| GAME 12 | No. 3 Notre Dame (9-2) vs Loyola MD (5-4) |
|---|---|
| WHEN: | Sunday, Dec. 22 | 12 p.m. |
| WHERE | South Bend, Ind. | Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center |
| WATCH: | ACCNX |
| LISTEN: | Notre Dame Radio Network |
| SOCIAL: | @NDWBB | #GOIRISH |
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — No. 16 Notre Dame (10-2, 1-1) needs to make a statement. Sunday will provide an opportunity to do so, as the Irish host North Carolina (10-4, 2-0) at Purcell Pavilion.
Notre Dame is coming off of a rollercoaster win at Pittsburgh on Thursday. The Irish had a 28-10 lead in the first quarter before giving it up and going through a back-and-forth fourth quarter that ended in the away team’s favor, 71-66.
Hannah Hidalgo leads Notre Dame in scoring (24.5), assists (6.1) and steals (5.8), continuing to wow the nation as she plays. The freshman phenom and six-time ACC Rookie of the Week now has 11 games in with at least 20 points. For reference, the Notre Dame freshman record is 13, held by Beth Morgan.
Hidalgo is leading the team night in and night out, but Anna DeWolfe has been heating up since the calendar flipped to December. The graduate transfer has averaged 12.2 points per game since the Lafayette game, and she has made a team-leading 13 buckets from behind the arc. DeWolfe played 40 minutes against Pittsburgh, the first Irish player to play a full game this season.
UNC, however, is coming off of a drubbing of No. 25 Syracuse, 75-51. It was the first game UNC has played this season while ranked outside of the AP Top 25. Guard Alyssa Ustby made history for the program during the win, recording the first triple-double in UNC history. She posted 16 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Ustby is the Tar Heels’ leading rebounder at 9.4 per game. Deja Kelly is UNC’s leading scorer, averaging 14.7 points per contest.
Notre Dame is 10-4 all-time against North Carolina. Sunday’s game will air on ESPN2 and tips off at 5 p.m.