Houston First Half Dominance Too Much For Notre Dame to Overcome

Notre Dame entered Day Three of the Players Era Festival looking for redemption after last year’s matchup, but Houston wasn’t interested in letting that storyline play out.

The Cougars, a team that came within reach of a National Championship just eight months ago, proved too dominant for an Irish squad still trying to establish its identity in a 66-56 win.

Now what for the 5-3 Irish going forward?

The Irish leave Las Vegas with a 1–2 showing, and they're now 2–3 over their last five games and 1–3 against power-conference opponents to start the season.

There were positives throughout the week, but Notre Dame is still searching for the consistency needed to compete with college basketball’s elite.

Don’t get it twisted: the Irish fought. After falling behind by 22 points with 9:38 left in the first half, they clawed back and cut the deficit to four with roughly ten minutes remaining.

Micah Shrewsberry shook up the rotation at halftime, inserting Kebba Njie, freshman Ryder Frost, and junior Logan Imes to create a more guard-heavy unit. Shrewsberry explained postgame that the adjustment was designed to improve spacing offensively, even if it created mismatches defensively.

The move paid off. Notre Dame won the second half and legitimately threatened a comeback that looked impossible early on. Houston was held to just 27 points after the break, with 18 of those coming at the free-throw line. Nothing came easy for the Cougars, and Notre Dame once again showed that its defense will travel, regardless of the opponent.

Call it a moral victory or silver lining, or whatever you want. I enjoyed the fight that ND showed this weekend while in Vegas.

Watching the team up close always gives a different perspective.
— Nathan Erbach (@Nathan_Erbach) November 27, 2025

Getting Over the Moral Victory Hump

As mentioned at the top, Notre Dame leaves Las Vegas sitting at 1–3 against power-conference opponents this season, and if you include last year’s Players Era Festival, the Irish are now 1–5 all-time in the event.

With the field expanding to 32 teams next year, they might want to petition to avoid Rutgers and Houston altogether. Facing both again this year was wild in itself, and you get the sense Notre Dame feels the same way.

At some point, the moral victories have to turn into real ones. But even with the experience of guys like Markus Burton and Carson Towt, among others, this roster still lacks true game reps.

Sir Mohammed, Cole Certa, and Garrett Sundra all saw the floor last season, but not enough to build the kind of experience they’re being asked to rely on now.

All three are essential pieces this year. Add in freshman Jalen Haralson, the highest-ranked recruit of Notre Dame’s modern era, getting his footing as a starter, along with Ryder Frost and Brady Koehler playing more limited, inconsistent minutes, and the growing pains make sense.

Once the younger players settle in and the seasoning kicks in, Notre Dame should deliver a noticeably different product on the floor as the season progresses. I feel confident in saying that.

Next up: the Irish return home for another tough test, welcoming undefeated Missouri to South Bend for the ACC/SEC Challenge.