South Bend, IN. – The Elon University men's basketball team (3-2) made a statement win Friday night, defeating unbeaten Notre Dame (4-1) on the road inside the Joyce Center, 84-77. The win caps an unbeaten two-game Midwest road trip for the Phoenix following a 27-point victory over Northern Illinois Wednesday evening.
 
Nick Dorn finished one point off his career-high with 24 points at Purcell Pavilion. The Simpkins twins put in more double-figure point performances with TK pouring in 17 points while TJ put in 16 points off the bench, with four coming from the foul line to ice the game for the Phoenix.
 
The win in South Bend marks the first win for the Phoenix over an ACC school since the Phoenix took down the Clemson Tigers in December of 2005, 74-69 in Littlejohn Coliseum. The victory marks the first Power Four win for Elon since bested South Carolina, 65-53 in Columbia.
 
How It Happened

• The Phoenix and Fighting Irish traded buckets early with TK Simpkins getting the scoring started with an and-one finish.
• Simpkins proved to be a tough guard for the Phoenix with the junior guard living in the mid-range early, helping the Phoenix out to a 10-7 lead.
• Andrew King knocked down a pair of jumpers including a three-pointer to push the Phoenix pace. TJ Simpkins answered King's three-point basket with a layup in the pain to give Elon their largest lead of the first half at 17-10.
• Notre Dame's Markus Burton would heat up from behind the three-point line to bring the lead to within one before Notre Dame gained the lead back at 23-22.
• In the final six minutes of the first half, Nick Dorn took the Phoenix offense and kicked it up from behind the arc. Dorn made three straight threes to bring the Phoenix within a point after he scored nine points in two minutes.
• Dorn would score 14 straight points before a fastbreak, two-handed flush brought the Phoenix within three again. Elon would trail 46-41 going into the locker room.
• Elon got into the paint right away in the final 20 minutes with TK Simpkins and Sam Sherry scoring in the painted area for the first two buckets of the half.
• Back-to-back jumpers with 15 minutes left from TK and Dorn tied the score at 54. Elon regained the lead with 13 minutes to go when TJ Simpkins reached out for a steal, then in a two-on-one break with his twin, TK found TJ on a lob to give the Phoenix a two-point lead.
• The Phoenix and Fighting Irish continued their back and forth midway through the second half, with Elon and Notre Dame countering every basket.
• Elon continued to control the paint in the second half with consecutive baskets from Sherry to pull ahead again. Sherry expanded the lead with a pair of free throws to lead 70-67 with 5:45 to play.
• In the final two minutes, the Elon offense went to work. A pass from the wing by TK Simpkins found a cutting Nick Dorn who put in a highly contested finish to give the Phoenix a one-point lead.
• After a stop on the defensive end, Isaac Harrell slipped behind the Irish defense and Sherry found him on the cut for a lay in to give the Phoenix a three-point advantage. With 26 seconds to play, TJ Simpkins slipped free on an under-the-basket, out of bounds play for an easy finish to give the Phoenix a two-possession lead.
• Elon would ice the game at the foul-line giving Elon their first win over an ACC school since 2005.

 
Notes and Stats

• Elon picked up win number one against Notre Dame in the series history, and now trails the all-time series, 1-2.  
• The win over the Fighting Irish marks the first win for the Phoenix over an ACC opponent since Elon bested Clemson in December of 2005.
• Elon ends its streak of Power Four losses with the win over Notre Dame. It marks the first win over a Power Four opponent since Elon bested South Carolina in 2012.
• The Phoenix shot 57.1% from the field, marking a season high. Elon also shot a season-high 46.7% from the three-point line for a new season high.
• The field goal percentage was Elon's highest against a Division I opponent since Elon defeated UNCW in 2022 and shot 59.6% from the field.
• The Phoenix continues to showcase their advantage on the glass. Elon outrebounded the Fighting Irish by 11, with a 35-24 advantage.
• Four Phoenix finished in double-figures with Nick Dorn pacing the Elon scoring with 24 points.
• Dorn's 24 points were one point off his career high as he scored 24 points on just ten shots, including going 5-for-6 from behind the three-point line.
• TK Simpkins scored 17 points while TJ Simpkins put in 16 points off the bench. TK also added four rebounds and six assists in the win.
• Sam Sherry finished with 13 points and seven rebounds in the win.
• Matthew Van Komen continues to be a presence inside with five rebounds and four blocked shots in the win over Notre Dame.
• The Phoenix shot 60.71% from the field in the second half and went a perfect 7-for-7 from the charity stripe in the final 20 minutes.

 
Up Next

• The Phoenix will hit the road next weekend for three games in three days at the Cathedral Classic Invitational. Game one will be against Maine next Friday at 2 pm.