Tag: Louisville

Notre Dame moves up to No. 3, No. 4 seeds in updated bracketologies

Alexa, play the theme song to The Jeffersons.

It appears Notre Dame’s wins over Virginia Tech and Louisville are starting to pay off. In two updated bracketologies released Monday, the Irish moved up in their projected seeds to the point where they would host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament if they held true.

ESPN finally bumped the Irish up to a No. 4 seed. College Sports Madness, which already had the Irish as a No. 4, took it a step further and made the Irish a No. 3 seed. Her Hoops Stats and CBS Sports both last updated their bracketologies before the Irish’s last game against the Cardinals.

Splitting the games with the Hokies and Cardinals merely would have kept the Irish’s hopes at a top-four seed alive at best. Instead, they won both games and have become impossible to ignore. Plus, two of three ESPN analysts are picking the Irish to win the ACC Tournament, fueled in part perhaps by a combination of their strong regular-season finish and the suddenly questionable health of Hokies standout Elizabeth Kitley.

March is here, folks. Time for the madness to begin.

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Both weekly ACC rookie honors go to Notre Dame guards

There are some special young players for the Irish.

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] and [autotag]Markus Burton[/autotag] both have turned heads for Notre Dame’s basketball teams this season. The ACC has honored them for that multiple times. Now, for the third time this season, both have been named ACC Rookie of the Week for their respective sports in the same week.

This is the fourth ACC Rookie of the Week honor for Burton, who averaged 26.0 points a game for the week to help beat Wake Forest and Clemson. Hidalgo has won it a conference-record 12 times now, and she also was named ACC Player of the Week after averaging 24.5 points a game in big wins over Virginia Tech and Louisville. She also has been named a finalist for the Nancy Lierberman Award, which is given to the country’s top point guard.

It’s been said before, but with Hidalgo and Burton, the future is looking bright for both Notre Dame basketball teams. We already are seeing it benefit the women, and hopefully, the men will follow suit before too long.

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ACC women’s basketball leaders as of March 3

Guess who leads for Notre Dame.

Well, we finally have reached March. The spotlight will shine bright on every team from here on out. But nowhere where the spotlight shine brighter than on the players most expected to lead their teams. That includes the ACC’s major statistical leaders, and you can find those players below:

Ivey, Hidalgo, Citron, Westbeld speak after Notre Dame win

Hear what the victors had to say about this game.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – There’s no doubt Notre Dame wants to have one or two more games at Purcell Pavilion this season. The Irish have been playing even better lately, most recently with their 74-58 win over Louisville. It all depends on what the NCAA Tournament selection committee thinks of its resume. We’ll save that discussion for another day though.

The discussion right now is this latest victory, which [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag] was happy to talk about afterwards. After a win like that though, it wasn’t enough to bring in the usual one or two players. She brought in her three best, and they all deserved it.

[autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] did her usual thing with 26 points, eight rebounds, four assists and six steals. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] scored 17 points, and [autotag]Maddy Westbeld[/autotag] had a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Fighting Irish Wire was on hand during this postgame news conference, and here is some of what was said:

Notre Dame clinches ACC Tournament double-bye with win vs. Louisville

Great way to end the regular season.

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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Notre Dame fencing team member Spencer Vermeule killed in car accident

Awful news.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame fencing program is in mourning after losing one of its own. Sophomore [autotag]Spencer Vermeule[/autotag], who was on the 2023 national championship team, died Saturday after the Audi A3 he was driving hit a tree and flipped over in Elkhart County. He was pronounced dead at the accident’s scene, and an investigation is continuing.

Notre Dame’s president, the [autotag]Rev. John Jenkins[/autotag], released the following statement:

“We are deeply saddened by Spencer’s tragic death. On behalf of the entire Notre Dame community, I extend our deepest sympathies to the Vermeule family, and offer prayers of comfort and peace to Spencer’s family, friends and all who knew and loved him.”

A moment for silence for Vermeuhle was planned before the women’s basketball team’s sold-out home finale against Louisville at Purcell Pavilion. We at Fighting Irish Wire join Notre Dame in offering our deepest condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time.

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J.R. Konieczny to return from foot injury for Notre Dame’s home finale

J.R. Konieczny had soreness in his right foot and missed Notre Dame’s victory over Wake Forest.

[autotag]J.R. Konieczny[/autotag] had soreness in his right foot and missed Notre Dame’s victory over Wake Forest. It was the first time this season he hadn’t appeared in a game. However, that appeared to only be a brief absence as Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports has tweeted the following ahead of the Irish’s home finale Saturday:

Obviously, it is unknown how much action Konieczny will see against Clemson. He hasn’t played more than 18 minutes over his past five games, none of which he started. He started his previous five games before that and shot 14 of 52 from the field during that stretch (26.9%). Since then, he’s shot a more respectable 11 of 23 (47.8%).

Fighting Irish Wire will be on hand to cover the men’s basketball team’s final home game this season as well as the women’s team’s sold-out home finale Sunday against Louisville. Both teams have being playing well lately, so now is a good time to catch them.

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Purcell Pavilion sold out for Notre Dame’s home finale vs. Louisville

Hope you’ve got your ticket already.

The Notre Dame women’s basketball team’s final regular-season game will be loud. That can be said definitively because the program posted on social media that Sunday’s contest against Louisville has been sold out:

There likely are several factors playing into this, not the least of which is that the Irish have won four straight games and five of their past six. Fans might also be on a high from the last victory over No. 5 Virginia Tech.

There also is seeding for the ACC Tournament at stake as the outcome likely will determine whether the Irish obtain a double-bye. With a 12-5 conference record, they’re in a three-way tie for third with the Cardinals and NC State. A loss not only would put those double-bye hopes in serious jeopardy, but it also probably would end any remaining chance of obtaining a top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Fighting Irish Wire will be on hand to cover this big game. It should be a good one.

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Notre Dame remains No. 5 seed in most latest bracketologies

Sure feels like the Irish are stuck right now.

Notre Dame beat No. 5 Virginia Tech on Thursday, but most bracketologists remain unmoved. A couple of new bracketologies were released Friday, and the Irish remain where they’ve been in those particular ones. ESPN, CBS Sports and NCAA.com all have the Irish as a No. 5 seed, joining Her Hoop Stats from the day before. Only College Sports Madness currently has the Irish as a fourth seed.

Perhaps the biggest warning yet that the Irish might not get to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament came from the Division I Women’s Basketball Committee. In the top 16 it released before Thursday’s game, the Irish were nowhere to be found. The way things are going, that probably wouldn’t have changed even if the rankings had been released after the game.

One now has to wonder if an Irish win over Louisville would be enough to bump them up in the seedings. Are they going to have to win the ACC Tournament to even have a shot at being a tournament host? It sure feels like it right now. We’ll see if they rise to that challenge.

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Photos from Notre Dame’s upset victory over No. 5 Virginia Tech

Until Thursday, Notre Dame’s only win that really stood out was its earlier nonconference win at UConn. That changed with a 71-58 victory against No. 5 Virginia Tech. Now, it seems like almost anything is possible.

While the Irish haven’t done everything yet that would convince the selection committee to make it an undisputed top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament, this win gives them a strong argument for one. The Hokies were the better of their two remaining regular-season opponents, and another tough opponent in Louisville will come in a few days. If the Irish win that game, they will be impossible for the committee to ignore.

Did the green jerseys provide the Irish in a way they really haven’t done so for the football team? All we know is that the Irish are playing some great basketball right now, and it’s happening at the right time.

Check out some memorable images from the win over the Hokies: