AMHERST, N.Y. -- A staunch Falcon defense led the way to a 66-62 victory in a key American Mideast Conference matchup against Daemen (N.Y.) on Tuesday night. (Box)

Notre Dame (13-6, 5-1 AMC) held Daemen (12-8, 4-3) to a 35.5 percent (22-for-62) mark from the floor, and the Falcons held off a late Wildcat rally to bounce back from their first conference loss of the season. The Blue & White sit atop the AMC North standings with what is now a 5-1 league mark.

Sophomore guard #Nick McCartney# led four NDC scorers finishing in double figures. McCartney tallied 16 points on the strength of three 3-pointers and a 5-of-6 night at the line. #Eric Dummermuth# suffered a shaky night at the line (7-of-14) in a 13-point performance, but the 6-foot-6 forward hauled down a game-high 16 rebounds to lead NDC to a plus-eight on the boards.

Notre Dame went on a 12-0 run midway through the first half to open up a 15-point lead (23-15) by the 5:20-mark. Daemen went 0-for-11 in that stretch as part of a 29.6 percent (8-for-27) shooting performance in the first. The Wildcats finished the half out on a 14-4 run of their own to go into halftime down five (27-22).

Daemen managed to tie the game (37-37) by the 13:16-mark, but the Falcons answered with a 15-6 run to take command of the game. NDC then endured a last-minute rally that saw the Wildcats get as close as two (64-62).

McCartney's 16 points led the way for the visiting five. Junior forward #Curtis McClure# scored 15, Dummermuth scored 13 and senior guard #Al Miller# added 11.

The Wildcats also had four players notch double figures. Daemen led by Jim Regan who had 18 points and six boards. The Wildcats had been 4-1 at home before the loss. NDC is now 4-2 in six road games this season.

Notre Dame out-rebounded Daemen, 43-35, which helped offset a minus-six (15-9) in the turnover department. The Falcons came into Tuesday's game as the AMC's second-best rebounding team, with a margin of plus-7.4 rebounds per game.

With the key road win, NDC bounces back from a loss to Point Park (Pa.) on Saturday (Jan. 16), a loss in which the Falcons allowed 91 points.

"This was a huge win for us,” said #Kevin Bille#. “Especially since we didn't play our best. We missed a lot of free throws at the end, turned it over some and basically just didn't finish the game like expected. But somehow, we found a way to get the win. I'm proud of our team."

Notre Dame will return to their home hardwood at Murphy Gymnasium for their next game. The Falcons will host the Raiders of Roberts Wesleyan College (N.Y.) on Thursday, Jan. 21, at 8 p.m.


NOTES FROM THE NEST …

DUMMERMUTH GOES FOURTH: Eric Dummermuth was named AMC Player of the Week for a fourth time this season, the league announced on Tuesday. Dummermuth was selected as the circuit's top performer for games Jan. 11-17. During that week, the 6-foot-6 power forward scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in each of two games for the Falcons. … The Dover, Ohio, native came into Tuesday leading the AMC in scoring, at 23.9 points per game. … Dummermuth's double-double on Tuesday marks his sixth straight, a career-best. He now has 12 double-doubles this season and 26 for his career. He heads into Thursday's home game needing just 18 points to reach 1,000 in his career.

50 CLUB: Tuesday's game in Buffalo marked the 50th career game for #Phil Biggs#, Eric Dummermuth and Nick McCartney. For Dummermuth and McCartney, the game marked their 50th consecutive starts. Neither has missed a game in their time on College Road.

SERIES UPDATE: NDC's win at Daemen Tuesday's was just their second in nine tries. The Falcons are now 5-12 all-time against Daemen, having won five of the last seven games in the series.