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The Irish stayed hot by knocking off the DePaul Blue Demons on Saturday to extend their win streak.
Notre Dame heads into Saturday's game against DePaul as perhaps the hottest team in the Big East -- they've won five games in a row. The winning streak, which includes three victories on the road and home wins over Syracuse and Marquette, has helped vault the Irish up the conference standings and into the NCAA tournament picture. The Blue Demons, on the other hand, are struggling in Oliver Purnell's second season, though they have already won more games this season than they did all of last year.
Related: Irish Win 5th in a Row: Survives in Morgantown 55-51
If the Irish can take care of the basketball -- which has been a strength of theirs all season -- against DePaul's pressure defense, they should have no trouble finding easy looks. DePaul's defense must force turnovers in order to be effective, as it's been dreadful in most other respects.
Date & Time: Saturday, Feb. 11, Noon ET
TV: Big East Network
Odds: Notre Dame is favored by 14 points
Series History: Notre Dame leads 57-44
For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of this matchup, check out Notre Dame blog One Foot Down as well as Big East Coast Bias. And for more news and notes from around college hoops, visit SB Nation's NCAA basketball news hub.
Notre Dame Vs. DePaul Final Score: Irish Pick Up Sixth Straight Win, 84-76
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish hosted the DePaul Blue Demons on Saturday afternoon in search of their sixth straight win. They were perhaps hoping for an easy victory, but the first half saw them battling the Demons neck-and-neck.
The two teams headed into halftime with the score knotted at 34-34. The Irish were able to pull away in the second half and pick up the eight-point victory, 84-76, to improve to 9-3 in the Big East and 17-8 overall. Jack Cooley and Jerian Grant provided a one-two punch for the Irish as they tied for the lead in scoring with 22 points each. Cooley also picked up a double-double with 14 rebounds.
On the DePaul side, Jeremiah Kelly was the top scorer with 17 points. The loss drops the Blue Devils to 2-10 in the Big East and 11-13 overall.
The Fighting Irish will play their next game on Wednesday, Feb. 15 as they will host the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and try to extend their win streak to lucky number seven.
For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of this matchup, check out Notre Dame blog One Foot Down as well as Big East Coast Bias. And for more news and notes from around college hoops, visit SB Nation's NCAA basketball news hub.
Feb 11 1:09p by SundownMotel