Box Score SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The Notre Dame Falcons put together a strong second half comeback, but it was not enough as they fell to the No. 4 West Liberty Hilltoppers, 93-76, at home, on Saturday evening.
The Falcons (13-5, 7-5 MEC) have now lost three of their last five games, but have still won seven of their previous 10 games. The Hilltoppers (17-1, 11-1 MEC) have won 10 consecutive games, with their last loss coming back on Dec. 4 against Fairmont State.
The beginning of the game did not go like Notre Dame had planned as a three by West Liberty's Devin Hoehn, with 16:43 remaining in the first half, put the Hilltoppers up by 10 points, 15-5.
At the 12:40-mark, a layup by Dan Monteroso gave West Liberty a 29-9 lead over the Falcons.
NDC was unable to make a significant run for the rest of the first half. The Falcons did close the deficit to 15 points, 34-19, when
Oliver Megins hit a layup. Those points were a part of the 10-5 run that the Falcons had put together.
The Hilltoppers took the largest lead of the first half at the 2:29-mark. Clay Guillozet converted on a layup to give West Liberty a 47-23 lead.
At the half, Notre Dame trailed, 52-29. West Liberty shot 53-percent from the field and 41-percent behind the three-point line.
In the second half, the Hilltoppers continued to pour the ball in the hoop, pushing the lead to 27 points, three different times.
However, the Falcons fought their way back into the game. On four consecutive offensive possessions,
Drew Scarberry nailed a three-pointer for Notre Dame, cutting the deficit from 27 points, at the 11:59-mark, to 15 points, with 9:35 remaining in the contest.
A layup by
Kyauta Taylor with 1:33 to go in the second half, cut the deficit to 12 points, but that's as close as NDC would be able to get in the final minute and a half.
The Falcons shot 29-for-70 (41-percent) from the field for the game. In the second half, Notre Dame shot the three point ball extremely well, going 8-for-16 (50-percent) from long distance.
Will Vorhees had 19 points and Scarberry poured in 15 points, as he went 5-10 from long distance.
Jay Banyasz reached a double-double, scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Taylor and Megins, each, added 10 points.
West Liberty held a 50-percent field goal percentage throughout the game. They also shot, 41-percent from the three point arc. Six players scored in double-digits, including David Dennis, who scored 17 points, and shot 4-for-5 from behind the three-point line.
The Falcons will travel to Buckhannon, West Virginia to battle West Virginia Wesleyan on Thursday, Jan. 26. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
