Notre Dame Basketball: Five best Eric Atkins moments

By Greg Hadley | Jul 13, 2016

Feb 13, 2016; South Bend, IN, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Mike Brey celebrates with former players Eric Atkins and Pat Connaughton and Jerian Grant after Notre Dame defeated the Louisville Cardinals 71-66 at the Purcell Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /

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Atkins records 11 points, five assists in top-25 win

Even from the beginning of his career, Atkins was remarkably consistent. In his freshman campaign, the youngster played in every game and scored in double figures seven times.

But arguably his best performance, and certainly the one in which he showed the Irish faithful how good he would be, came against No. 25 Cincinnati on Jan. 19, 2011. In one of his six starts that season, Atkins played 36 minutes and put in a workmanlike effort, with 11 points, five assists and three rebounds. He didn’t lead the team in any individual category, but the overall effect was impressive.

Furthermore, Atkins displayed his accuracy and soft touch, going 3-for-3 from the field, 1-for-1 from 3-point territory and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line: a perfect night.

The performance was vintage Atkins before such a thing existed: not the flashiest or the most ostentatious, but effective and integral to an Irish victory. Back then, he wasn’t even the leader of the program he would be for the next three seasons.

But his performance stuck with some people as the beginning of the legacy he would build on and off the court at Notre Dame.

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