Crespi Beats Notre Dame in Overtime

Down by five points with less than a minute to play, Crespi High rallied to tie the game in regulation, then beat rival Notre Dame in overtime, 53-52, Friday night before an overflow crowd at Crespi.

Blake Tibbetts made two free throws with eight seconds left in overtime to give Crespi a 53-49 lead. Notre Dame’s Matt Lutz connected on a three-point basket with three seconds left, but the Knights had no timeouts remaining in the Mission League game.

There were eight lead changes in the second half. Notre Dame (8-13, 1-5 in league play) seemed headed to an upset after opening a 45-40 advantage.

Crespi (14-4, 4-1) scored only two points in the fourth quarter until Tim McDonough made a three-point basket with 44 seconds left in regulation, pulling the Celts to within 45-43.

After a traveling call against Chris Williams of Notre Dame, Crespi tied the score on Andrew Moore’s layup with 21 seconds left.

Williams, who finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds, tipped in a shot at the buzzer but the officials ruled time had run out.

McDonough scored 17 points for Crespi, making five three-pointers.

“Your typical Crespi-Notre Dame game--anything goes,” Coach Dick Dornan of Crespi said.