INDIANAPOLIS — A pair of players were named to national watch lists, as Leah Macy was selected to the Tamika Catchings Award Watch List for National Freshman of the Year and Hannah Hidalgo was placed on the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Watch List which is presented to the National Player of the Year.
Both awards are voted on by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association.
LEAH MACY – TAMIKA CATCHINGS AWARD WATCH LIST
The freshman has already been named to the ACC Preseason Newcomer Watch List earlier this year.
Macy comes to the Irish as a highly touted freshman, hailing from Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The five-star forward was ranked No. 19 (No. 4 forward) in the Class of 2025 according to ESPN and was a McDonald’s All-American and four-time all-state first-team selection at Bethlehem High School.
As a senior, Macy averaged 27 points, 13.4 rebounds, 8 assists and shot 64.6 percent from the floor.
The USBWA has named a national freshman player of the year since the 1991-92 season. In the 2020-21 season the award was named for Tamika Catchings, the legendary Tennessee star who was a three-time USBWA All-American and the association’s national freshman player of the year in the 1997-98 season.
HANNAH HIDALGO – ANN MEYERS DRYSDALE AWARD WATCH LIST
The junior guard has already been named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year and is an AP Preseason All-American heading into this season.
Hidalgo is coming off of another record-breaking campaign last year. She averaged 23.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 3.7 steals per game. She was the only player on the men’s or women’s side to average at least 20.0 points per game, 5.0 rebounds per game and 3.0 steals per game while shooting at least .400 from three-point range and .850 from the free throw line since 2000.
The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award is presented annually to the women’s national player of the year by the USBWA. Named for the legendary UCLA guard, the award was first presented in the 1987-88 season and formally named in Meyers Drysdale’s honor in the 2011-12 season.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists for the award, which is voted on by the entire membership. The winner of the award will be announced at the 2026 Women’s Final Four in Phoenix, with the formal presentation to follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
Notre Dame is back at Purcell Pavilion at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Nov. 12 as it takes on Akron in a non-conference matchup. The game will be streamed on ACCNX.