Franklin’s late 3 sends Hoosiers past Notre Dame 62-60

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Armaan Franklin made a 3-pointer with 15.7 seconds left Saturday, giving the Hoosiers a come-from-behind 62-60 victory over Notre Dame in the Crossroads Classic.

Franklin finished with 17 points to lead the Hoosiers (11-1, 1-1 Big Ten) to their fourth consecutive win over the Fighting Irish.

It’s the second straight year a freshman hit a game-winning 3 for the Hoosiers in the annual pitting Indiana’s top four basketball schools against one another.

Notre Dame (8-4, 0-2 ACC) had two chances to take the lead but John Mooney couldn’t make a short jumper in the paint. And after Indiana forward Justin Smith missed a free throw, Rex Pflueger’s half-court heave was an air ball.

Mooney finished with 15 points and Dane Goodwin scored all 15 of his points in the final 15 minutes as the Fighting Irish charged back from a 16-point deficit to take a 59-54 lead with 3:42 to go.

But Notre Dame missed all of its shots over the final 4:20.

Trayce Jackson-Davis tied the score on a layup with 1:00 left. The Irish retook the lead when Prentiss Hubb made the second of two free throws with 35.9 seconds to go.

But Franklin answerd with the 3 to win it.

BIG PICTURE

Notre Dame: The Irish certainly showed some fight on a day they weren’t themsleves. After making 35 3s in their previous two games, Notre Dame shot 37.5% from the field and went 6 of 27 from beyond the arc. And yet they still found a way to dig themselves out a huge hole. But this loss will sting.

Indiana: The victory certainly helps the Hoosiers’ postseason resume. They now have neutral court wins over Connecticut and Notre Dame along with home wins over Florida State and perennial tourney caliber South Dakota State. And they still could add another big nonconference win, against Arkansas, before returning to league play. Aside from the blowout loss at Wisconsin, the first half of the season couldn’t have gone any better for Indiana.

STAT SHEET

Notre Dame: Has lost four of its last five in the Classic and four straight to the Hoosiers in this event. … After forcing six Hoosiers turnovers in the first 11 minutes, Notre Dame added only seven more the rest of the game. … Nate Laszewski had 10 points and 10 rebounds. … Mooney, the nation’s leading rebounder, grabbed 10 on Saturday. … Juwan Durham scored 11 points.

Indiana: Jackson-Davis had 14 points and seven rebounds. … Joey Brunk had exceeded his season high in rebounds — in the first half — and finished with nine points and a career high 14 rebounds. … Devonte Green had 11 points. … The Hoosiers outscored Notre Dame 34-24 in the paint.

UP NEXT

Notre Dame returns home to take on Alabama A&M on Dec. 29.

Indiana takes an eight-day break before hosting Arkansas on Dec. 29.