SOUTH BEND, Ind. – NIU’s offensive plan against Notre Dame was evident from the opening play.

Forward Marcus Smallwood took the ball in the post and made a move against Notre Dame power forward Torin Francis.

Smallwood missed the shot but ended with a career-high 24 more attempts before finishing the game with 21 points on 9-of-25 shooting. Smallwood also added a team-high 18 rebounds.

“I love him,” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said of Smallwood. “I told him after the game I love watching him and I’m glad we don’t have to play him again. The numbers he had tonight are going to be consistent against everybody.”

Smallwood’s previous career high in field goals (18) came against Western Michigan last February.

“He’s a good player,” Francis said. “He’s smaller than most guys in the Big East, but he’s got the same explosiveness and quickness. With him leading them [NIU] can go far.”

Notre Dame’s offensive philosophy was quite similar: Feed the post.

The 6-foot-11, 250-pound Francis finished with a game-high 24 points and 19 rebounds.

Francis was more effective shooting than Smallwood as he connected on 7 of 12 shots.

“We tried to do our best,” Smallwood said. “He’s one of the top post players in the country. He’s a great player.”