By Mike Warren
Notre Dame continued their winning ways on Thursday night at Robbinsville with a 50-46 victory, marking their seventh straight win on the year, and their fourth consecutive win against Robbinsville dating back to 2022.
In what was primarily a back-and-forth affair between the two rivals, The Irish were able to use their experience in close games against the Ravens to pull away late. It was just over a year since the two had met, and since the Irish had held on for a 52-50 win behind Will Foley’s 22 points. Foley would lead Notre Dame in scoring again this time around, but to a different tune of 15 for the night.
Robbinsville was led offensively by junior big-man Tyler Bunnell who finished with 24 points on the night. Bunnell was a monster in the paint and almost singlehandedly kept the Ravens ahead of Notre Dame to start the second half. Providing a spark in the frontcourt alongside Bunnell was fellow junior forward Liam Butler
Ultimately it was Notre Dame’s defense and senior leadership that would help them extend their win streak to seven games. Senior big Josh Gatete finished second in scoring for the Irish with 12 points, six of which came consecutively in the fourth quarter to give them back the lead. Down the stretch senior Charlie Schurr came up with a game clinching steal and two big free-throws to finish with 10 points and push their lead to four.
With the win Notre Dame now improves to 12-6 on the year ahead of a matchup with Hunterdon Central on Friday night. For Robbinsville they fall to 9-10 and play host to Lawrence during the Capital City Cancer Classic at 3:00 on WBCB.
