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NCAA Tournament 2017, Notre Dame vs Princeton: Highlights, score and recap

ByWill Schreefer|
Mar 16, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward V.J. Beachem (3) drives to the basket against Princeton Tigers guard Myles Stephens (12) in the second half during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 16, 2017; Buffalo, NY, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward V.J. Beachem (3) drives to the basket against Princeton Tigers guard Myles Stephens (12) in the second half during the first round of the NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Recapping the NCAA Tournament battle between Notre Dame and Princeton

Notre Dame came into the tournament as a 5-seed, and riding a streak of consecutive Elite Eight appearances. Their pass-heavy, egalitarian style of offense led them to a 25-9 record and a solid 5-seed. A dangerous offensive team, Notre Dame has struggled at times defending.

Princeton came into the tournament after a win in the first-ever Ivy League tournament. The Tigers are a great 3-point shooting team, in both volume and efficiency, for a lower-seeded team. Combined with a solid defense that combines interior defense with the ability to generate steals, they profiled as a strong potential upset candidate.

RELATED: Updated 2017 NCAA Tournament Bracket

And they nearly pulled it off. Despite hitting under 30 percent of their 3s, Princeton was in a position to tie the game late, down 3. After missing a 3,  but getting a putback to go down just one, they had to resort to fouls. A missed free throw by Farrell opened the door for one last chance to win the game, but Devin Cannady missed a 3 just before the buzzer.

Bonzie Colson, though struggled a bit from the free throw line, nailed two late free throws to ice the victory. He also added 18 point and had 7 rebounds in a winning effort. Matt Farrell was also there to direct the attach, dishing four assists and nailing three of his five 3-point attempts.

Three Stars

The top two stars have to be the leaders of Notre Dame. Bonzie Colson and Matt Farrell were excellent today. They’ve been the best players on the team all year, and they certainly showed up when it mattered.

Colson managed 18 points on just 13 field goal attempts, going to the line a total of 10 times. Though he missed four of those attempts, he hit two when it mattered most, and was a reliable source of buckets throughout the game for a Notre Dame team that looked a bit disjointed at times.

Matt Farrell was also his consistently, excellent self. The engine of Notre Dame orchestrated and scored throughout, finishing with 16 points on 9 shots, and adding 4 rebounds and 4 assists.

Spencer Weisz was the best player on the floor for Princeton in a losing effort. He buried 3 of his 7 3s, and finished with 15 points. Weisz also added four rebounds and four assists. He’ll be able to hold his head high in defeat, though he’ll certainly be disappointed for his team.

Highlights

Next Game

Notre Dame moves on to face the winner of the West Virginia-Bucknell game. The Mountaineers will be heavily favored, as the 4-seed, to take down 13th-seeded Bucknell. The next round should be a great matchup of styles, with Notre Dame’s guard heavy approach taking on West Virginia’s deep and relentless press. We’ll be there to cover it no matter what – so stay tuned to FanSided for your continuing NCAA tournament coverage.

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