South Bend, IN – Jack Cooley had 27 points and 17 rebounds on 69 win over Providence in the regular season finale for both teams.
Alex Dragicevich added 12 points while Scott Martin had 11 for the Fighting Irish (21-10, 13-5 Big East). They halted a two-game slide and clinched a double-bye and the No. 3 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
Vincent Council and Gerard Coleman scored 17 points apiece for the Friars (15-16, 4-14), who saw their two-game win streak come to an end. They next play on Tuesday, in the Big East Tournament's first round.
LaDontae Henton chipped in 16 points and 11 rebounds in the setback.
Notre Dame led by as many as 25 in the second half and was up 68-53 with under three minutes to play when Coleman scored eight straight points to lead a 10-1 Providence run.
His layup with 55 seconds left made it 69-63, but the Irish made 6-of-8 free throws to seal their ninth straight win over the Friars.
Earlier, the Irish took a 31-28 lead into the break after a back-and-forth first half.
In the second, they took control, opening with an 11-3 burst to claim a decisive double-digit advantage.
Pat Connaughton, Cooley, Eric Atkins and Martin all scored during the balanced run before Jerian Grant capped it with a three-pointer to put Notre Dame on top, 42-31.
Henton responded with a pair of free throws for the Friars, but a 15-0 Irish surge ensued.
Atkins got it started with a three-point play and later added a layup before Tom Knight's dunk made it 57-33 near the midway point.
Game Notes
This was the only meeting of the season between the teams...Notre Dame leads the all-time series, 16-9...Prior to their two-game losing streak, the Irish had won a program-record nine straight Big East games...Notre Dame shot 47.3 percent, compared to 39.4 percent for Providence.
