UConn and Syracuse had gone to overtime in their Big East tournament game (again). Five of the last nine games between Louisville and Notre Dame had been decided in overtime. Could the Irish and the Cardinals make the Big East two-for-two in semifinal games needing at least one extra period?
Big East Tournament: Louisville Rallies To Beat Notre Dame, 83-77, In Overtime
At the half, the answer appeared to be a resounding “no.” Notre Dame led by 14, 46-32, and Louisville had held just one lead, and that was a one-point edge five minutes into the game. But at halftime, Louisville began chipping away a little bit at a time. Eventually, they went on a 17-5 run to take a two-point lead. Notre Dame ended up tying the game to end regulation, but it already felt like the game -- and maybe a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament -- was slipping away.
And it was. Louisville never trailed in overtime and won 83-77, completing either an epic comeback or an epic collapse depending on your point of view.
Preston Knowles led the Cardinals with 20, one of four Louisville players to score double digits -- Terrence Jennings, Peyton Siva and Kyle Kuric being the others. Scott Martin had a game-high 21 for Notre Dame and four of his teammates scored 10 or more, including Tim Abromaitis, Ben Hansbrough, Tyrone Nash and Carleton Scott. But the Irish went ice-cold at the wrong time, scoring just more than half of their first-half total in the second.
Louisville goes to the Big East championship game tomorrow, where they’ll play UConn.
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