Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM DECEMBER 2025 39 BY ERIC HANSEN During the Notre Dame wom- en's basketball team's final game before an extended Thanksgiv- ing week break Nov. 24, ESPN/ ACC Network analyst Carolyn Peck marveled at how much bet- ter the 19th-ranked Irish might look a month from now when all the new pieces settled in. While much of Notre Dame's own fan base looked at the same big picture and wondered when the pieces would fall apart — for good. These are the dueling hypo- theticals framing sixth-year Irish head coach Niele Ivey's world. She rode some pretty dramatic roster churn from the offseason to a 5-1 start, following an 83-51 dismissal of Central Michigan Nov. 24. And Notre Dame has shown stretches of being able to step into either one of those scenarios, but more of those hint at this team being an overall overachiever from preseason expectations. Especially taking down then-No. 11 Southern Cal, which dropped to No. 18 in the next AP poll, Nov. 21 after getting blown out by No. 6 Michigan Nov. 15. The next data point — and it's a sig- nificant one — in that perceptual tug- of-war comes Dec. 4 at 13th-ranked Ole Miss in an ACC/SEC Challenge matchup on ESPN2 (9 p.m. ET). Here are some ruminations to chew on in the meantime: 1. Is there enough talent around two-time All- American Hannah Hidalgo to at least get back to the NCAA Tournament's Sweet 16 for the fifth straight season? The 5-foot-6 junior point guard, after the Cen- tral Michigan win, led the nation in both scoring (27.0 points per game) and steals (6.2 a contest). Three other Irish are averaging in double figures — guards Cass Prosper (15.2), KK Bransford (12.8) and Duke transfer Vanessa de Jesus (11.2). The question is more about addressing potential and real weaknesses beyond pure scoring. Does Notre Dame have players who can defend teams with size and elite skill in the post? And are there enough three-point threats around Hidalgo? Two late-starting transfers (due to injuries) could be affirmatives to those questions, and we should know by Peck's pro- jected late-December timeline if that's the case. So far, Wake Forest grad transfer Malaya Cowles hasn't been much of an offensive threat, but the 6-foot-3 center is starting to play better defense. And if she can give the Irish what Texas transfer Lauren Ebo provided in 2023 in terms of modest scoring but consistent rebounding and defense, that's a win. Then there's Vanderbilt grad transfer guard Iyana Moore, who could be an answer to more long- range firepower. She was a second-team All-SEC selection two seasons ago and is a career .373 shooter from the three-point arc. She was 4 of 8 from three-point range against Central Michigan. Meanwhile, Kansas State 6-3 grad transfer Gisela Sanchez has been a pleasant surprise so far in a number of areas, including a team-leading 46.7 percent three-point accuracy (7 of 15). 2. How good is the ACC this season? Maybe not as good as advertised going into the season. Duke was the No. 7 team in the Associated Press preseason poll and pegged as the favorite to win the conference, but the Blue Devils have dropped completely out of the top 25. North Carolina State, preseason No. 9, is now at No. 25. The Irish are actually the second-highest ranked ACC team, behind only No. 12 North Caro- lina. The latest ESPN Bracketology projects the Irish as a No. 6 seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, playing No. 11 seed Fairfield, with a potential sec- ond-round game with 3 seed and host Maryland. Last season the ACC finished with three teams in the AP top 10, so perhaps there's not the elite teams the league had last year, but maybe this season a competitive middle class is the reality the Irish will have to deal with on a game-by-game basis. Last year eight ACC teams made the 68-team tournament field, and the latest Bracketology has nine ACC squads in the 2026 field, though two of them are in the "last four in" category. 3. What do the Irish do well, and what needs the most work? Ivey wants her team's identity to be, above all, a strong defensive squad. And the Irish have a severe split personality in that regard. The Irish are third in the nation in steals per game (18.3) and have hit double digits in that category in all six games. But out of 359 Division I teams, Notre Dame is 293rd in field goal percentage defense (43.6) and 145th in scoring defense (61.8 points allowed per outing). Again, team three-point shooting needs work (237th). But Notre Dame is top 40 in overall field goal percentage, free throw percentage and re- bounding, and is one of the nation's best teams in turnover margin (seventh). The Irish are best when they can make a living on transition basketball, as their 28-0 advantage in fast-break points against Central Michigan sug- gests. But the good ACC teams will figure out ways to force Notre Dame to have to execute half-court offense. That was a huge problem for the Irish during their late-season slump in 2024-25, more so than any real or embellished locker room drama. They need to have that gear this season. ✦ 2025-26 NOTRE DAME WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET)/Result Nov. 5 Fairleigh Dickinson W, 98-52 Nov. 9 Chicago State W, 116-58 Nov. 12 Akron W, 85-58 Nov. 15 vs. Michigan! L, 93-54 Nov. 21 Southern Cal W, 61-59 Nov. 24 Central Michigan W, 83-51 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 at 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 Chal- lenge; * ACC Game Senior guard Cass Prosper was averaging 15.2 points per game during Notre Dame's 5-1 start, making her one of four double-digit scorers on the team. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Notre Dame's Shifting Big Picture