ELKINS, W.Va. – Notre Dame College did not take the easy route to an 87-77 overtime win over Davis & Elkins College, on Tuesday. The Falcons, who grabbed their first Mountain East Conference and first road win of the season, outscored D&E, 29-11, between the final five minutes of regulation and the end of overtime.
Notre Dame came out with energy, putting up the first five points on the scoreboard. At the 15:18-mark, sophomore
Levi Frankland knocked down a three pointer to put Notre Dame ahead by a score of 10-6. In the first five minutes of the game, the Falcons were shooting 57-percent.
That's when Davis & Elkins scored the next seven points and went ahead, 13-10, with 14 minutes to go. Freshman
Jordan Burton entered the game for the Falcons and immediately had an impact. He connected on a shot, grabbed a rebound and then made a jumper on the ensuing fast break. That put NDC up, 14-13, with 12:36 remaining before halftime. Burton would finish the first half with 11 points and three steals.
"I thought
Jordan Burton was a spark off the bench, I thought he brought energy when he came in to the game," said head coach
Mark Richmond. "He was able to get in the paint and score which opened some things up for us on the outside."
That offensive burst by Burton would be the last time the Falcons led until overtime. The Senators pushed their lead as high as 13 points, 50-37, after Donte Doleman finished a layup with 14 minutes remaining in regulation.
But, Notre Dame slowly crept their way back into the game. A steal by Frankland led to a basket by senior
Larenz Thurman. Senior
Drew Scarberry followed that up by going on a personal 7-0 run, converting on two layups and a three pointer in less than a minute. The Falcons' 9-2 run closed the gap to six points, 52-46, and caused D&E to take a timeout with nearly 11 minutes to go.
The Davis & Elkins lead would be reduced to four points, three times, but the Senators would respond on offense and add to their lead, each time. At a media timeout with five minutes left in regulation, D&E led by eight points, 66-58.
Then a switch flipped and the Falcons were on the comeback trail. Notre Dame started to dig deep and outscored Davis & Elkins with the help of fundamentals: playing defense and making free throws. In the final five minutes of the second half, NDC was 7-for-8 at the free throw stripe.
"Our defense was really good down the stretch," Richmond mentioned. "I thought we played together as a unit defensively down the stretch, which was the difference."
A few important moments occurred for the NDC team late in the second half, which seemed to drastically change momentum. With just under three minutes to go, the Falcons had three chances at a bucket on one possession, because of two offensive rebounds. Although they did not score on that possession, the energy seemed to motivate the team on both ends, as they would go on a 6-0 run in the final three minutes, to tie the game.
The other big moment occurred with 38-seconds left and senior
Deanthony Owens at the free throw line. He made both shots to tie the game at 69 and then, he blocked a potential game-winning layup by Doleman on the other end.
Notre Dame outscored D&E 40-33 in the second half and then 18-8 in the overtime period. The Falcons jumped on a stunned Senators group and scored the first six points in overtime, finishing with an 87-77 victory.
The Falcons still have two games left in December, before the holiday break, and NDC is looking to make this game the beginning of a successful run.
"We're definitely looking to gain some momentum going into the break. I think now that we finally earned a win, it will be positive for us," Richmond said. "If we continue to guard, it will give us a chance in every game, even if we don't make shots like we did in the first half tonight."
Scarberry led the Falcons with a season-high 21 points on 58-percent shooting. Frankland, who played 42 minutes, added 17 points on 60-percent shooting. The backcourt of Thurman and senior
Bruce Hodges III combined for 15 boards and seven assists. Burton finished with 17 points off the bench and four steals and shot 43-percent. Notre Dame shot 50-percent (14-for-28) in the second half and OT. For the game, they had a shooting percentage of 45-percent. The Falcons also out-rebounded Davis & Elkins, 42-39.
Myles Monroe led the Senators with 29 points and seven rebounds.
Notre Dame will take on West Virginia Wesleyan College, at home, on December 14. The game is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.
