Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 5, 2022 47 WOMEN'S BASKETBALL BY TYLER HORKA N otre Dame's Olivia Miles didn't be- come one of the nation's best point guards overnight, no matter how much it seemed like that might have been the case during her dazzling, head-turning first full season as an NCAA basketball player. It only took two starts in 2021-22 for Miles to record her first double-double, a 16-point, 11-rebound performance in a 76-50 Irish victory over Western Illi- nois. She put up 14 points and 14 assists against Bryant 10 days later. Two and a half weeks after that, she notched a tri- ple-double with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 13 assists at Valparaiso. Just like that, Miles had arrived. But the arrival felt more like a 12-hour flight to a foreign country than it did a connection from South Bend to Chicago for Miles. There was much that went on from the time Miles first arrived on Notre Dame's campus in January 2021 to when she began recording videogame-like numbers in games that counted. "There was definitely a learning curve, but it more so happened be- hind the scenes in practice," Miles said at ACC Tipoff Media Day in Charlotte in mid-October. "[Notre Dame head] Coach [Niele] Ivey really just helped me learn the plays and get more acclimated mentally, physically, emotionally. The game is so different than high school." She hasn't made it seem that way, and that's a testament to her talent. Miles averaged a team-high 13.7 points with 7.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game last season. She compiled the second-ever postseason triple-double in Notre Dame history with 12 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in a win over Massachusetts in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. In the Irish's heartbreaking defeat to North Carolina State in the Sweet 16, Miles poured in 21 points. It is easy to forget there are still three more years of this for Ivey and company. How often do players reach the peak of their playing prowess as freshmen? Seldom, if ever. The scariest thought for ACC opponents and potential postsea- son foes of Notre Dame is that Miles — the goggles-wearing, mid-game danc- ing, ever exuberant Irish floor general — is only going to keep improving. "I just think the sky's the limit for her," Ivey said. "When she stepped on campus, I remember her coming to practice, and she had an elite finish. "I was like, 'She's just different.' She's amazing to coach. She always wants to learn more." And that's a good thing. There is al- ways more to learn. There is a maturity element Miles still needs to fully embrace. She got in the face of a Louisville player, for example, in a game Notre Dame once trailed 45-4 in last season's regular-season finale. Miles came away with a steal and raced to score a layup to cut Notre Dame's deficit to 48-10. Some words were exchanged and so was some pushing and shoving. Miles wasn't just in the middle of it. She was an instigator. The best thing for Miles was that it did not define her season. There might be a few Cardinals players and coaches who aren't particularly fond of her after the altercation, but players from that side got involved, too. There were four fouls called in the sequence; two on Notre Dame players, and two on Louisville players. That's the heat of a rivalry. Understand the wrong- doings and move on. Miles has moved into a position of great leadership for the Irish entering her second full season with the pro- gram. There are four newcomers on the roster; three transfers (Lauren Ebo, Kylee Watson and Jenna Brown) and a true freshman (KK Bransford). There are also four returning starters (Miles, Dara Mabrey, Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld). Mabrey and Westbeld are the longest tenured of the bunch. But Miles provides a quality of on- court governance through her role as the point guard — and a mighty fine one at that — that the others cannot match. The ball is quite literally in her court. "She's very unselfish," Ivey said. "She always wants to make everybody better around her. Being a point guard, it's just really refreshing to have someone like that." ✦ 'The Sky's The Limit' For Sophomore Olivia Miles Miles, who compiled the second-ever postseason triple-double in school history, aims to keep improving in her second full season with the program. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS NOTRE DAME TO HOST PRESEASON EXHIBITION VS. TRUMAN STATE Notre Dame's season does not officially get underway until Nov. 7 vs. Northern Illinois. But the Fight- ing Irish will put their product on display at Purcell Pavilion a week sooner than that. Notre Dame hosts Truman State in an exhibition at 7 p.m. on Oct. 31. The game will be broadcast on the Notre Dame Radio Network. It's the only exhibition of the year for Notre Dame. Truman State has one against Creighton on Oct. 29 in Omaha, Neb. The Bulldogs went 18-11 overall with a 13-6 record in the Great Lakes Valley Confer- ence in 2021-22. Notre Dame won last year's lone exhibition tune-up 104-46 over Emporia Stat e on Nov. 1, 2021. — Tyler Horka