(photo courtesy Notre Dame Athletics)

(Notre Dame) —  Markus Burton’s return to play following a Thanksgiving injury electrified Purcell Pavilion.

A three-point lead with 14 seconds remaining really had the arena juiced. Then North Carolina pulled the plug.

Elliot Cadeau made a four-point play with 4.8 seconds left with a three-pointer and foul shot and Burton’s contested layup at the buzzer drew neither net or a foul call, as the visiting Tar Heels rallied for 74-73 win Saturday afternoon.

The loss was a heartbreaking finish to what had been a promising game for the Irish.  Burton came off the bench for his first action since suffering a leg injury in a loss to Rutgers November 26.  The Penn High alum scored 23 points in 23 minutes, showing his usual explosiveness to the basket.

The Irish had to come from behind most of the game, as North Carolina’s Ian Jackson scored 15 points in the first 11 minutes of the game, and the Tar Heels grabbed a 26-14 lead. Braden Shrewsberry led the Irish with eight first-half points as Notre Dame narrowed the deficit to 39-32 at the half.

In the second half, Burton scored ten points in a 12-0 Notre Dame run that gave the Irish their first lead since early in the game. From there, the game teetered back and forth with 17 lead changes and nine ties. Notre Dame appeared to have victory in grasp as Matt Allocco buried two free throws with 14 seconds remaining to put the Irish ahead, 73-70.

Unfortunately, it was Allocco who fouled Cadeau on his three-pointer late that allowed the Tar Heels to take the lead.

North Carolina is now 9-6. The Irish lose their second straight ACC game, falling to 7-7 overall and 1-2 in league play. Four of Notre Dame’s next five games are on the road.