Damone Brown of Syracuse came barreling down the lane, and Notre Dame’s David Graves refused to give an inch. Graves absorbed the blow and went flying backward, landing with a thud on the sideline.
The fall may have hurt, but Graves didn’t seem to mind the pain, a smile crossing his face as Brown was whistled for the charge.
“He was going down the middle and I knew he wasn’t going to stop, so I stopped and he ran over me,” Graves said. “I was thinking with my luck they were going to call a block, but fortunately they called a charge. Those are the little plays that are momentum plays.”
And Notre Dame had plenty of those as it squashed Syracuse 74-60 in front of 11,120 fans Tuesday night at the Joyce Center. Troy Murphy’s 34 points, 16 rebounds and tough inside play keyed Notre Dame’s effort.
With the victory, Notre Dame (12-5, 4-2 in the Big East) moves into a tie for second place in the Big East’s West Division. The Irish trail Georgetown by a half-game and face the Hoyas Saturday in Washington.
For an Irish team that early in the season seemed soft and unwilling to do the dirty work to compete in college basketball’s highest echelons, the victory was an emphatic assertion that Notre Dame is nobody’s punching bag. Syracuse (15-3, 4-2) began the conference schedule with four straight victories, including a 79-70 decision over Notre Dame on Jan. 2 in the Big East opener.
“When we played them the first time, we were hesitant. We didn’t attack the gaps,” Notre Dame guard Matt Carroll said.
This time Carroll, who hit 4-for-8 three-pointers and finished with 14, was able to draw attention away from Murphy and dish the ball inside to him. The Orangemen repeatedly fouled Murphy to keep him from getting easy layups. Murphy consistently converted, going 16-for-19 at the free-throw line.
“He’s tough down low,” Syracuse center Billy Celuck said. “He had a couple of rebounds and put-backs. He just racks up points and keeps going at you.”
That was the plan, Murphy said.
“We didn’t want to get out-toughed by anyone,” he said, “especially on our home court.”
Although the Irish beat Syracuse by 14, the margin was as much a testament to their defensive tenacity as their offensive ability.
Notre Dame shot just under 40 percent from the field, but held Syracuse to 37 percent. Notre Dame forced 22 turnovers, blocked four shots and challenged almost every shot the Orangemen attempted.
The Irish never trailed, leading by as many as 21.
Syracuse’s Preston Shumpert had a torrid second half, hitting 4-for-5 three-pointers and 5-for-8 overall to finish with a team-high 25. Five minutes into the second half, Shumpert’s three-pointer from the top of the key cut Notre Dame’s lead to four. But the Irish reeled off six straight points, increasing the margin to 10. Syracuse never drew closer than eight points.
“We’ve been pretty good about being poised when people have made runs,” Irish coach Mike Brey said.
