Notre Dame romps over Stonehill to open 2024-25 campaign
Marcus Burton and Braeden Shrewsberry scored 18 points apiece as host Notre Dame began pulling away late in the first half and rolled to an 89-60 victory over Stonehill Wednesday night in South Bend, Ind.
After leading ACC freshman in scoring at 17.5 points last season, Burton started slowly and finished 6-of-17 from the field. He hit two 3-pointers, made four three throws and handed out five assists in 32 minutes.
Shrewsberry began his second season playing for his father Micah by shooting 6-of-9 shots and hitting four 3s after shooting 37.1 percent from behind the arc in his freshman season.
Matt Allocco contributed 10 in his Notre Dame debut after transferring from Princeton as the Fighting Irish shot 50.8 percent and sank 11 of 23 3-pointers. Kebba Njie chipped in nine and 10 rebounds to help Notre Dame control the glass by a commanding 50-23 margin, resulting in 32 points in the paint and 12 second-chance points.
Todd Brogna scored 16 to lead Stonehill. Ethan Meuser and Louie Semona added 11 apiece as the Skyhawks shot 30.4 and made 6 of 25 shots inside the 3-point line
Notre Dame scored seven straight points and held a 17-10 lead on a jumper by Burton with 12:26 left in the first half. After Stonehill cut the deficit to 19-16 on a free throw by Brogna, the Fighting Irish scored 10 straight and took a 29-16 lead on Shrewsbury's 3 with 8:17 left.
Stonehill trailed 33-25 following a 3-pointer by Hermann Koffi with 5:08 left and Notre Dame ended the half with a 13-4 spurt for a 46-29 lead by halftime.
Burton's jumper hiked the lead to 63-40 with about 14 minutes left. He hit a triple for a 77-49 lead with 6:59 remaining before exiting the contest a few minutes later.
