Notre Dame’s final game in the Players Era Festival had a little bit of everything as the Irish fell to No. 3 Houston 66-56. 

The Cougars jumped all over Notre Dame as the first 15 minutes of the game looked like two teams playing two different sports. Houston built a commanding 34-12 lead with 5:21 left in the first half, but then Micah Shrewsberry’s club dialed in. 

Notre Dame was able to cut the lead to 14 at the break and then fought its way 46-42 eight minutes into the second half. 

The Irish defense turned up the heat as Houston hit just 4-of-23 shots from the field in the second half, which included just one made shot over the final ten minutes and no field goals during the last 5:49 of the game. 

What Houston did do was hit 14 free throws and finished 18-of-21 from the foul line to escape a furious comeback by the Irish. 

Markus Burton led the Irish with 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Jalen Haralson added 14 points and two rebounds. No other Irish player finished in double figures. 

THE DIFFERENCE 
Notre Dame could have easily rolled over in the first half, but they kept fighting. In fact, they gave Houston a little bit of its own medicine by playing scrappy defense and forcing the Cougars to earn everything on the defensive end. 

Both teams shot 34 percent from the field, but Houston did the little things that Final Four teams do. The Cougars turned the ball over only five times and outrebounded the Irish 44-34. Houston also had 16 offensive rebounds, which led to 24 second-chance points. 

The Cougars also forced Notre Dame to work extremely hard to get the ball inside the perimeter. Both teams scored 20 points in the paint, but Notre Dame couldn’t find a way to rim on a consistent basis, which is the strength of Burton and Haralson. 

Houston also simply had grown men playing basketball. The physicality took a toll on the Irish early, but Shrewsberry’s group rose to the challenge in the second half. Notre Dame isn’t built for 40 minutes of physical basketball, but it was a good measuring stick for the young players, showing what it takes to compete at a national level. 

THE GOOD 
I wouldn’t necessarily say Notre Dame belonged on the floor with Houston, but they held their own for 20+ minutes. Burton turned into a creator and that’s what Notre Dame needs from him more than 20 shots a night. The five assists are what he needs to do on a consistent basis, compared to hunting his shot all the time. 

Houston likely relaxed a little bit after building a 22-point lead, but the Irish defense deserves some credit. After hitting seven threes in the first 20 minutes, Houston went 1-for-11 from deep in the second half. 

Holding a major conference program to four field goals in a half is a statement and that’s what Notre Dame did to one of the best programs in the country. 

There aren’t moral victories, but Notre Dame should come out of this game with a little confidence, knowing they can play with Houston. What will they do with it? That’s up to them. The Irish will have the opportunity to prove they learned valuable lessons from Vegas as Missouri and TCU are the next two opponents. 

A year ago, Notre Dame lost to No. 6 Houston in Vegas 65-54 without Burton. The Irish lost to Creight 80-76 the next day before getting waxed 69-48 at Georgia the following game. 

HELP 
Despite showing pride and fighting, Notre Dame also looked a lot like past teams. If you replaced Tae Davis with Haralson, the box score would look very similar to the last two years. 

Two players in double figures and three players combining to go 0-for-9 from the field. At some point, someone has to step up and be a third scoring option. 

Braeden Shrewsberry can’t go 0-for-4 from the field if Notre Dame wants to pull an upset. Sir Mohammed has to play more than five minutes.

Cole Certa did show up with eight points, including two treys. Freshman Ryders Frost probably shot a little too much as he went 2-for-8 from the field, including 1-for-7 from three. You love the willingness to shoot as that’s been missing from the bench. 

Notre Dame’s season will likely come down to what it can get from its front court. On Wednesday, it wasn’t good. Carson Towt didn’t attempt a shot from the field as he finished with two points and four rebounds. Kebb Njie had two points and one rebound. Sophomore Garrett Sundra went 0-for-4 from the field and pulled down one rebound. 

That’s not going to cut it. Yes, anything Towt and Njie provide in terms of scoring is a net positive, but they need to be active on the boards. One shot between the two of them shows the lack of offensive rebounding. 

UP NEXT
Notre Dame will return to action on December 2 as it hosts Missouri for a 9:00 PM ET tip on ESPNU. 

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