Feb. 14, 2017
Notre Dame at Boston College Box Score
By: Robby Hamman
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – No. 25/20 Notre Dame (20-7, 9-5 ACC) shook off a sluggish first half by outscoring Boston College (9-18, 2-12 ACC) 45-27 in the second stanza to give the Irish their third straight win by a final score of 84-76. The victory gives head coach Mike Brey his 13th season with 20-plus wins at Notre Dame.
The Irish had four players finish in double figures in points, as junior forward Bonzie Colson led the squad with 20 points and has now scored 20-plus points in three straight outings. Junior guard Matt Farrell added 19, while senior forward V.J. Beachem scored 16 and senior guard Steve Vasturia chipped in 15 to deliver Notre Dame the win.
How It Happened
Boston College opened a 10-point lead over the first 20 minutes, as the Eagles took a 49-39 advantage into the halftime break. The hosts didn’t trail in the first half and shot 17-of-29 from the floor, including a 6-of-11 effort from beyond the arc.
The two sides traded baskets in the opening minutes of the second to move the score to 58-48 and then the Irish offense came alive. Notre Dame reeled off a 15-1 run during a stretch that lasted a little over three minutes to take a four-point lead at 63-59 with 12 minutes remaining in the game. Notre Dame did not trail the rest of the way, going 6-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final seconds to ice the game away at 84-76.
Notre Dame Player Of The Game
After two monster performances to earn national player of the week accolades from multiple sources, Colson did not have a dropoff in play on Tuesday. The junior led the Irish with 20 points on an ultra-efficient 9-of-12 performance from the field. The forward has now scored 20-plus points in three consecutive games for the first time in his career. Colson also added six rebounds and an assist to complete his performance.
Stat Of The Game
With a season-high seven assists, Vasturia surpassed the 300 mark for his career. The senior is the 19th player in Notre Dame history with at least 300 assists in his career. By scoring 15 points on Tuesday the Medford, New Jersey, native surpassed the 1,300-point mark. Vasturia is just one of 11 players in program history to score over 1,300 points and dish out 300 assists in a career.
Notre Dame Notes
- With the win the Irish are now 7-0 against the Eagles when playing as ACC opponents and have won eight straight against Boston College.
- The Irish are 11-3 on the season in games decided by eight points or less.
- Notre Dame shot 19-of-21 from the free-throw line for a percentage of .905 for the second straight game. The Irish have finished at or above 80 percent 15 times this season.
- The Irish connected on 11 shots from beyond the arc, marking the 12th time this season the team has hit 10 or more shots from distance this season.
- Colson has now recorded three straight 20-plus point performances for the first time in his career.
- Tuesday marked Colson’s ninth 20-point performance of the season and 11th of his career.
- Beachem scored 16 points on Tuesday and has now scored 10-plus points in a game 21 times during his senior campaign.
- Beachem also grabbed eight rebounds, matching his season high.
- Vasturia’s 15 points mark his 21st game of the 2016-17 campaign in double figures.
- The seven assists from Vasturia are a season high for the senior and just one shy of matching his career best mark of eight.
- Farrell surpassed the 10-point mark for the 23rd time this season with 19 points.
- Farrell and freshman guard T.J. Gibbs each matched their career highs in steals with three apiece.
Up Next
The Irish remain on the road, as Notre Dame takes on NC State in Raleigh, North Carolina, at noon on Saturday, February 18. The game is scheduled to air on ESPN.
— ND —
Robby Hamman joined Fighting Irish Media as athletics communications assistant director in September 2016, coordinating efforts for the volleyball and men’s lacrosse program.