NOTRE DAME, Ind. -- Notre Dame scorched No. 12 Pitt tonight, 68-53, at the Joyce Center tonight to keep hope alive the Irish's fleeting NCAA Tournament hopes alive for at least a little bit longer.

Scorched, of course, is the key word because the Irish put on a shooting clinic from beyond the 3-point line as they made 10 of their first 14 3-point attempts and built a big lead that Pitt could not overcome.

The Irish, who never trailed in the game, finished 10-for-18 from 3-point range (56 percent) and shot an impressive 22-for-44 from the field.

Notre Dame built a 35-27 half-time lead thanks in large part to a 6-for-8 performance from the 3-point line. The Irish hit three pointers on their first two possessions and jumped to a 6-0 lead and never trailed in the half.

The Irish largest lead of the first half was 11 points -- 27-16 -- but the Panthers responded with a 7-0 run to pull to within 27-23 with three minutes to play before the half.

Tory Jackson responded to the Panthers run with a 3-pointer and the Irish finished the half with a 5-4 run that included a driving lay-up by Jackson as time expired.

Pitt (21-7, 10-5 in the Big East) took possession after the half but missed a jumper and the Irish responded with five consecutive points -- a 3-pointer and lay-up -- to take a 13-point lead -- 40-27 -- with 18 minutes to play.

The Irish (18-10, 7-8) continued their hot shooting and when Tim Abromaitis hit a long 3-pointer from the corner with 14:04 to play -- his third of the game -- it not only brought the crowd to its feet, it pushed the Irish lead to a commanding 22 points -- 52-30.

The Panthers were never able to recover or make a significant run as the Irish did a good job of controlling the pace of the game by running through sets, getting good shots and running time off the clock on nearly every possession.

Ashton Gibbs scored 11 points and Jermaine Dixon added 13 to lead the Panthers, who were outrebounded 34-25. Pitt shot a miserable 4-for-18 from the 3-point line (22 percent) and just 42 percent (23-for-55) from the field overall.

Abromaitis led the Irish with 17 points, including 3-for-5 shooting from the 3-point line, and Hansbrough had 15 points and nine rebounds.

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