SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – Notre Dame College saw three consecutive home games on the schedule and did not waste that opportunity, as they swept the homestand. On Wednesday, the Falcons scored 53 first half points and shot 56-percent, which set the tone in their 90-73 victory over Concord University.

After falling to Concord earlier this season, Notre Dame did not give the Mountain Lions a chance to grab an early lead in the rematch. Senior Drew Scarberry knocked down two 3-pointers and sophomore Levi Frankland connected on a triple, as well, in the first three minutes of the game, giving the Falcons a 9-4 lead.

By the time Scarberry hit all three free throws that he took, with 14:32 on the clock, NDC led by ten points, 18-8.

"We came out with a lot of energy," Head Coach Mark Richmond said. "I thought we shared the ball early and we got stops, which was key. We were able to get out and run and get some easy baskets and get some stuff in transition, so I definitely was happy with how we came out and how prepared we were."

"It comes down to execution," Scarberry said. "And we've done a much better job here in the second half of the season of actually executing our offense and running it until we get what we want."

Those free throws were the beginning of a 15-1 run. One minute later, senior Deanthony Owens was also fouled behind the three-point line and was successful on all three free throws. Senior Daniel Lott got into the action with a layup, Scarberry hit two free throws and a three and then Frankland made a layup following a Scarberry steal on defense. The lead ballooned to 21 points, 30-9, with 10:54 to go in the first half.

With 6:40 remaining, senior Bruce Hodges III passed the ball to Lott, who hit a three pointer. That put Notre Dame ahead by 25 points, 40-15, which was their largest lead of the game. The Falcons totaled 12 assists in the first half and 19 assists for the game, which is the third highest amount this season. The NDC film sessions have really helped the team improve their passing, according to Scarberry.

"In practice you can't really see the full floor at the same time, whereas if you're watching film, you're seeing where people cut, where people move to and that kind of stuff," he said. "Coach has done a really good job of getting us film sessions and really nit-picking certain plays, certain scenarios. And we're really becoming accustomed to playing with each other."

Concord would go on an 18-13 run to end the half, but the Falcons still led 53-33 at the break. Scarberry totaled 18 points, on 5-of-7 shooting from the field and 3-of-5 shooting from three-point range, in the first half. Frankland also made five shots and had 13 points.

For Concord, Trey Brisco had 14 points on 3-of-5 shooting from the field and was 7-of-8 from the free throw line in the first 20 minutes. He followed that with a 17-point second half and shot 5-of-9, finishing with 31 of Concord's 73 points.

Notre Dame expanded their second half lead to 23 points after Owens sunk three free throws on two separate trips to the line, in a span of 12 seconds. Owens scattered his points throughout the second half and finished with 20 in the second stanza. At the end of the game, he had totaled 25 points and eight rebounds and shot the ball at 67-percent.

The Mountain Lions decreased the deficit to 16 points, multiple times throughout the second half, but the Falcons had the game comfortably in hand until the buzzer rang.

"I think we're really playing the right way now, especially offensively," Richmond mentioned. "We didn't have a guy who missed more than four or five shots. I think our offensive efficiency and spreading the wealth has helped us in this three-game stretch. If we continue to do that and build our defense, we'll continue to improve and give ourselves a chance every night."

Notre Dame shot 56-percent in the first half, 59-percent in the second half and finished the game shooting 57-percent, which marks the fifth time in their last six games that the team has shot over 50-percent. The Falcons also shot 85-percent from the free throw line, which was the second highest percentage this season. Scarberry finished with 20 points, on 63-percent shooting, and six rebounds. Frankland added 24 points, on 64-percent shooting. Freshman Jordan Burton gave NDC seven assists.

With this current three-game winning streak, Notre Dame is showing their improvement since the beginning of the season.

"We've focused on game to game, just get to the next game," Richmond explained. "Have a growth mindset, improve each and every day. I think our guys have bought into taking care of their bodies so we can play large number of minutes. I'm proud of them for that, they've grown up. A lot of it has been mental, but I think we really are playing a lot harder than we were at the beginning of the year."

"It shows the amount of growth that we've made this season," Scarberry said. "Down there [in Concord], we lost by three and didn't play that well. Now, we're a completely different team, I feel. I think we executed really well tonight."

Other than Brisco, Malik Johnson was the only Concord player to score in double digits, with his 11 points. The Mountain Lions were held to 38-percent shooting and were out-rebounded 38-27.  The Falcons have out-rebounded eight of the last 11 teams that they have played.

As the calendar flips to February, Notre Dame heads to Glenville, W.Va. to battle Glenville State College on February 1. The game is scheduled to tip-off at 4 p.m.