Jan. 3, 2008
Notre Dame West Virginia Box Score
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – Luke Harangody had 29 points and 16 rebounds, both career highs, and Notre Dame held West Virginia to its worst shooting game of the season to beat the Mountaineers 69-56 Thursday night.
The Fighting Irish (11-2, 1-0 Big East) took control with a 22-8 run in the first half, opening a 33-22 lead, and the Mountaineers never got closer than six points.
The Mountaineers (10-3, 0-1), who entered the game shooting 49.7 percent from the field for the season, were held to 32 percent shooting against the Irish, including a season-low 5-of-25 from 3-point range. Their 56-point total also was 14 points below their previous low of 70 against Winthrop.
The Irish won their 29th straight at home and their ninth straight overall. West Virginia lost its second straight and fell to 5-8 in Big East openers.
Harangody was 11-of-16 from the field as the Irish shot 48 percent and outrebounded the Mountaineers 46-33. When Harangody grabbed his 16th rebound with 34 seconds left the crowd yelled “Luuuuke,” and did it again seconds later when he left the game.
West Virginia led 14-11 when Joe Alexander made a pair of free throws. But after starting the game making 4-of-10 from the field, the Irish made 9-of-10. Ryan Ayers ignited the 22-8 run with a pair of 3-pointers. Harangody had six points during the run and Zach Hillesland had four, including a slam dunk that brought the crowd to its feet.
Harangody was nearly perfect for the half, making 7-of-8 shots. His only miss was on his first 3-point attempt of the season with 4 seconds left in the half. Kyle McAlarney, who took the point with Tory Jackson on the bench with two fouls, had five assists on nine Irish baskets during the run. The Irish led 37-28 at the half.
Jackson, who entered the game 3-of-23 from 3-point range, finished with 12 points, including making back-to-back 3s after West Virginia cut the lead to 41-34 on a 3-pointer by Alex Rouff. Rouff led the Mountaineers with 18 points.