SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame was in trouble.
There was never actually a risk of the No. 3 Fighting Irish losing their last regular-season game. No. 25 Louisville didn’t lead for a single second of Sunday’s 72-59 win in South Bend. Hannah Hidalgo rattled off 20 points, Olivia Miles piled on 15 more and the Irish defense disarmed and diffused any chance of a Cardinals upset.
But Notre Dame wasn’t in control of the most important outcome on Sunday. Halfway across the country in Dallas, No. 9 NC State had piled up a double-digit lead over SMU. That win was all the Wolfpack needed to clinch the No. 1 seed in the ACC tournament — and to steal outright ownership of the conference regular-season title away from the Irish.
Sunday marked a crucial turning point in the season. The Irish spent the majority of this season ranked in the top four of the Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll. But two losses in the final week of the regular season — first to No. 13 NC State in double overtime, then to No. 24 Florida State — upended everything.
Losing changes everything — even in a win. It made the little flaws stand out on Sunday afternoon. When the team’s star guards turned down 3-point opportunities and tossed misguided passes out of bounds. When Maddy Westbeld picked up early fouls. When the Irish collectively turned the ball over nine times in the fourth quarter, despite having the game firmly in hand.
Every mistake underscored the same question: Can this team really go all the way?
And then those fears were assuaged for a moment or two with glimpses of the magic that propelled the Irish to the top of the NCAA rankings for most of the season.
At the end of the third quarter, Miles shuffled past her defender and pulled up suddenly, lofting a buzzer beater. Sure, it was only her second made basket of the game, but that didn’t alter the confidence with which Miles whipped the ball skyward.
In moments like that, the question flipped on its head: How, exactly, can anyone stop this?
To coach Niele Ivey, Sunday’s win was the first step to answering those questions.
“This was a rough week for us,” coach Niele Ivey said. “At this point in the season, it’s not really about X’s and O’s. It’s more about heart, determination and pride. … We played to our standard today.”
For most of this season, the Irish looked indomitable. They didn’t just beat teams during their 19-game winning streak — they crushed them.
A 39-point smackdown of No. 21 California. A 118-49 victory over Eastern Michigan that bordered on cruelty. Miles dropped eight 3-pointers on Pittsburgh. Hidalgo hung 34 points on Louisville. The Irish blew past No. 3 Southern California with a double-digit advantage and trailed for barely three minutes before dispatching No. 2 Connecticut with ease.
Basketball isn’t easy. But it looked that way in South Bend. And then, just a week before the end of the regular season, everything got hard again.
It’s not as if the Irish never had their flaws. But this week’s losses showed those faults could be large enough to prevent this team from winning top-ranked matchups. Hidalgo and Miles are two of the most creative playmakers in the NCAA, but they’re prone to a type of risk-taking that can backfire just as easily as it can garner a highlight reel play. Sonia Citron is one of the sharpest defenders in the league, but she hesitates to assert herself offensively as a third option. Westbeld is the heartbeat of the roster who struggles to sustain her 3-point shooting — and stay out of foul trouble.
Winning streaks end. For some teams, sneaking a loss into the final week before the postseason can feel like a relief — a slight release of pressure to poke around at any final flaws that need to be shored up before making a tournament run.
That wasn’t the case for Notre Dame. This week’s back-to-back losses were defined by an edge of panic. Miles turned the ball over eight times in the two games. Hidalgo couldn’t make a single 3-pointer against the Seminoles. The most crucial stretch of an inimitable season loomed only weeks away and the Irish couldn’t get their heads right.
Losing to Florida State on senior night left the Irish in a sickening lurch. Ivey spent over an hour delivering an extended speech to her team. The locker room was gripped with an urgent frustration, summed up bitterly by Citron: “You can only talk so much.”
It’s never a question of talent with Notre Dame — this roster features arguably the strongest backcourt in the country, with Miles and Citron projected to be selected second and third in the 2025 WNBA draft. But the Irish must tackle the mental side of the game to maintain their dream of chasing down a national championship.
“I’m trying to help them through frustration,” Ivey said. “I’m reading into them more. You learn a lot about what a group needs in these moments.”
The frustration isn’t unfounded. The Irish can’t squander this moment. This team spent two years waiting for this moment — for Miles to recover from an ACL injury, for Hidalgo’s star to rise.
Now, they’re on a precipice. This is the final chapter for Citron, Westbeld and (most likely) Miles. It will be up to Hidalgo to define what this team will become after their departure.
But for now, it’s time for this star-powered roster to decide which version of Notre Dame — indomitable or vulnerable, frustrated or frustrating — shows up to the dance next week.
“Next week is 0-0,” Ivey said. “It’s a new season. We’re excited to be in March.”
