 of 14 from the field, scoring his Miami-high 33 points and grabbing ten boards with that. George added 11 points, including two important threes down the stretch, replacing Joseph in the starting lineup.
The 6-foot-7 Swiss guard has a ton of potential, and his impressive skill set has been on display these past three games and was a huge factor today in adding more size to the starting rotation. He’s proven to be a solid second ball handler behind the veteran Nijel Pack.
Pack and Joseph both scored a streaky ten points, while Matthew Cleveland and Wooga Poplar struggled, as they only put up two and seven points, respectively.
The Hurricanes took down the Irish twice this season, taking the season series, and will be back home at the Watsco Center on Saturday afternoon to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers.