| GAME 35: | No. 2 Notre Dame (28-6) vs No. 3 Oregon State (26-7) |
|---|---|
| WHEN: | Friday, March 29 | 2:30 p.m. ET |
| WHERE | Albany, N.Y. | MVP Arena |
| WATCH: | ESPN |
| LISTEN: | Notre Dame Radio Network |
| SOCIAL: | @NDWBB | #GOIRISH |
STORRS, Conn. — Eleven meetings in the Big East Tournament. Six meetings in the Final Four. Two meetings in the national championship. And on Saturday night, No. 15 Notre Dame (14-4) and No. 8 Connecticut (17-3) will add another chapter to one of college basketball’s most storied rivalries. It’s a major opportunity for both teams to showcase they are still among the nation’s best, but for the Irish, there’s an added level of pressure.
After starting the year 9-1 with a sole loss to No. 1 South Carolina, Notre Dame has gone 5-3 to start ACC play. The group fell against Syracuse on Thursday after a stagnant fourth quarter filled with careless mistakes.
The Irish have shown flashes of elite play on both sides of the ball, but they have yet to put together a complete 40 minutes against a ranked opponent. Freshman phenom Hannah Hidalgo continues to lead the nation in steals (5.4) and the ACC in scoring (23.9). She is flanked by two former ACC Rookies of the Year themselves, Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld. Since Citron returned to play after suffering a knee sprain in November, the junior guard is leading the ACC in conference play with a 41 percent mark from behind the arc and a 93.3 percent clip from the charity stripe.
Citron and Westbeld have been in rowdy atmospheres, but Hidalgo and players like transfer Anna DeWolfe have not. Saturday will change that.
“It’s going to be a big learning experience for us,” Karen and Kevin Keyes Family Head Coach Niele Ivey said earlier this week.
UConn, on the other hand, hasn’t lost in nearly two months and is perfect in Big East play. The Huskies are led by Paige Beuckers, who is posting 20.1 points per game. She missed last year’s contest against the Irish due to rehabbing a torn ACL.
On the topic of injuries and like Notre Dame, UConn has faced its own tribulations in that area this season. The Huskies currently have five players who are sidelined for the year: Azzi Fudd (ACL), Aubrey Griffin (ACL), Ayanna Patterson (knee), Jana El Alfy (Achilles) and Caroline Ducharme (neck/head). Fudd, Griffin and Ducharme had all started games for UConn this season. Head coach Geno Auriemma has just nine healthy players.
The Huskies statistically have the advantage in most categories, but Notre Dame is well within reach. The Irish have not been rebounding well recently, but Ivey’s team is actually outrebounding UConn 42.3-37.9. The Huskies don’t miss often — they rank second in the nation in field goal percentage — but if Notre Dame can keep them from getting second chance opportunities, the Irish could make some noise.
Saturday night’s game will be televised nationally on Fox. Gus Johnson and Stephanie White will be on the call, and the game tips off at 8 p.m. Notre Dame is 14-39 all-time against Connecticut.