January 23, 1999
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) – Geoff Billet hit a leaning jumper over Martin Ingelsby as time expired to give Rutgers a 72-70 win over Notre Dame on Saturday.
The Scarlet Knights (12-6, 5-4 Big East) led by 12 with 8:28 left but saw their lead cut to 70-68 when Antoni Wyche hit a jumper from the wing with 1:42 to go.
Wyche later missed a 12-footer that could have tied the game, but Rutger’s Kent Rashod missed from 10 feet out on the next possession.
That allowed Notre Dame (10-10, 4-5) to set up its last shot, and Wyche tied the game at 70-70 on a driving layup with 8.3 seconds left.
But after a Rutgers time out, Billet brought the ball up the floor and worked Ingelsby toward the basket before hitting the winning shot.
Billet finished with 14 points for Rutgers, while Earl Johnson led the team with 15.
Ingelsby scored 22 points, including 12 in the final eight minutes for the Irish, who were playing for the third time without leading scorer Troy Murphy. Phil Hickey added 13 points and 12 rebounds, while David Graves scored 13.
Both teams shot better than 60 percent in the first half, But Rutgers was 2-of-9 to open the second. Notre Dame wasn’t much better with six turnovers and four misses on its first 10 possessions of the period.
Rutgers led 39-35 at the half, in part because Notre Dame couldn’t convert on its free throw opportunities down the stretch. Over the final 5:10, the Irish were 2-for-7 from the line, including misses on the front end of two one-and-one situations.