Notre Dame men’s basketball: Nash’s double-double propels Irish past DePaul

SOUTH BEND - Listening to his mix of rap music Saturday during the ride to Purcell Pavilion, Notre Dame junior power forward Tyrone Nash offered a little pep talk to, well, Tyrone Nash. No factor in the previous two Irish losses, Nash wanted this day against DePaul to be different. With his father in the stands and his coaches and teammates expecting more, Nash delivered. Nash registered his first career double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. He was one of four Irish to score double figures on a day Notre Dame never trailed before an 87-77 victory. “I guess I was on a little something,” Nash said of his effort. “My dad was here, so I had to put a little show on for him.” Nash had combined for one point, two rebounds and nine fouls the previous two games. He started early Saturday with the first two baskets and snuggled into such a comfort zone that he later broke the DePaul press and finished with a lay-up. “Today I tried to concentrate on having fun and just helping out every way I can,” Nash said. “Once I get it going early, it’s really positive.” Nash had plenty of company in the impressive numbers department. Tim Abromaitis scored 30 points, his career-high for a Big East game. He connected on a career-best eight 3-pointers. He also was named winner of the Wendell Smith award, which recognizes the most valuable player in the game between the one-time independent rivals. “I don’t really count (points) or anything like that,” Abromaitis said. “I guess I’m kind of a quiet scorer out there. That may be better for me if no one pays attention to it.” Luke Harangody added to his school-record run of double-doubles. His 24 points and 11 rebounds was No. 61 of his career. Ben Hansbrough continued to flirt with a triple-double. He had 15 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Like Nash, Hansbrough shook off a sluggish week to start fresh with a solid effort. “I was more aggressive, more focused,” he said. “I guess I was in a lull the past couple games and said, ‘Enough is enough.’” Notre Dame improves to 15-5 overall, 4-3 in the Big East. DePaul, which snapped a 24-game league slide with a last-second win Wednesday over Marquette, falls to 8-11, 1-6. Will Walker led the Blue Demons with a career-high 35 points, five shy of the all-time arena record. Walker hit from here, from there and from everywhere. He connected on 15-of-30 shots. The rest of the Blue Demons were 16-for-38. “I really wasn’t paying attention to what I had; I just tried to keep being aggressive out there,” Walker said. “I felt like I could get in there whenever I wanted to so I had to keep doing it.” A quick start helped the Irish put this one away early. Notre Dame scored the first seven points, opened a double-digit lead by the first media timeout and led by as many as 15 in the second half. “It’s great for us to come out of the gate like that,” Harangody said. Being efficient with the ball has been an Irish staple for much of the season, but there are times when Notre Dame’s play surprises even the head coach. Saturday, the Irish kept finding the guys in the right jersey while keeping the ball from the guys in the wrong ones. Notre Dame had 22 assists and a season-low two turnovers. The Irish played the entire first half without a miscue and didn’t turn it over until Hansbrough fumbled one away in traffic with 10:33 left. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen 22 assists, two turnovers in a stat sheet in all my years,” coach Mike Brey said. “That is staggering, really.” Hansbrough and backcourt mate Tory Jackson tag-teamed for 71 minutes, 20 points, 14 assists and one turnover. “I don’t think you’re going to see that from a lot of teams,” Harangody said. “That’s what you’re going to get from Notre Dame basketball - just very efficient.” More aggressive on the offensive end, the Irish looked to stir up the defense with drives into the lane. They were 28-of-37 from the foul line. DePaul scored 50 points and shot 54.3 percent in the second half, but settled mainly for perimeter shots and was 5-of-8 from the foul line. DePaul committed 25 fouls. Notre Dame committed 11. “Historically, we haven’t fouled much,” Brey said. “That’s kind of how we play. We played like an older group.” DEPAUL (8-11): Devin Hill 6-11 2-4 15, Krys Faber 1-5 2-2 4, Jeremiah Kelly 0-6 0-0 0, Eric Wallace 3-6 0-1 6, Will Walker 15-30 1-1 35, Mike Stovall 5-9 0-0 14, Nate Rogers 1-1 0-0 3, Tony Freeland 0-0 0-0 0, Jimmy Drew 0-0 0-0 0, Kene Obi 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 31-68 5-8 77. NOTRE DAME (15-5): Ty Nash 4-6 5-7 13, Tim Abromaitis 9-16 7-8 30, Luke Harangody 8-20 8-11 24, Tory Jackson 1-4 3-4 5, Ben Hansbrough 4-9 5-7 15, Jonathan Peoples 0-2 0-0 0, Joey Brooks 0-0 0-0 0, Carleton Scott 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 26-59 28-37 87. Halftime - Notre Dame 37-27. 3-Point Goals - DePaul 10-26 (Stovall 4-4, Walker 4-13, Rogers 1-1, Hill 1-3, Wallace 0-1, Kelly 0-4), Notre Dame 7-18 (Abromaitis 5-9, Hansbrough 2-4, Scott 0-1, Jackson 0-1, Peoples 0-1, Harangody 0-2). Fouled Out - Hill. Rebounds - DePaul 35 (Hill 8), Notre Dame 42 (Harangody 11). Assists - DePaul 14 (Kelly, Stovall, Walker 4), Notre Dame 22 (Hansbrough, Jackson 7). Total Fouls - DePaul 25, Notre Dame 11. A - 9,149. e 11. A - 9