Men’s Basketball: Fighting Irish mount second-half rally to beat Horned Frogs

After surprising wins over Florida and Wisconsin en route to the Rady Children’s Invitational title in San Diego, the Horned Frogs returned home for a week-long break before hosting another power-conference opponent—Notre Dame—at Schollmaier Arena. TCU had faced the Fighting Irish five previous times and had never come away with a win. On Friday night, that trend continued, as Notre Dame edged the Frogs 87–85 in a hard-fought battle.

Both teams opened the game hot, each hitting double figures before the first media timeout. Three of TCU’s first four field goals came from beyond the arc—two of them by Jayden Pierre. After a Braeden Shrewsberry triple tied the game at 11, the teams traded buckets until Notre Dame star Markus Burton exited with an ankle injury at the 10-minute mark. In the aftermath, TCU surged on an 11–2 run, capped by a Brock Harding three, its seventh triple of the half.

After TCU pushed its lead to 11, the Fighting Irish cut into the margin but never got closer than seven. Liutauras Lelevicius and Jace Posey each scored in the final minute of the half, but a Carson Towt lay-in at the buzzer kept the deficit under 10 points heading into the break—45-36.

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Despite holding a nine-point halftime lead, TCU saw its cushion evaporate quickly as sophomore guard Cole Certa caught fire. Certa buried four threes in a three-minute burst, giving Notre Dame its first lead of the night, 50–47, with 15:25 remaining.

Notre Dame held its lead for the next five minutes before a Tanner Toolson three briefly put TCU back in front. But the advantage didn’t last long. Certa answered with another three, giving the Irish a 59–58 lead as the clock dipped under the 10-minute mark. From there, the teams traded blows, producing five lead changes over the next few minutes. Finally, a Micah Robinson fastbreak slam gave the Horned Frogs a four-point lead as the clock hit 7:00.

Notre Dame answered with five straight points before a chaotic sequence resulted…

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Publish date : 2025-12-07 00:42:00

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