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SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Michigan was hoping to catch fifth-ranked Notre Dame a bit tired after a tough overtime victory three days earlier.
It didn't happen.
The Wolverines struggled from the field, with leading scorer Katelynn Flaherty going 1-of-11 from the floor. Notre Dame's Lindsay Allen scored a career-high 17 points as the Irish cruised to a 70-50 victory on Saturday.
"I thought we gave a great battle," Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said. "We didn't get a lot of shots to fall. If we made a couple more shots maybe we would have been in the game a little bit tighter and took care of the ball a little bit more."
The Wolverines had trouble setting up defensively because they missed so many shots.
"I think we did a better job against them when our defense was set compared to in transition," Arico said. "They're a very good transition team. When we were able to set up our defense it was really helpful to us," she said.
Cyesha Goree, who led Michigan (6-3) with 17 points and 11 rebounds, said the Wolverines wanted to make a good effort against a highly ranked team after a tough 85-55 loss to Princeton on Tuesday.
"We're coming into an environment with a lot of fans and playing one of the top teams in the country. It's a great opportunity to play against them and see where we are," she said. "We didn't want to be embarrassed. We wanted to show we're a team that plays hard."
Jewell Loyd, who had a school-record 41 point against DePaul, added 14 points for Notre Dame, which shot 52 percent while Wolverines shot 35 percent.
"I felt we ran the offense better," Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw said. "I thought we did less relying on Jewell. We got a lot of other people involved. We got a lot of other people touches, especially on the inside."
But the Irish couldn't shake the Wolverines until they used a 13-4 run in the second half to open an 18-point lead. The Irish pulled away, extending the lead to 68-45 on a layup by Kathryn Westbeld, who finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.
SOCIAL STAND
Notre Dame women's basketball team took a social stand in pregame warmups, wearing "I Can't Breathe" shirts. The Irish players said they wore the shirts to support the family of Eric Garner, who died in July after a New York police officer placed him in a chokehold while trying to arrest him. Last week, a grand jury decided not to indict the officer, sparking nationwide protests.
Forward Taya Reimer said the team came up with the idea after Notre Dame students conducted a die-in protest on campus this week. The players got the OK from their coach and the university to wear the shirts.
"A few of us talked about it and we thought wearing these shirts for the game would be a cool way to show our support and give our condolences to families that have lost someone," she said.
Reimer said she the players decided to wear the black shirts with white lettering because "it's an issue we're all passionate about."
"It's not an anti-law enforcement, anti-anything message," she said. "It's just showing condolence for the family, just supporting them."
McGraw was pleased the players took a stand, saying her staff dressed in black to show their support.
"I was really proud of our team, especially Taya, to publicly stand for something you believe in," she said.
TIP-INS
Notre Dame beat the Wolverines for the fifth time in their last six meetings and improved to 11-7 all-time against Michigan. The Irish are 8-1 against Michigan at Purcell Pavilion.
Michigan lost consecutive non-conference games for the first time since coach Barnes Arico took over to start the 2012-13 season. The Wolverines fell to 0-28 all-time against teams ranked in the top five.
RECOVERING
Notre Dame forward Brianna Turner, the second-leading scorer for the Irish at 13.4 points a game, missed her third straight game with a dislocated right shoulder. McGraw said she hopes to have Turner back in time for the start of Atlantic Coast Conference play next month.
UP NEXT
Notre Dame: Hosts Saint Joseph's of Philadelphia, McGraw's alma mater, on Dec. 21.
Michigan: Plays Canisius at home on Friday.
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