Notre Dame hoops falls to UNC at the buzzer

NOTRE DAME, Ind. - After dropping their first conference game of the season, Notre Dame men's basketball looked for a signature bounce-back win against North Carolina.

Despite being shorthanded due to injuries, the Irish hung with the defending national champions, taking the 20th-ranked Tarheels down to the wire.

In the end, TJ Gibbs could not covert two tries at what would have been a game-winning shot. The Irish fell 69-68.

After the game, Gibbs discussed the disappointment of that moment.

"We were just trying to get a good shot, the first good shot we could get," said Gibbs, who led Notre Dame with 19 points. "Get all five guys to the backboard and maybe we could get a tip. We did get a tip, but it just didn't go my way. We know that eventually for forty minutes that we know how to play. Eventually some team is going to crack and it's not going to be us."

The silver lining came in the form of a possible return by senior point guard Matt Farrell.

He did dress and warm up before Saturday's game with UNC, but did not play. Mike Brey said afterwards that he'll most likely be back against Louisville on Tuesday, which would be a big boost for his team.

"I have every reason to believe we'll bounce back well Tuesday. One of the big reasons is if we have Matt Farrell in that lineup, that's the injection we need now," said Brey. "I'm looking at it if we can get him Tuesday and Saturday, then there's a bye week. ... Then, there's a lot of basketball to play, and we're still in a pretty good position at 3-2 [in ACC play] right now."

View highlights of Notre Dame-UNC right here!