SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Hopefully, Notre Dame has not played its final game at Purcell Pavilion this season. That depends on how the selection committee for the NCAA Tournament feels about giving the Irish a top-four seed. Regardless, the Irish continued to make their case in front of a packed house with a 74-58 win over Louisville, giving them a double-bye for this week’s ACC Tournament.
The first half was very much even until the Irish (23-6, 13-5) saw the Cardinals (23-8, 12-6) take their biggest lead at seven going into halftime. The third quarter was a much different story though as the Irish became as red-hot from the field as the Cardinals became ice-cold, though the Irish’s defense also had a hand in that. The shooting numbers in that quarter told the story: 11 of 13 for the Irish, and 2 of 17 for the Cardinals.
[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] had a trademark game of 26 points, eight rebounds, four assists and six steals. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] scored 17 points, [autotag]Kylee Watson[/autotag] added 10, and [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] achieved a double-double of 11 points and 11 boards.
With the victory in their final regular-season game, the Irish didn’t need to worry about Wake Forest having to upset NC State. They now get to go straight to the ACC Tournament quarterfinals. That extra rest will do wonders for a team that has had depth issues all season. We’ll see how much it pays off.
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