Big East Court Report: Nov. 29

Notre Dame put forth its best performance of the early season with a double-digit victory over defending national champion Kentucky. St. John's had little trouble with South Carolina, while Marquette was humbled in a 33-point defeat in Gainesville.

A swarm of Notre Dame students stormed the court after the Irish upset No. 8 Kentucky on Thursday night. (US Presswire)

Big East scoreboard for Nov. 29

Notre Dame 64, No. 8 Kentucky 50: The Irish will likely return back to the Top 25 next week after a dominating win over the defending national champions. The Wildcats might not have Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist any longer, but they still have a formidable frontline with several talented freshmen. Notre Dame (7-1) maintained an 18-11 rebounding advantage at the half in taking an 11-point lead to the locker room. The Irish extended the lead to 53-35 on a 3-pointer by Jerian Grant from the left wing. Eric Atkins led Notre Dame with 16 points, while Grant added 13.

St. John’s 89, South Carolina 65: It may be a challenge to score in halfcourt situations against the Red Storm, if Chris Obekpa and Felix Balamou patrolled the lane like they did in Thursday’s win. The two freshmen combined for six of St. John’s nine blocks and helped hold the Gamecocks to 36.9 percent shooting. Sophomore G D’Angelo Harrison led St. John’s (5-2) with 26 points, on 3 of 6 shooting from beyond the arc. Harrison has scored 20 points or more in six of seven games. If Harrison remains consistent with his outside shot, he may earn a spot on the All-Big East First Team at season’s end.

No. 7 Florida 82, Marquette 49: A lopsided defeat in a tough atmosphere in Gainesville could provide a valuable learning experience for Buzz Williams’ young team. Already leading 38-24 at halftime, the Gators opened the second half on a 9-0 run to put the game away. Florida easily dissected the Golden Eagles’ 2-3 zone in the early stages of the contest and drained six 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes. Marquette’s inexperienced frontline had no answer for Florida F Patric Young. Marquette (5-2) was led by G Vander Blue with 20 points.

Connecticut 61, New Hampshire 53: The Huskies escaped with their second straight victory against an opponent which shouldn’t have given it trouble. UConn started slowly by missing all nine of its 3-point attempts in the first half and only hit 1 of 14 for the game. G Shabazz Napier finished with only five points on 2 of 9 shooting. The Huskies received a boost from freshman Omar Calhoun, who finished with 16. UConn (6-1) was led by G Ryan Boatright with 19.

LSU 70, Seton Hall 67: The Tigers capped a late 11-1 run with a 3-pointer by Malik Morgan with 5:32 left . Morgan’s jumper gave LSU a 63-58 lead it never relinquished. Seton Hall leading scorer Fuquan Edwin attempted only five field goals and finished with just seven points in the defeat. The Pirates (5-2) were led by Brandon Mobley with 17. The loss in the nightcap dropped the conference to 2-2 in the opening night of the Big East/SEC Challenge. 

Star of the night: Notre Dame F Jack Cooley. With 13 points and 11 rebounds, Cooley recorded a double-double for the fifth time in six games. More importantly, he was part of a frontline that contained Kentucky’s trio of Nerlens Noel, Alex Poythress and Willie Cauley-Stein. The three highly-regarded freshmen big men combined for just 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Inside the box score -- 3 numbers worth a second look

4 of 14 – The Irish perimeter defenders did a solid job against Kentucky’s outside shooters, in holding the Wildcats to 28.5 percent shooting from 3-point range. For the season, Kentucky has hit more than 46 percent of its attempts from beyond the arc.

2.7 – The Red Storm shared the ball effectively, finishing with a 2.7:1 assist to turnover ratio in the 24-point victory. As a team, St. John’s dished out 19 assists on 33 made field goals. F Sir’Dominic Pointer led the Red Storm in assists with five.

3 – Marquette F Jamil Wilson and C Chris Otule combined for three points on 1-of-9 shooting. Williams will need improved play from his post players if the Golden Eagles hope to be in the upper-echelon of the conference standings come March.

Nov. 30 Games

Tennessee at Georgetown

No. 6 Syracuse at Arkansas

Georgia at South Florida

DePaul at Auburn

For more up-to-the-minute news and analysis on the Big East, follow bloggers Evan Hilbert and Matt Rybaltowski @CBSBigEast.