Tag: Olivia Miles

Notre Dame ready for lone exhibition against Truman State

Halloween basketball!

Notre Dame will have a chance at game action before the competition begins in earnest next week. On this Halloween, the Irish will welcome Truman State of Division II to the Purcell Pavilion for their only exhibition game on the schedule.If you’re in the South Bend area and aren’t interested in the holiday or just need a break from it, this game might be the perfect thing to focus on.

Even though the outcome of this game is a foregone conclusion, the Bulldogs surely must be honored to have the chance to come to South Bend and play a women’s basketball blue blood. That surely is the case for any school below the Division I level because the opportunity doesn’t always come along very often. The players will have a story they can tell their children and grandchildren, and a few of them just might be able to brag that they scored on [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag].

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The Athletic names Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles preseason All-American

What a preseason for Miles.

[autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] is having quite the season, and it hasn’t even started yet. The Notre Dame sophomore point guard already has been named to the Nancy Lieberman Award watch list and the preseason all-ACC team. Now, it’s The Athletic’s turn to honor Miles. The website has named her to its preseason All-American First Team.

Women’s basketball managing editor Shannon Ryan explained the decision to include Miles this way:

“Miles became the first men’s or women’s player in NCAA Tournament history to record a triple-double as a freshman, recording 12 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists against UMass in her tournament debut. A player with a hot hand in the NCAA Tournament is exactly what Irish fans are craving as they hope to make a deep run. Miles, a sophomore, has the court vision and scoring ability to take Notre Dame far. She and (Iowa’s Caitlin) Clark were the only players to average 13 points, five rebounds and seven assists last season.”

Here’s hoping Miles will be the centerpiece of an amazing Irish season.

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Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles racking up preseason honors

Congrats, Olivia!

With Notre Dame ranked ninth in the AP preseason poll, there’s bound to be a player who is at the center of it all. There is, and her name is [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag]. Over the past week, Miles has been recognized twice for what many believe she will contribute this season.

First, Miles made the preseason watch list for the Nancy Lieberman Award, which goes to the top point guard in Division I. She came close to winning it last year as she made the final cut before Iowa’s Caitlin Clark took home the hardware.

Soon after, Miles was named to the ACC’s preseason all-conference team. She was one of three team members to receive first-place votes (she received three). This comes one year after she was the only freshman to make the All-ACC First Team.

Big expectations mean someone likely will be recognized, and Miles is that someone for the Irish.

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Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey speaks at ACC media day

Think the Irish have another deep tournament run in them?

Entering her third season as the legendary [autotag]Muffet McGraw[/autotag]’s successor, Notre Dame coach [autotag]Niele Ivey[/autotag] has every reason for optimism. She went from .500 in her first year at the helm to 24-9 and an appearance in the Sweet 16. But for a late Irish collapse against NC State in their final game, the Final Four would have been within their reach. Alas, neither Ivey nor her team could be disappointed by how far they had come.

All of that is history now, and Ivey is ready to see what she can do with this year’s Irish. She answered questions about it during the ACC’s media day Tuesday in Charlotte, North Carolina:

Olivia Miles calls out trolls after Notre Dame NCAA Tournament loss

Be better, Irish fans.

It always is disheartening to write stories about high-profile athletes becoming targets of angry fans after a big loss. Sadly, this is one of the effects of everyone being connected to everyone. It happened to Kyle Hamilton and Kyren Williams after they skipped the Fiesta Bowl that the football team lost. Now, it appears that toxicity has reached Olivia Miles after the women’s basketball team’s NCAA Tournament collapse because she tweeted this:

Look, we know it hurts like crazy when your team snatches defeat from the jaws of victory when the stakes are high. Still, why would your first thought in the aftermath be to target the athletes and even threaten to take them out? Does it make you feel better? Exactly what purpose does this serve?

Please find a healthier way to express your feelings in the heat of the moment. These athletes do not exist solely to entertain you. If your happiness depends on how your teams perform this much, it might be time to rethink your life.

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NC State deals Notre Dame heartbreaking defeat in NCAA Tournament

This one hurts.

Notre Dame had top-seeded NC State on the ropes in the Sweet 16 of the Bridgeport Regional in the NCAA Tournament. In fact, the Irish were mere seconds away from defeating the Wolfpack for the second time this season and getting back to the Elite Eight. Instead, the tables turned at the worst possible time, and the Irish will head home after losing a 66-63 heartbreaker.

The Irish (24-9) took the lead in the second quarter, during which they had a 26-14 scoring advantage over the Wolfpack (32-3). They led by as much as 10 without falling behind and still had a four-point advantage with 1:45 to go. That lead was cut to 66-63, and the game was about to be tied but for Elissa Cunane’s first missed free throw of the game. Maya Dodson got the rebound, and the Irish called a timeout hoping to milk the clock with 35 seconds left.

Out of the timeout, the worst possible thing happened, and it surely will haunt Dara Mabrey forever. Raina Perez picked the senior clean at the center-court logo and broke free for a wide-open layup with nobody in front of her, giving the Wolfpack the slimmest of leads. The Irish called their last timeout to set up a game-winning basket, but Maddy Westbeld missed a 3-pointer, and Perez got the rebound and was fouled with 1.5 seconds remaining. Perez made two free throws, and the stunned Irish could only watch the Wolfpack celebrate their incredible come-from-behind victory.

As predicted, Cunane was the Wolfpack’s most productive player with 16 points and 10 rebounds, but it was the defense that will be remembered most in this game. Kai Crutchfield had three of her four steals in the fourth quarter, and two of those led to four of her 14 points. Perez also had four steals, none bigger than the last one.

Olivia Miles nearly carried the Irish on her back to the finish line as she led all scorers with 21 points. Westbeld scored 13 points to go with eight rebounds and three steals. However, she also committed five of the Irish’s 16 turnovers.

This one will sting for the Irish for a while, especially after being outscored, 20-10, in the fourth quarter. At the same time, this was the season in which Niele Ivey was able to establish herself as the right person to lead the program going forward. Most of the team will be back next season, and only more progress can result. The Irish are back, and they’re not going away.

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Notre Dame dominates Oklahoma from start to advance to Sweet 16

That was a whooping.

The second-round NCAA Tournament game between Notre Dame and Oklahoma was competitive for about two-and-a-half minutes. After that, any semblance of a level playing field in this contest completely evaporated. That’s because the Irish began a complete embarrassment of the Sooners on their home floor. Their 108-64 win set a program NCAA Tournament record for offensive output and set up a meeting with top-seeded NC State in the Sweet 16.

After the Irish (24-8) found themselves down, 7-5, to the Sooners (25-9), they had absolutely nothing to worry about. Led by four 3-pointers from Dara Mabrey, they scored 20 unanswered points and never were threatened again. Their 35 first-quarter points were their most in any quarter this season. Helped by Sooners 28 turnovers, they continued to pour it on throughout, reminding everyone yet again that this program has emerged from the doldrums.

Mabrey finished with seven 3-pointers and a game-high 29 points. Sonia Citron wasn’t far behind with 25, and she made all 11 of her free throws. Maya Dodson scored 20 on 8-of-11 shooting from the field, and Maddy Westbeld flirted with a double-double as she totaled 13 points and nine rebounds. Also coming close to a double-double was Olivia Miles, who scored nine points and had 12 assists.

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Oklahoma Sooners vs. Notre Dame in NCAA Tournament: Stream, injury report and broadcast

Here’s how you can check out the action between the Oklahoma Sooners and Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the NCAA Tournament.

After a strong performance against IUPUI in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, the Oklahoma Women’s basketball team will face a tough test from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. With four players averaging double-figures in points, the Sooners will have to be on guard to slow down the Irish offense.

The Sooners got fantastic performances from Madi Williams and Taylor Robertson, who each scored 20 points in the opening round win over IUPUI. This is the furthest the Sooners have advanced in the NCAA Tournament since 2017. If they can knock off Notre Dame tonight at the Lloyd Noble Center, they’ll advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013.

For Notre Dame, they knocked off UMass in the opening round of the tournament behind Olivia Miles triple double. Like Oklahoma coach Jennie Baranczyk, it was the first win for Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey in her tenure with the Irish.

How to Watch

  • Date: March 21
  • Time: 5 p.m. CDT
  • TV Channel: ESPN2
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch here)

Injury Report

Oklahoma

Skylar Vann: probable (leg)

Notre Dame

N/A

Players to watch

Oklahoma

Madi Williams: 18.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 steals per game.

Taylor Robertson: 17.1 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.1 steals per game.

Skylar Vann: 11.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists per game, 1.5 steals per game

Notre Dame

Olivia Miles: 13.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 7.3 assists, 1.8 steals per game.

Maya Dodson: 12.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 2.7 blocks per game.

Maddy Westbeld: 11.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.1 steals per game.

Sonia Citron: 11.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists per game.

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Notre Dame beats Massachusetts in first round of NCAA Tournament

The Irish have past their first tournament test.

If Notre Dame had lost to Massachusetts in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, no one would have been surprised. After all, two No. 5 seeds already had fallen, so it would have been forgivable not to bat an eye at seeing it happen again. But it didn’t happen this time, and the Irish are into the second round after an 89-78 win in Norman, Oklahoma.

The Irish (23-8) got off to a fast start, going up by as much as 17 in the first half. The Minutewomen (26-7) cut that lead by more than half going into the break when Sam Breen hit a buzzer-beating half-court shot. When the lead was whittled down to six in the third quarter, another No. 12 seed looked like it was on its way to victory. Instead, the Irish went on an 11-0 run, and that was all she wrote for the Minutewomen.

It was a historic game for Olivia Miles, who achieved the second triple-double of her collegiate career: 12 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists. She joins Skylar Diggins and Jackie Young as the only players in program history with two triple-doubles. While she also had six turnovers, no one will remember that.

Maddy Westbeld led the Irish with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field. The Irish also got 18 points apiece from Dara Mabrey and Maya Dodson.

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Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles, Sonia Citron win ACC awards

Congrats, ladies!

There are a lot of reasons Notre Dame is 16-4. Two of them are Olivia Miles and Sonia Citron. These particular two were impressive enough recently that they were named the ACC Player of the Week and ACC Freshman of the Week, respectively. It’s the fifth time in program history the Irish have swept a conference’s weekly awards, and Niele Ivey was happy to bask in her players’ honors:

In the Irish’s home wins over Syracuse and Boston College, Miles had averages of 23.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 7.5 assists. The latter of those games saw her score 30 points and dish out six assists.

Citron has won the conference’s weekly freshman honor five times now, more than anyone else this season. Her averages were 13.5 points and 8.0 rebounds, and she had a shooting line of .625/.667/.714.

The only other time the Irish have swept these weekly awards since joining the ACC came in December 2015 when the honors went to Madison Cable and Arike Ogunbowale.

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