Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 8, 2025 55 to hang our hat on defense, our identity," Irish head coach Niele Ivey said prior to the game. "We've really been focusing on our defense. Obviously, the lineup looks a lot different. I'm excited about that." Ivey, too, is buoyed by a different ap- proach to her coaching, a product of self-reflection after the team's late- season slump and an NCAA Tourna- ment run that stalled in the Sweet 16. "There's so many things I took away from last season," Ivey said. "Obvi- ously, it was disappointing with the way that we ended the season. I've taken all those experiences, those lessons, and it's helped me grow as a coach. "I've taken all those lessons and am going to utilize them moving forward. First of all, I'm taking ownership of ev- erything. The highs and lows, I'm re- sponsible for it." After opening with FDU, a 2025 NCAA Tournament participant, the Irish host Chicago State Nov. 9 and Akron Nov. 12, before starting a four-game stretch that includes three ranked opponents. No. 13 Michigan, in the Shamrock Classic in Detroit, is the first in that swath of tough match-ups. No. 19 Southern Cal and 12th-ranked Ole Miss are the others. "This year, we're probably going to be under the radar from what people's expectations are of us," Ivey said. "And that doesn't matter to us. It never mat- ters outside of who we are in our locker room. We are focusing on getting better, focusing on this group, and focusing on what this group can do." It may take some time to figure out what that group can do through differ- ent lineup combinations and how best to neutralize the lack of post defenders with the depth and overall quickness of its guard ensemble. "I feel like it's like a big, blank canvas," Bransford said. "We can make what we want — offensively, defensively. Finding our identity has been really fun to do during this offseason. "I feel like we're going to be ready for the season to show that identity that we've been working so hard on this off- season. Being able to have that fresh start is really refreshing." ✦ 2025-26 NOTRE DAME WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET) Nov. 5 Fairleigh Dickinson (ACCNX) 7 p.m. Nov. 9 Chicago State (ACCNX) 3 p.m. Nov. 12 Akron (ACCNX) 7 p.m. Nov. 15 vs. Michigan! (NBC) 4 p.m. Nov. 21 Southern Cal (ESPN) 6 p.m. Nov. 24 Central Michigan (ACCN) 9 p.m. Dec. 4 at Ole Miss^ (ESPN2) 9 p.m. Dec. 7 at Florida State* (ACCNX) 2 p.m. Dec. 11 Morehead State (ACCNX) 7 p.m. Dec. 14 at James Madison (ESPN+) 4 p.m. Dec. 21 Bellarmine (ACCNX) 5 p.m. Dec. 29 Pittsburgh* (ACCN) 6 p.m. Jan. 1 at Georgia Tech* (ACCN) 4 p.m. Jan. 4 at Duke* TBA Jan. 8 Boston College* (ACCNX) 6 p.m. Jan. 11 North Carolina* (ESPN) 1 p.m. Jan. 15 Louisville* (ACCN) 6 p.m. Jan. 19 at Connecticut (FOX) 5 p.m. Jan. 22 Miami* (ACCN) 6 p.m. Jan. 25 Clemson* (ACCNX) 3 p.m. Jan. 29 at California* (ACCNX) 10 p.m. Feb. 1 at Stanford* (CW) 4 p.m. Feb. 5 Virginia Tech* (ACCNX) 7 p.m. Feb. 8 at Virginia* (ACCNX) 2 p.m. Feb. 15 NC State* (ESPN) TBA Feb. 19 at Wake Forest* (ACCNX) 6 p.m. Feb. 22 at SMU* (ACCN) 6 p.m. Feb. 26 Syracuse* (ACCNX) 7 p.m. March 1 at Louisville* (ESPN2) 4 p.m. ! Shamrock Classic at Detroit; ^ ACC/SEC Challenge; * ACC Game Fighting Irish Land Another Top-25 Recruit The Notre Dame women's basketball program contin- ues to flex its recommitment to building from the high school ranks. Elite small forward prospect Amari Byles is the latest cornerstone in that movement. The 6-foot-2 senior from DeSoto, Texas, became the fourth verbal commitment in the 2026 Irish class Oct. 25 and the second of the month from the state of Texas. Byles, who will play at Family Faith Academy in Dallas this season, is the No. 22 overall player nationally in the class per the Rivals Industry Ranking. She chose head coach Niele Ivey's Irish over fellow finalists Oregon and Baylor. And the Irish may not be finished yet, with Ivey hoping to add a fifth high school prospect before the early sign- ing period for women's hoops (Nov. 12-19). Notre Dame has five players with expiring eligibility after the 2025-26 season, including four of the five transfers the Irish added this summer. "In Amari Byles, the Irish are getting an athletic wing who's got size and who can make shots," said Dan Olson of Collegiate Girls Basketball Report. "She easily lifts and drains jumpers to the three-point line. She'll mismatch you. She's got superior size for a player who has back- court skills. "She can exploit you. She can rebound off the weak side. She can score off of pressure defense. This kid's been a model of consistency over the long haul of me watching her." Byles joins two other top-25 national recruits in the Irish class, and two-sport aspirant Isabella Sangha from Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who will also play volleyball. The 6-3 Sangha is No. 78 overall in the Rivals Industry Rankings. Bella Ragone, a 6-2 forward from Mill Creek High School in Hoschton, Ga., committed in May. She is the No. 24 overall recruit in the class. Jacy Abii made her pledge to the Irish Oct. 4. The versatile guard from Frisco, Texas, is the No. 12 overall player in the class. After missing the 2024 season with an ACL tear, Abii will play for Legion Prep Academy in Dallas, three miles down the road from Byles' high school. Byles and Johnston, Iowa, guard Jenica Lewis took official visits to Notre Dame the weekend of Oct 11. She's the nation's No. 21 overall recruit in the 2026 class. Lewis is among the prospects still in play for Notre Dame, as is guard Addison Bjorn, a 6-2 guard from Park Hill South High in Riverside, Mo. She took her official visit to Notre Dame on the Purdue football weekend (Sept. 20). Bjorn is the No. 14 overall player in the class. Meanwhile, two top-10 players from the 2027 class took unofficial visits to Notre Dame this fall. The na - tion's top center and No. 6 overall player in that class, 6-5 Caroline Bradley of Oak Grove, La., was in South Bend for a weekday visit Oct. 13. The No. 8 overall player in the class, 6-3 forward Eve Long from Olathe, Kan., visited Oct. 18 as did 2028 standout Janaya Cooper, a 5-11 wing from Fort Wayne, Ind. The Irish are coming off a 28-6 season in which they shared the ACC regular-season title with North Caro - lina State but stalled in the NCAA Tournament in the Sweet 16 round. Notre Dame will open this season ranked No. 15 in the Associated Press Top 25. The Irish open the season Nov. 5 at Purcell Pavilion against Fairleigh Dickinson. The Knights went 29-4 last season, and, like the Irish, were eliminated by TCU in the NCAA Tournament. — Eric Hansen Amari Byles, a 6-foot-2 small forward from DeSoto (Texas) High who is ranked as the No. 22 player overall nationally in the Rivals Industry Ranking, is the third top-25 recruit to join Notre Dame's 2026 class. PHOTO COURTESY USA BASKETBALL