ND holds off Illini in ACC-Big Ten Challenge

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SOUTH BEND—Notre Dame guards TJ Gibbs and D.J. Harvey scored 19 points each, and Durham sparked his team with all of his 10 points and five blocked shots in the second half, as ND held off the late-charging Fighting Illini in an ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup.Trent Frazier’s 24-foot, solid-look 3-point try for Illinois narrowly rimmed out just before time expired.Durham, who sat out last season after transferring from Connecticut, registered a career high for points. Harvey’s total was also a career high and Gibbs’ a season high.The Irish (6-1) won their fourth straight while Illinois (2-5) lost for the fifth time in six games.Durham was 3 of 4 from the field and 4 of 8 at the line.The Irish led 65-52 with 6:30 to go before the Illini mounted their rally that came up just short.Aaron Jordan led Illinois with 23 points. Freshman Giorgi Bezhanishvili added 22. Those were career highs for both players.After a tight first half that yielded nine lead changes and a 35-34 Illini lead at the break, Notre Dame appeared like it might win in a runaway when it outscored Illinois 17-2 over a span of just under eight minutes.That produced a 61-49 Irish lead with 6:48 remaining.The Illini, though, battled right back behind Bezhanishvili and Jordan, who each scored 13 second-half points.