SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Welcome to the block party. Nat Marshall is your host.
On Sunday, No. 14 Notre Dame (8-1) drubbed in-state rival Purdue (6-5), 76-39. The Irish are the first team to hold Purdue to fewer than 40 points since Connecticut did so on Nov. 24, 2018.
Marshall, Hannah Hidalgo and Maddy Westbeld all shined in various stat categories. Marshall posted her fifth consecutive game in double-figures (14 points) and had a career high 6 blocks. She is the first Irish player with a 6-block game since Maya Dodson did so against Boston College on Jan. 30, 2022. Sunday’s showing is also the first 6-block performance in the ACC this year.
“I am so proud of her, oh my gosh,” Westbeld said of Marshall after the game with an ear-to-ear grin. “We have been through every up and down. We started here together, and now to see her flourish, finally be healthy, and play with the confidence that we knew that she was capable of playing with…the sky is the limit for her.”
It was just another day at the office for Hannah Hidalgo, who finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and 7 steals. She is the first player since January 2022 in all of women’s college basketball to have a game with at least 20 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 steals. The 10 rebounds were a career-high for the rookie, and the 8 assists tied her best mark. Hidalgo now has 6 performances of at least 6 steals this year. As of Sunday afternoon, no other ACC player has posted more than one 6+ steal game.
For her part, Westbeld had 15 points and 12 rebounds, marking her fifth double-double of the year. She entered her senior season with 9 career double-doubles.
“We had an incredible performance all across the board,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey said. “Maddy is doing such a phenomenal job of leading us, from her voice to the way that she’s been dominating. She’s really doing a great job of having a presence but also being that dominant post that we need.”
As far as the game flow went, the Irish came out hot with an 11-0 run. Purdue followed it with a 7-0 run before both teams settled in.
Notre Dame was dominant in the paint in the first quarter; 14 of the 20 Irish points were in the lane. On the other side, Purdue struggled mightily in the paint in the first half. The Boilermakers went 4-14 on layups and turned the ball over 12 times. Notre Dame scored 12 points off of those turnovers.
The Boilermakers scored just 7 points in Q2, marking the fifth time this year Notre Dame has held an opponent to fewer than 10 points in a quarter. It was the first time they did it against a major conference foe. Notre Dame had Purdue nearly doubled up by halftime, 35-18. Hidalgo paced the game with 10 points, and Westbeld had 7 rebounds.
Purdue posted 7 points once again in the third frame, allowing Notre Dame to leave no doubt. The home team made 10 of 13 shots and outrebounded Purdue 11-7. By the time the clock struck zero, Notre Dame had its sixth win by more than 30 points this year.
“It was a sold out game, and the energy of the crowd was amazing,” Ivey said. “For the team to perform the way that they performed in such a dominant fashion for 40 minutes, it was icing on the cake for us to get this win today.”
Up next, Notre Dame hosts Western Michigan (4-4) for one last contest before Christmas. The Broncos will visit Thursday at 6 p.m.