BC men’s basketball outscored in second half of loss to Notre Dame

SOUTH BEND, IN – Boston College men’s basketball fell short on the road at Notre Dame by a score of 68-64 Saturday evening.

Three Eagles reached double-digit figures, led by Fred Payne with 18 points.

BC opened the scoring early, as Jayden Hastings swatted an ND layup, leading to a transition take from Fred Payne. BC extended the lead to 8-0, holding the hosts scoreless for 5:15.
Luka Toews used a pull-up three to extend the lead back to seven before Payne used a seven-point scoring run of his own to build the lead to 11 points with 9:45 left in the half.
On defense, the Eagles remained locked in, holding ND to 32.3% shooting in the first half and forcing five turnovers.
Both sides traded scoring possessions before the Fighting Irish were able to cut the lead to 27-22 with under four minutes. BC responded, however, using three pointers from Donald Hand Jr. and Toews to reclaim an 11-point edge in the dying minutes of the half.
The Eagles entered halftime with a 35-24 lead.

BC scored first in the second half, but Notre Dame responded with a 10-0 run to make it 37-34.
Notre Dame grabbed its first lead of the evening with a deep three-pointer before Caleb Steger responded with one of his own to make it 46-45.
Starting at 7:03 p.m., the hosts used six straight free throws to gain a seven-point lead, their largest of the evening.
BC cut the deficit to 61-59 with under two minutes left, but Notre Dame held on with free throws.
The Fighting Irish took a 68-64 decision at Purcell Pavilion.

Fred Payne logged a team-high 18 points with five rebounds and four assists. He has surpassed 18 points in six of seven ACC games.
Donald Hand scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds; Luka Toews added 14 points and was 4-for-4 from three.
Boston College moves to 2-5 in ACC play and 9-11 in the regular season.
The Eagles’ all-time series record against Notre Dame shifts to 17-30.

Looking ahead, Boston College returns to Conte Forum to host No. 14 Virginia on Saturday, Jan. 31.
Tip-off is set for 1:30 p.m. and will be available on The CW Network and can be heard on WEEI 850.
Saturday marks the 32nd meeting between BC and Virginia. Virginia leads the series 22-9.
BC is 6-6 against Virginia at home, with its most recent win coming on Feb. 22, 2023.
This was also the last time the Eagles beat a team ranked in the top 10.