Notre Dame Outlasts Men's Hoops In Exhibition Opener, 70-54

Nov. 1, 2009

Men's Basketball: Notre Dame 70, Lewis 54 in PDF Format

South Bend, Ind. - The Lewis University men's basketball team put forth a valiant effort in their exhibition opener against Notre Dame and Big East Preseason Player of the Year, Luke Harangody, but the Fighting Irish proved to be too much in the end, as they upended the Flyers, 70-54, at the Purcell Pavilion on Sunday night.

"I'm proud of the way our kids competed tonight," Lewis head men's basketball coach Scott Trost said. "This was a great experience for us and we're appreciative that Coach (Mike) Brey gave us the opportunity."

Lewis sophomore point guard Chris McClellan (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Wheeling) led the Flyers with 18 points, including four three-pointers on the evening. Sophomore center Marty Strus (Hickory Hills, Ill./Stagg) posted a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Strus and McClellan keyed a 28-12 run by the Flyers that spanned over both halves with a combined 17 points to take a 44-42 lead with 14 minutes left in the game.

Harangody, however, put the game in control of his hands, as the Irish forward scored 18 of his 33 points in the final 12:42 of the contest to help secure the victory for Notre Dame.

"Sometimes you're in the right position but (Harangody) is so big, so good and so strong that he'll still make the play," Trost said.

Notre Dame's Ben Hansbrough chipped in 12 points and seven rebounds for the Irish.

Lewis returns to action next Sunday, as they travel to Peoria, Illinois to square off with Bradley for a 2:05 p.m. tip-off.

A Catholic university sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The 10th largest private, not-for-profit university in Illinois is being honored for the sixth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu.

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