EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ? Notre Dame finally had a chance to take the lead against Seton Hall, and it seemed most of the people in Continental Airlines Arena were sure it would happen.

No one told Andre Barrett.

The Pirates junior point guard scored nine of his 24 points over the final 2 1/2 minutes to keep the 10th-ranked Fighting Irish at bay in a 78-72 victory Wednesday night.

The win snapped Seton Hall’s three-game losing streak to Notre Dame and its 12-game losing streak to ranked teams.

“That kid is just a winner. He has been since high school,” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said of the 5-foot-10 Barrett. “Barrett was fabulous. I think you are seeing the maturation of a guy who is certainly setting the tone with this team right now.”

Barrett’s second three-pointer of the game gave Seton Hall the lead for good at 41-38 with 18:30 to play. The Fighting Irish never fell behind by more than six points and they were within 66-65 on a layup by Matt Carroll with 3:40 to play.

Seton Hall missed on its next possession and Notre Dame had a chance to take the lead, but Chris Thomas missed a reverse layup, and Miller misfired on a three after the Fighting Irish corralled the rebound.

Barrett hit his third, last and biggest three with three seconds left on the shot clock and 2:25 on the game clock to give Seton Hall a 69-65 lead. He hit the shot with 6-foot-11 Tom Timmermans coming right at him.

“It’s a shot I normally take,” Barrett said of the last three-pointer. “I think he (Timmermans) was afraid I was going to go past him. I just wanted to make sure I made the smart decision at that time. It was a normal shot, an open shot.”

Notre Dame's Jordan Cornette, left, and Torrian Jones watch from the bench in the final minute of No. 10 Notre Dame's 78-72 loss to Seton Hall. The Pirates pulled off the stunner Wednesday in East Rutherford, N.J.

No. 5 Louisville 77, Cincinnati 71

Louisville, Ky. — Freshman Francisco Garcia scored a career-high 24 points and tied a school record with eight three-pointers as Louisville beat Cincinnati to extend the nation’s longest active winning streak to 16 games.

No. 9 Duke 83, North Carolina 74

Durham, N.C. — Duke scored on its final 11 possessions to defeat archrival North Carolina. Dahntay Jones scored 23 points and had 13 rebounds in front of a cheering section that included Grant Hill and Jason Williams, who had his No. 22 retired at halftime. Duke (15-3, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) beat the Tar Heels (11-10, 2-6) for the sixth straight time.

No. 15 Marquette 68, Saint Louis 64

Milwaukee — Sophomore Travis Diener scored a career-high 21 point.

Virginia Tech 95, No. 18 Connecticut 74

Blacksburg, Va. — Carlos Dixon scored 21 points and Virginia Tech beat Connecticut in the Huskies’ first game since coach Jim Calhoun took a leave of absence to have surgery for prostate cancer.

Arkansas 81, No. 22 Alabama 70

Fayetteville, Ark. — Jonathan Modica scored 26 points as Arkansas handed Alabama its fifth straight road loss.

No. 23 Mississippi State 82, Vanderbilt 60

Starkville, Miss. — Mississippi State’s entire starting five scored in double figures, and its defense forced 21 turnovers.

No. 24 Purdue 78, Wisconsin 60

West Lafayette, Ind. — Willie Deane scored 19 points and Darmetreis Kilgore added 17 as Purdue won for the 10th time in its last 11 games.