It was a back-and-forth battle in the Fort Worth regional Sweet 16 matchup with Notre Dame taking on Vanderbilt, as the Irish made the most plays down the stretch to win 67-64 to advance to the Elite 8.
The Irish, led by Hannah Hidalgo’s triple-double, finally pushed past this round, as this their fifth-consecutive trip and first time winning in the stretch. It’s the first time since Notre Dame was NCAA runner-up in 2018-19 that it has made it this fair in the tournament.
Hidalgo’s star shone bright, as she made plays all game long, with 31-points, 11-rebounds, 10-steals and 7-assists. It should come as no surprise that she played big at the end, with the game tied at 64, she found Cassandre Prosper, who had 15-points, for a wide-open layup with 22-seconds left in the game. Hidalgo would then secure the rebound as Vanderbilt tried to make a three as time ran out.
Notre Dame built a 12-point lead, but Vandy wouldn’t back down. The Irish forced 23-turnovers, and held the Commodores to 35% shooting. The Irish shot 42%, but were just 1-of-17 from beyond the arc.
Notre Dame now will wait to see who they’ll face on Sunday, as No. 1 seed Connecticut takes on No. 4 North Carolina. It’s another game where regardless of who the opponent the Irish will be underdogs, but that’s the way they like it.
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