Box Score
SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- The Notre Dame Falcons went toe-to-toe with the top team in the Mountain East Conference at home on Saturday afternoon, but came up three points short, in a 106-103 overtime loss to No. 3 West Liberty. 

For Notre Dame (3-1, 0-1 MEC) the loss snapped a four game winning streak at home, while the victory for the Hilltoppers (4-0, 1-0 MEC) was their sixth in a row away from home giving them 11 in their last 12 on the road. 

The Falcons came out red hot to start the game, developing a double digit lead just six and a half  minutes into the contest, and remained ahead, until West Liberty caught fire in the second half, regaining the lead eight minutes into the second half, and it became a back-and-forth battle after that. 

Sensational shooting paced the Falcons in the early stages of the contest, as they developed an 18-11 advantage at the 14:16-mark in the first half, on the strength of an incredible 63.6-percent (7-for-11) shooting performance from the floor, and buried all three of their 3-point attempts during that stretch. 

Over the next five minutes, the incredible shooting continued, as Notre Dame hit on 6-of-9 (66.6-percent) shots from the floor during that stretch, which included four more 3-pointers, and they found themselves ahead, 34-20, with 9:26 left in the half, and their lead grew as large as 17 (37-20) moments later on a 3-pointer from Najeeb Johnson. 

West Liberty did not shoot particularly well, hitting on just 38.6-percent (17-for-44) of their shots in the first half, but they were able to battle through that, and eventually narrowed the deficit down to six (54-48) by halftime. 

Notre Dame shot the lights out in the first half, hitting on 52.6-percent (20-for-38) of their shots from the floor, and had no problems connecting from long distance, as they buried 66.7-percent (10-for-15) of their shots from beyond the arc in the opening half. Three Falcons, Kyauta Taylor, Will Vorhees and Tyree Gaiter all scored in double figures in the first half, while Ja'Sean Lewis pulled down 10 rebounds in the first half as well. 

The Hilltoppers clawed their way back into the contest in the second half. They didn't shoot particularly well in the second stanza, shooting just 40-percent (14-for-35), but they were able to take advantage of some NDC mistakes. Notre Dame had a difficult night at the free throw line, which factored into the decision. 

West Liberty trimmed the deficit down to one (60-59) less than three minutes into the half, before they eventually battled back to take the lead, 71-70 after Devin Hoehn buried a pair of free throws with 12:49 remaining in regulation. 

Momentum would belong to West Liberty over the next eight minutes, as they saw their lead grow as large as nine (91-82) with four minutes left, before the Falcons caught fire once again. 

Notre Dame went on an 11-0 run over the next three and a half minutes, a run which began with a 3-pointer from Marco Colombo, and finished on a jumper from Vorhees to give NDC a 93-91 lead with 33 seconds left. 

West Liberty's Dave Dennis hit a pair of free throws with nine seconds left to tie the game, 93-93, and NDC had a chance to win it in regulation, but Taylor's 3-pointer at the buzzer hit the front of the rim, forcing overtime. 

Overtime proved to be just as exciting as regulation. While the Hilltoppers hit their first three shots of the overtime period, they couldn't extend their lead past four, after Notre Dame received a pair of trifectas from Gaiter and Colombo. 

With two minutes left, Johnson hit a layup to give NDC a 103-102 lead, but unfortunately for the Falcons, that would be their final bucket of the night. 

Mike Lamberti hit a layup with 29 seconds left to give West Liberty a 105-103 lead, before Seger Bonifant split a pair of free throws to make it 106-103 with five seconds left. 

Gaiter was intentionally fouled with two seconds to go. He missed his first free throw, then intentionally missed the second one, before grabbing his own miss, but his last second three point attempt was blocked at the buzzer as the Hilltoppers hung on. 

Three Falcons had double-doubles, and five Falcons scored in double figures. Taylor led the Falcons with 22 points and added 12 rebounds, while Lewis had a dozen points to go along with 17 rebounds, and was a beast inside, with seven blocks. Gaiter had another strong day offensively, with 18 points and added 13 assists. 

Colombo had 21 points on the afternoon, while Vorhees added 18, as the Falcons shot 51.4-percent (38-for-74) from the floor, and hit on 53.3-percent (16-for-30) from beyond the arc. 

The Falcons are in action again on Monday, Nov. 23, when they hit the road for another MEC tilt against Wheeling Jesuit. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.