Everything is bigger in Texas, but the littlest player on the court made all the difference Friday afternoon in Fort Worth. Led by 5-foot-6 junior guard Hannah Hidalgo, No. 6 Notre Dame powered past No. 2 Vanderbilt 67-64 to advance past the Sweet 16 for the first time under sixth-year head coach Niele Ivey.
Just four days after a monstrous 26-point performance in Columbus to lead the Irish over No. 3 Ohio State, Hidalgo and her relentless, infectious energy ignited the Irish faithful inside Dickies Arena, who bore witness to yet another stunning upset. Hidalgo outdueled the nation’s leading scorer, Vanderbilt sophomore guard Mikayla Blakes, to the tune of a 31-point, 11-rebound, 10-steal and 7-assist triple-double, as Notre Dame reached the Elite Eight for the first time since 2019.
A seven-time national champion at UConn as both a star player and assistant coach, Shea Ralph headed to Nashville in 2021 and quickly revived the Commodores’ program. After six straight losing seasons, not including the 2020-21 campaign that was cut short due to a COVID-19 outbreak inside the Vanderbilt locker room, Ralph has guided the ‘Dores to three consecutive 20-win seasons and NCAA Tournament appearances.
On the floor, they are led by a dynamic backcourt headlined by Blakes, who paces the nation at over 27 points a night. The New Jersey native scored 25 in her team’s second round victory over Illinois and has poured in at least 30 points 13 times this season. Outside of Blakes, three other Commodores provide balanced scoring as freshman guard Aubrey Galvan, senior guard Justine Pissott and graduate forward Sacha Washington each averages double figures.
The Irish also get steady production from their ancillary pieces surrounding Hidalgo. Namely, senior guard Cassandre Prosper complements Hidalgo’s 25.2 PPG, 6.7 RPG and 5.2 APG with nearly 14 points and 7 rebounds per game.
While Vanderbilt ran out to a 20-0 start to the season, Notre Dame’s young roster struggled to find its footing early in the season. Since the Irish returned senior guard KK Bransford in February, the team has reeled off 11 wins in their last 13 games.
The 1:30 p.m. local tip-off made for a late-arriving crowd, and accordingly, both teams, and the officials, got off to a sluggish start. Vanderbilt’s guards seemed reluctant to attack Hidalgo, who picked up 2 steals early on. The lack of paint pressure led to a 1-10 start from the field, including a shocking 0-5 performance from Blakes. Notre Dame had more fouls than field goals across the first six minutes, much to the dismay of Ivey who pleaded her case with the team.
Notre Dame forced 10 first-quarter turnovers, four of which were steals created by Hidalgo. The stiffening defense also limited Blakes to just 4 points, all of which came from the charity stripe. Hidalgo’s six early points headlined a slightly more efficient Irish attack, and Notre Dame led 15-11 after one.
Speaking postgame, Hidalgo commented on her defensive intensity saying, “I know how difficult it is to run a team and set the plays while also being pressured. So once I got them to turn the ball over the first time, I was, like, okay, I can get in their head and keep pressuring them and continue to make them turn the ball over.”
Five more Commodore turnovers led to an 8-0 Irish run, pushing the lead up to 12 before Blakes finally connected on her first field goal 15 minutes into the contest. Aside from Hidalgo’s 12 points, Notre Dame’s offense still appeared disconnected, preventing the lead from ballooning even more.
Vanderbilt appeared gassed early in the frame compared to a Notre Dame team that is accustomed to playing shorthanded. Hidalgo’s second foul halfway through the period provided the ‘Dores with some life, and Vandy reeled off a 6-0 run to prompt a timeout from Ivey. Galvan, the SEC Freshman of the Year, connected on a 360 layup before the timeout, and drilled consecutive threes to cap off the eventual 12-2 run, simultaneously awakening the Vandy faithful.
“It was only a matter of time for her to do what she did today, because that’s who she is,” Ralph said postgame, speaking on her freshman phenom.
All told, the Irish entered the locker room up 31-26, but it felt like it should have been more. Notre Dame shot just 42% from the floor, and failed to connect on a single three. The Commodores dominated the glass, outrebounding the Irish 26-14, including 9 offensive rebounds. The Irish limited Blakes to a dismal 1-13 shooting, but the unanimous SEC Player of the Year still found her way into double digits with 8 of Vandy’s 12 free throws. Hidalgo, the ACC Player of the Year, led Notre Dame with 16 points, 4 rebounds and 7 steals.
Hidalgo picked up her 8th steal on the first possession out of the intermission, bringing her total to 24 across three Tournament games, the most by a single player in any NCAA Tournament. Hidalgo then took over on the offensive end, throwing in an unreal and-one that left the Fort Worth crowd speechless, pushing the Notre Dame lead back to 10.
With Blakes just 3-18 through three quarters, Galvan shouldered the load, as her 19 points and 5 rebounds kept Vandy within 6 heading to the fourth. Vanderbilt cut the lead to 3 a few minutes into the frame, but senior guard Vanessa de Jesus canned a big triple from the corner just two possessions after tossing up an airball from the opposite corner.
From there, Blakes came alive, making 6 of 7 shots after starting 1-15. A straightaway three from Galvan knotted things up and ignited the then-full crowd, before Hidalgo went coast-to-coast to put the Irish ahead with 5 minutes to play.
“They love to work even through our adversity. They come back in the same mindset. They can let things go. They can turn the page,” Ivey said of her team’s response.
It was back and forth from there, until Hidalgo picked up her 10th steal, taking it the distance for her 30th and 31st point to put Notre Dame up 64-62 with a minute to play. She then picked up her fourth foul, sending Galvan to the line where the freshman calmly hit both.
The crowd rose to its feet as Hidalgo drove in with under half a minute to play. Her floater went awry, but Bransford rose up to pull down a huge rebound before Ivey wisely called a timeout to save the possession.
On the succeeding inbound, Hidalgo rose above the rest, corralling an errant pass from Bransford, before finding Prosper for the go-ahead layup with 22.9 seconds remaining. “Credit to Hannah for trusting me with the ball at the last second and allowing me to make that layup,” Prosper said.
Ralph called a timeout so Vandy could advance the ball. Blakes caught the trigger, pounded it going right, but turned it over off her foot for the 23rd Commodore giveaway.
Ivey called a timeout of her own to advance, and after a battle to inbound the ball, Prosper stepped to the line. Albeit a 75% shooter, Ivey seemed to turn to her bench and mouth “not her,” likely preferring Hidalgo be the one to shoot. Prosper spun the first one out and cashed in the second. Vandy used its final timeout, down three with 14 seconds left.
Galvan curled around a highball screen before hurling up a three that bounced off the iron but right back into her lap. She fired a pass to Blakes, who had the opportunity to overcome her game-long shooting struggles, but her clean three-pointer from the left wing came up short. As the final buzzer sounded and the fans in green erupted, pandemonium ensued on the hardwood.
Ivey sprinted out to midcourt to embrace Hidalgo, with the emotional weight of the Sweet 16 boulder lifted off her shoulders. Long hugs ensued with Prosper, as well as former Notre Dame greats Skylar Diggins and Jackie Young.
Hidalgo’s triple-double was complemented by 15 points and 5 rebounds from Prosper. Additionally, Notre Dame senior guard Iyana Moore, a four-year Commodore before transferring to play for the Irish last offseason, connected on a big jumper to regain the lead with two minutes left. Moore struggled all game, shooting just 2-11 from the floor and 0-8 from three while dealing with constant pressure from her former teammates, but had the confidence to step up in the big moment with Hidalgo double-teamed.
“To get over the hump with these women is so special. It means so much. I spoke earlier about how I used to take just being in the Sweet 16 for granted and how I embrace it so much more now and I'm so much more grateful to be here,” Hidalgo said.
“Her leadership is the reason why we’re in this position,” Ivey said of her star.
Blakes managed 26 points, but it took an incredibly inefficient 7-26 and 0-5 three-point performance to get there. Galvan was exceptional as a freshman in some of her first high-pressure moments, scoring 24 and adding 7 rebounds, but also committing 6 turnovers.
With the win, the Irish move to 5-1 all-time over the Commodores. It is their second victory over Vanderbilt in postseason play, following a 72-64 win in the 2001 Regional Final in Denver. Led by then-player Niele Ivey, that Notre Dame squad captured the program’s first national championship just one week later in Ivey’s hometown of St. Louis.
The Commodores' season is over, but not before returning to national relevance for the first time in over a decade. Blakes is expected to return to Nashville next season to build on the program’s 29-5 record and first Sweet Sixteen berth since 2009. “This is just the beginning for our program, another step in the right direction,” Ralph said.
Notre Dame will now prepare for a rematch with top-seeded and undefeated UConn on Sunday. Geno Auriemma’s Huskies are the defending national champions and will enter play with an unblemished 37-0. It will be the second meeting this season between the Irish and Huskies, after Connecticut blasted Notre Dame 85-47 in Storrs, Connecticut, back on Jan. 19 in the annual rivalry showdown. Sunday’s tip-off time with a spot in the Final Four at stake is yet to be announced, with the national broadcast provided by ABC.
