CLEMSON, S.C. — She’s quietly been a hero all season, but on Sunday, the spotlight was on her, as third-ranked Notre Dame (14-2, 5-0) outlasted host Clemson (10-7, 3-3), 67-58. Liatu King’s 11-point fourth quarter helped the Irish pull away late, and the graduate forward finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds. She was an efficient 10-14 from the floor.
“It was so tough,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey said of King’s performance. “And on the defensive end, I had her guarding guards at times because they play four guards, and she was tremendous.”
Unlike many of the games this season, this contest was not a game of runs; no team scored more than 6 points without a countering bucket. The group — who was playing without All-American Hannah Hidalgo — maintained a single-digit lead throughout the game but couldn’t shake a pesky Clemson offense.
The Irish started 0-2 from the floor before hitting four in a row plus a pair of free throws by Olivia Miles to take a 10-6 advantage into the first media timeout. Clemson did not score from the floor for the final 7:02 of the first quarter, but the Tigers were bailed out by Irish fouls spotting them 5 points at the charity stripe. Notre Dame had a 17-11 lead after 10.
The Irish outscored the Tigers 13-11 in Q2 and had a 30-22 lead at the break. King led all players with 10 points, and she was tied for the game lead with 5 rebounds (Kate Koval). Miles and King were a combined 8-11 from the floor, while the rest of the team was 5-18. Clemson scored all 16 of its points from the floor in the paint.
Miles and Citron opened up the second-half scoring for Notre Dame with back-to-back fastbreak buckets after Notre Dame had just one in the first half. After going 0-10 from deep in the first half, Clemson started to drain triples, while the visitors went 0-5 from deep in the third quarter. The Tigers won the third frame, 19-17.
The Liatu King Show started soon after, as she could not miss from midrange. King went 4-5 from the floor in the final quarter and was fouled four times. The other 9 points in Q4 were scored by four different players, including a crucial triple by Maddy Westbeld. In doing so, the Irish escaped a tough road environment and remain the only undefeated team in conference play in the ACC.
Notre Dame now heads back to South Bend for back-to-back home games against No. 13 Georgia Tech on Thursday and SMU on Friday. The Irish have not faced the Mustangs since the 2008 NCAA Tournament.