Well-balanced Notre Dame ride hot start into matchup vs. EIU

Field Level Media|published: Tue 11th November, 05:22 2025

Nov 7, 2025; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Markus Burton (3) drives to the basket as Detroit Mercy Titans guard Nate Johnson (10) defends during the second half at Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

Notre Dame certainly has tended to the business at hand to open the season.

The Fighting Irish appear in good shape to continue their early dominance when they host Eastern Illinois on Tuesday night in South Bend, Ind.

Notre Dame (2-0) outscored Long Island and Detroit Mercy by a combined 191-137 to easily win its first two games of 2025-26. The Irish have shot 50.8% overall, held their opponents to a combined 40.2% shooting and recorded 34 assists.

They posted 19 of those assists during a 102-70 rout of Detroit Mercy on Friday.

In addition, nine Notre Dame players have scored more than 10 points, with star Markus Burton leading the way averaging 18.5 on 11-of-21 shooting. Burton, Cole Certa, Ryder Frost and Braeden Shrewsberry are a combined 22-for-42 (52.4%) from beyond the 3-point arc.

"There's no separation. ... Just plug and play," Irish coach Micah Shrewsberry said of his squad. "They're all capable. They all play within themselves. ... They enjoy competing together."

Looking to start 3-0 for a second consecutive season, Notre Dame takes on Eastern Illinois for the first time.

"These are important games for us," Micah Shrewsberry said. "Now, we got to keep doing it. ... We're going to keep playing the exact same way."

The Panthers (1-1) opened with a 66-63 loss at Valparaiso, then rebounded to defeat visiting Nicholls 65-57 on Friday. Eastern Illinois has shot just 37.8% through its first two contests, but it held Nicholls to 29.5% shooting from the field and 4-of-26 success (15.4%) from long distance.

"(The victory) was big, an encouragement for our team and a step in the right direction," Panthers forward Kooper Jacobi told The Daily Eastern News.

Eastern Illinois guard Zion Foster scored 25 points on Friday, and he owns a team-leading 18.5-point average through two games. Terry McMorris is contributing 10 points and a team-best 11 rebounds per contest.

--Field Level Media

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