HARTFORD, Conn. – Notre Dame continued its impressive run through the Big East, beating another ranked opponent and sending No. 24 Connecticut to its third straight loss.

Eric Atkins scored 13 points and Jerian Grant hit three key free throws late as the Irish (14-8, 6-3) held on for their third straight win, 50-48 over the Huskies.

“We really controlled the tempo,” Notre Dame coach Mike Brey said. “And that takes its toll on a team over 40 minutes when the offensive rhythm isn’t quite there.”

The loss spoiled the return of freshman guard Ryan Boatright for Connecticut (14-6, 4-4). He had missed the last three games amid an NCAA investigation into his eligibility.

“It’s been mentally draining,” said Boatright, who scored six points. “But I can finally say that it is put behind me and we can move on.”

The Huskies were 1-2 since Boatright was removed from the lineup. They won at Notre Dame, snapping the Irish’s 29-game home-court winning streak, before losing consecutive games to Cincinnati and Tennessee.

Notre Dame trailed this one 24-21 at halftime, but went on a 13-0 run to open the second half.

Jeremy Lamb had 16 points to lead the Huskies and had a chance to tie the game after missing his second free throw with 2.3 seconds left on purpose. He grabbed the rebound but his off-balance follow bounced off the rim at the buzzer.

“If Jeremy’s shot had gone in, I wasn’t going to be jumping,” Huskies coach Jim Calhoun said. “The game was lost over the 40 minutes. It particularly was lost as we began the second half.”

Freshman Andre Drummond had 15 points and 11 rebounds for UConn.

Grant had 11 points and Scott Martin added 10 for Notre Dame, which outrebounded UConn 33-29 – 11-7 on the offensive end.

“I think there was that one possession where we had two or three offensive rebounds, Martin said. “We probably had the ball for a minute-and-a-half. That was probably a turning point for us in the game. We really knew at that point we had the tempo how we wanted it.”

The win capped a good week for the Irish. They beat then-No. 1 Syracuse on Jan. 21 before winning at Seton Hall. Notre Dame set team records in that game by allowing the Pirates just 15 field goals, and 42 points.

“To be 6-3 halfway through this league; if you would have told me that after the Indiana game (a 69-58 loss Dec. 17) or after Missouri beat us by 29 … I don’t know,” Brey said. “I’m really proud of this group, and it’s a lot of fun working with them.”

It hasn’t been much fun for UConn.

Boatright was cleared Saturday by the NCAA, despite finding that he and his mother received more than $8,000 in impermissible benefits before and after he enrolled.

Connecticut has been ranked in the Top 25 for 28 straight weeks, the fifth-longest stretch in program history, a run that is likely to end.