Irish Women’s Hoops notched an 80-70 overtime upset win over the number four ranked Texas Longhorns thanks to a 30-point performance from Hannah Hidalgo. We have your recap of the notable effort here:
Photo via Notre Dame Athletics
The Irish entered the matchup 5-2 and ranked number ten in the country, coming off a 0-2 appearance in the Cayman Islands Classic. The unsuccessful trip to the Caymans included a 68-76 loss to 17th-ranked TCU. Before the trip, the Irish notched their best win of the season in their victory over number-three USC.
The Longhorns entered as two and a half points favorites, with a perfect 7-0 record. They most recently won the Gulf Coast Showcase, which included a notable win versus 12th-ranked West Virginia in the first-place game. The matchup between the Irish and Longhorns was a part of the SEC/ACC Women’s Challenge.
A tight first quarter resulted in a 22-19 Texas lead after ten minutes. Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and Sonia Citron started strong, combining for 17 of the Irish’s 19 points. On the other side, Texas’ Madison Booker and Shay Holle combined for 16 of the Longhorns’ 22.
Notre Dame had an impressive second quarter, outscoring Texas 20-12 to take a 39-34 lead into the half. Four different scorers for the Irish found the bottom of the net in this quarter including Hidalgo, Citron, Olivia Miles, and Liatu King. Good defense from both teams led to a scoreless final two minutes of the half.
This defensive prowess carried over to the third quarter. Both squads only added 14 points in this quarter, including good efforts from Citron, Miles, and King. Kyla Oldacre had six of the Longhorns’ 14 points. Notre Dame closed the quarter maintaining their five-point lead, 53-48.
Texas started the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run to even the score at 55 with eight minutes remaining. The game stayed within two points for the rest of the quarter in a back-and-forth affair. With seven seconds remaining, Texas’ Rori Harmon connected on a mid-range jumper to even the game at 66. Following a pair of timeouts, Miles connected on a go-ahead layup with just two seconds to spare to give the Irish back their lead. A costly foul last second foul by the Irish allowed Texas and Harmon to send the game to overtime, which she did not miss. This top-ten battle needed five more extra minutes tied at 68.
Oldacre scored the first points of overtime to give Texas their first lead since halfway through the fourth quarter. These ended up being the only points the Longhorns could muster in the five minutes. The Irish caught fire at the perfect moment, outscoring Texas 12-2 in overtime, highlighted by Hidalgo’s six points.
Notre Dame’s 80-70 win improves their record to 6-2 and should expect a nice bump in next week’s AP Poll. The Irish open ACC play this weekend at Syracuse.
Key Player Stats:
Hannah Hidalgo (ND): 30 points (11-20 from the field, 3-5 from three), 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals
Liatu King (ND): 10 points (4-7 from the field), 12 rebounds, 4 steals
Olivia Miles (ND): 18 points (6-11 from the field, 2-4 from three), 6 assists
Sonia Citron (ND): 18 points, 7 rebounds, 7 steals
Kate Koval (ND): 4 points, 4 rebounds, 5 blocks
Madison Booker (TEX): 20 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, block
Kyla Oldacre (TEX): 13 points (5-9 from the field), 8 rebounds, 3 blocks
Rori Harmon (TEX): 6 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals
Key Team Stats:
Field Goal Percentage: ND (44.4%) - UT (37%)
Three Point Percentage: ND (47.1%) - UT (33.3%)
Free Throw Percentage: ND (94.1%) - UT (72.7%)
Rebounds: UT (46) - ND (37)
Steals: ND (16) - UT (8)
Turnovers: UT (23) - ND (17)
Points Off Turnovers: ND (24) - UT (15)
Points In Paint: ND (34) - UT (24)
Click to Join! - https://www.facebook.com/groups/legionoftheleprechaun
Comments