NORTH CANTON, Ohio -- The high-powered and nationally-ranked Walsh Cavaliers hit 14 3-pointers and picked up their 23rd win Saturday, as Walsh defeated Notre Dame, 83-66.  (Box)

The No. 5 team in the nation shot 55.8 percent (29-for-52) from the field and 58.3 percent (14-for-24) from beyond the arc, as they won for the 11th straight time this season.

Notre Dame (17-10, 6-5) was led by senior forward #Dan Jones#, who scored 25 points. The Falcons have now lost five of their last seven. Two of those losses came at the hands of Top-5 foes; the Falcons lost to No. 4 Cedarville last Saturday (Feb. 7).

Walsh (23-3, 10-1) was paced by senior forward Joe Shardo, who tallied 24 points. Junior guard Brandon Speck added 21 on seven 3-pointers. With the win Saturday at Alumni Arena, Walsh remains unbeaten at home this season, at 11-0. The Cavaliers now have a 17-game win streak at home overall.

“That's a very good team,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Kevin Bille. “There threes killed us, but on the other hand, we didn't do some things on our end that we needed to do. And that's disappointing.”

In the opening half, the Falcons spotted the Cavaliers an early 7-4 advantage and then went on a 6-0 run to take a 10-7 lead by 14:45. The next six minutes of game play were a mess for Notre Dame. NDC misfired on several trips down the floor, and the AMC-leading Cavalier offense went wild, outscoring the Falcons, 23-6. That put Walsh up, 30-16, by the 8:45-mark.

An #Eric Dummermuth# basket at the six-minute mark got the Falcons back within 10, at 30-21. That bucket came amidst a 14-2 comeback run for NDC, but it was short-lived.

Walsh, the nation's top 3-point shooting team, got back-to-back treys from Joe Shardo and Brandon Speck. That pushed their lead back to double digits. The Cavaliers came into the game shooting 43.7 percent (220-for-503) for the season from beyond the arc.

WU took a 12-point lead (46-34) into halftime, with Shardo scoring 16 points and Speck 12. Dan Jones garnered 13 first-half points for NDC. The first frame was well-played by both fives. Notre Dame shot 51.6 percent (16-for-31) from the floor; Walsh countered with a 59.3 percent (16-for-27) mark. The Cavaliers were 10-of-16 on three-balls in the opening 20 minutes.

In the second stanza, Walsh extended their lead before a Dan Jones trey got NDC within 10 (52-42) at the 16:30 mark. From there, Walsh rebuilt their lead, eventually to 18 points (74-56) by the 9:24-mark.

Another Jones three, at 5:47, got the Falcons as close as 11, but Walsh, and their long-range game, proved too much for Notre Dame in the end. The Cavaliers closed out the game on a run to claim the 83-66 final.

For the game, NDC went 26-of-59 from the field to shoot 44.1 percent. The Falcons were out-rebounded, 32-27. Notre Dame committed just five turnovers in the game, to Walsh's nine.

Jones scored his 25 points on a superb shooting performance. The 6-foot-3 swingman went 9-of-13 from the floor, 2-of-2 from 3-point range, and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line.

“Dan was great today,” said Kevin Bille. “In the last seven or eight games, he has really put this whole team on his back a number of times. He's playing well, and he's playing hard.”

Jones also added five boards and three steals to Saturday's box score. Eric Dummermuth finished with 12 points and six rebounds; he was 6-of-11 from the floor. Besides Jones and Dummermuth, the other three Falcon starters combined to go 6-of-23 from the field.

With the loss in North Canton, NDC falls to 5-5 on the road this season. The Falcons are now 0-4 all-time against Walsh (0-3 in Alumni Arena).

Saturday's game in North Canton marked the first of three straight road tilts that will close out the Falcons' regular season slate. NDC will be at Shawnee State and Rio Grande next Friday and Saturday, Feb. 20-21. The Falcons' Friday game at SSU is scheduled for an 4 p.m. tip.

Those final two games in southern Ohio figure to be pivotal in Notre Dame's quest for a third straight postseason appearance. The Falcons came into Saturday's action tied for fifth place in the 14-team circuit. Seven teams will qualify for AMC postseason play, which begins Feb. 21.


NOTES FROM THE NEST…

WALSH BY THE NUMBERS: The fifth-ranked Walsh Cavaliers have been dominant in the win column this season. And their game stats back up those now-23 wins. Walsh came into Saturday's game ranked among the nation's top-20 teams in 14 statistical categories. Among those, the Cavaliers ranked first in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.59) and first in 3-point shooting (43.7 percent, 220-for-503). Individually, guard Jeremy Shardo came into the weekend leading the nation in assists (7.9 per game). … With their loss to Walsh on Saturday, Notre Dame dropped to 2-2 against ranked foes this season.

DJ SPINS 25: Dan Jones' 25 points Saturday at Walsh mark the most he's scored in a single game since pouring in a career-high 27 at St. Vincent (Pa.) on Dec. 1. The senior forward from Niles, Ohio, has now authored four 20-point games this season and six over his two-year Falcon career. Jones has garnered nine straight games in double digits; he's averaged 19.3 points per game over NDC's last four.

DEATH BY THREES: With Walsh going 14-of-24 from beyond the arc Saturday, the Cavaliers have now shot 46.8 percent (88-for-188) from beyond the arc over their last eight games. … Brandon Speck came into Saturday's game ranked 11th in the nation in 3-pointers made (3.1 per game) and 19th in the country in 3-point accuracy (44.8 percent, 77-for-172).