Cincinnati used a balanced offense and a strong defensive effort to remain perfect in Big East play, posting a 71-55 home win over Notre Dame.

The Bearcats (12-3, 2-0) stretched a 10-point halftime lead to 37-21 on a three-point play by Cashmere Wright with 18:51 remaining, and the Fighting Irish (9-6, 1-1) never got closer than eight the rest of the way. Notre Dame struggled mightily from outside, making just one of its first 12 3-point attempts and finishing the night 5-for-28. Cincinnati held the visitors to 33 percent shooting overall.

Dion Dixon scored 18 points, including a 7-for-7 effort at the foul line, to pace five Bearcats with at least nine points. Wright contributed nine points and five of Cincinnati's 11 steals. Yancy Gates, returning from a six-game suspension after last month's brawl against Xavier, had six points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench.

Jerian Grant led Notre Dame with 17 points in defeat, while Jack Cooley added 14 points and 11 rebounds.