Konieczny, Booth score 17 each, lead Notre Dame to 76-54 victory over Virginia

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J.R Konieczny hits desperation 3 to beat shot clock for Notre Dame

J.R Konieczny hits desperation 3 to beat shot clock for Notre Dame vs. Virginia.

Dec 30, 2023, 07:37 pm

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- — J.R. Konieczny and Carey Booth scored 17 points each and Notre Dame picked up a rare win over Virginia, defeating the Cavaliers 76-54 on Saturday.

Markus Burton added 15 points and eight assists for the Fighting Irish (6-7, 1-1 ACC) and Kebba Njie scored 10 points. Booth had nine rebounds and Konieczny grabbed eight.

Notre Dame led 41-24 at halftime and held off a brief run by Virginia to win going away.

Virginia scored the first seven points of the second half to get within 41-31 before Notre Dame regrouped. The teams played mostly even for several minutes, then a 15-2 run sparked by Burton and Booth gave Notre Dame a 63-40 lead with 8 1/2 minutes remaining. Booth hit two 3-pointers and scored eight points in the run and Burton added five points. Notre Dame led by at least 20 points for the remainder of the game.

Reece Beekman led Virginia (10-3, 1-1) with 15 points and Ryan Dunn scored 13.

The Cavs shot 38% and attempted only 11 3-pointers, despite trailing by double digits for most of the game. They made two. Notre Dame hit on 11 of 23 3-pointers and shot 51% overall.

First-year Notre Dame coach Micah Shrewsberry beat the Cavaliers in his first try. Virginia came into the game leading the all-time series 17-3 and Cavs coach Tony Bennett was 13-2 against Notre Dame in his career.

Konieczny opened the game with back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers and Burton added one of his own for a 13-0 lead. The Cavaliers missed their first seven shots before a dunk by Dunn got them on the board with 15:02 remaining in the half. Notre Dame held a double-digit lead over the final 7:15 of the half and the margin reached 19 points on two occasions.

Virginia has a home game against Louisville on Wednesday and Notre Dame hosts North Carolina State, also on Wednesday.

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