SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Ben Hansbrough scored a career-best 28 points and keyed a second-half spurt that rallied No. 16 Notre Dame to an 80-75 victory over Marquette on Saturday night.
Hansbrough, who shot 10 of 15 from the field and 6 of 6 at the foul line, scored seven straight points during a critical juncture midway through the second half to help the Fighting Irish (16-4, 5-3 Big East) come back from a 12-point deficit.
Tyrone Nash added 13 points for Notre Dame, which improved to 13-0 at home. Eric Atkins scored 12 and Scott Martin 10. Carleton Scott had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Darius Johnson-Odom had 25 points to pace Marquette (13-7, 4-3). Jae Crowder added 15 and Jimmy Butler 12.
Trailing by 11, Notre Dame went on a 13-2 tear to tie it at 53 with 14:20 to go on two free throws by Hansbrough. The senior guard then put on a show, nailing an off-balance 3-pointer from the corner to beat the shot clock and slamming down a dramatic stuff to give Notre Dame a 62-57 lead with 8:49 remaining.
After a strong first half, Marquette went cold in the second, shooting only 9 of 30. Notre Dame shot 53.5 percent for the game and outrebounded the Golden Eagles 32-25.
The Irish went 28 of 36 from the free throw line, while Marquette was 15 for 17.
Marquette, which hit 12 3-pointers in its 22-point home win over Notre Dame on Jan. 10, started out quick from beyond the arc again, nailing three of its first four attempts. The Golden Eagles jumped out to an 11-4 lead before Notre Dame scored seven straight points to tie it.
A 12-footer by Crowder gave Marquette a 33-23 advantage with 6:05 left in the first half. Marquette pushed the lead to 12 before ending the half with a 45-36 lead. The Golden Eagles shot 61.5 percent, led by Johnson-Odom's 15 points.
Hansbrough, held to nine points in the previous meeting, led Notre Dame with 15 but also was whistled for three first-half fouls.
Marquette went 5 of 7 from 3-point range in the first half but 5 of 13 in the second.