SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Mark Mitchell scored 19 of his career-high 23 points in the second half, and No. 14 Duke pulled away from Notre Dame for a 67-59 victory on Saturday.
The 6-foot-9 Mitchell also grabbed 14 rebounds, continuing his midseason surge. The sophomore forward scored 21 points in an 86-66 win against Syracuse on Tuesday night.
Duke (11-3, 2-1 ACC) earned its sixth consecutive victory. Jeremy Roach went 9 for 9 at the free-throw line and scored 18 points for the Blue Devils. Jared McCain finished with 11 points.
Freshman guard Markus Burton led Notre Dame with 18 points. Braeden Shrewsberry made four 3-pointers and finished with 12 points.
The Fighting Irish (6-9, 1-3) led 24-15 with 7:06 left in the first half. But the Blue Devils responded with a 14-3 run for a 29-27 lead at the break.
“I thought we showed amazing toughness, the way we closed the end of the first half,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “That’s huge if you can end a half that way, when you don’t play your best.”
Mitchell then took over, scoring Duke’s first 14 points in the second half. Notre Dame closed to 57-55 on Tae Davis’ layup with about three minutes left, but Kyle Filipowski responded with a layup for Duke and Mitchell scored on a putback.
Duke’s Mark Mitchell shoots next to Notre Dame’s Matt Zona (25) as Duke’s Ryan Young (15) watches during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024, in South Bend, Ind. Credit: AP/Michael Caterina
Mitchell was 8 for 12 from the field and 2 for 2 from 3-point range. He was 1 for 22 from beyond the arc coming into the game.
“The job Mark Mitchell did … let me just tell you how proud I am of him,” Scheyer said. “He’s been working his butt off, consistently. He’s been really decisive and playing more confidently.”
Mitchell was averaging 12 points and shooting 48.5% from the field coming into the day. In his last two games, he is averaging 22 points and shooting 68.2% (15 of 22).
“I think it’s…
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