| NCAA Bridgeport Regional: | #5 Seed Notre Dame |
|---|---|
| Where: | Bridgeport, CT | Total Mortgage Arena |
| Listen: | 99.9 WQLQ-FM | ND Radio Network |
| Notes: | ND Notes |
| Social: | @NDWBB |
| Sweet 16: | #1 seed NC State |
| When: | Saturday, March 26 | 11:30 am ET |
| Watch: | ESPN |
| Elite 8: | #2 seed UConn or #3 seed Indiana |
| When: | Monday, March 28 | TBD |
Notre Dame Notes | Florida State Notes
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – For the first time since Jan. 17, the Notre Dame women’s basketball team will be competing at home inside Purcell Pavilion. And just like that, it’s also Senior Day with the last two games of the regular season upon us. Thursday’s pivotal matchup against Florida State (9-6, 8-6) also doubles as Notre Dame’s annual Pink Game. Tip is set for 7 p.m. EST, streaming live on ACCNX.
SENIOR DAY
A special thank you goes out to our seniors Mikki Vaughn and Nicole Benz, plus graduate student Destinee Walker. The Irish trio will be honored before Thursday night’s game with a special pre-game ceremony.
PINK GAME
One of the program’s favorite yearly traditions, Notre Dame is proud to still host the annual Pink Game this season. Though we won’t have a sold-out venue this year, there will be over 75 cut-outs in the stands. In addition, be sure to check out @NDWBB on its social media accounts at halftime for a special cancer survivor tribute.
HISTORY WITH FLORIDA STATE
Will the streak continue on Thursday night inside Purcell Pavilion. The Irish have never lost to the Florida State Seminoles, boasting an unblemished 10-0 record.
Just a year ago in Tallahassee, Notre Dame rallied down 11 points in the second half to upset No. 19 Florida State, 70-67. Sam Brunelle poured in 25 points behind a career-high seven three-pointers, tying ND great Alicia Ratay for the most in a game by a freshman. Mikki Vaughn and Destinee Walker also finished in double figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
ACC ROOKIE OF THE YEAR NOMINEE
Maddy Westbeld has the most complete game among ACC rookies this season and here’s the stats to back it up:
• ACC Freshmen Rankings: 2nd in Scoring, 2nd in Rebounding, 2nd in Steals, 4th in Blocks & 4th in Assists. She is the only freshman in the league to rank in the top-four in all above-mentioned categories.
• Miss Do It All: Maddy is the only freshman in the country averaging at least 15 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists & 1.5 steals.
• Ranks 4th in the country among freshmen in the Points+Rebounds+Assists/Game category with 25.2. Tops ACC freshmen.
• Her 15.1 ppg ranks 2nd among ACC rookies and ranks 11th overall in the league. Nationally, her scoring average ranks 13th among all Division I freshmen.
• Riding a career-high seven-game double-digit scoring streak. Also boasts two double-doubles on the year.
6TH WOMAN OF THE YEAR NOMINEE
The stats don’t lie, Destinee is the third-highest scoring sub in the entire country right now, averaging 12.1 ppg. When looking at the ACC, the next best sixth player is Syracuse’s Emily Engstler, who averages 9.3 ppg.
It’s not too often you have a 2020 ACC Honorable Mention player coming off your bench. Over the last 11 games in particular, Destinee has thrived, scoring in double figures in seven of them, and even leading the Irish in scoring in three.
RECORD CHASING
Speaking of Destinee, she has been absolutely dominant at the free-throw line this season. She ranks 2nd in the ACC and 12th in the country, converting 90.6 percent of her attempts, aka 48-of-53. In addition, she currently has made 23 free throws in a row.
Destinee has a solid chance at becoming the new top ND single-season free-throw shooter. The record is currently held by Kayla McBride, who shot 90.0 percent (90-of-100) in the 2012-13 season (minimum of 2.0 made per game).
HERE COME THE IRISH — OLIVIA MILES
Notre Dame received a major midseason pick-me-up in star point guard Olivia Miles, who became the program’s first ever early enrollee. She had three practices under her belt heading into Syracuse, where she made an immediate impact — four points, two assists, two rebounds and three steals in just under 15 minutes of action.
A week later, she found herself up against the No. 1 team in the country in Louisville. There, she scored six straight points in the 3rd quarter for the Irish before tying for the team high with 10 points. She did it on an efficient 5-of-8 shooting.
Game No. 3 – double-digits once more, tying her season high of 10 points at Pitt on Feb. 22.
WHO’S HOT
Before the break in games, Sam Brunelle was starting to hit a stride. The sophomore posted three straight games in double figures, totaling 39 points, 13 assists and 21 rebounds. Thus, she averaged 13.0 points, 4.3 assists and 7.0 rebounds.
Brunelle also recorded back-to-back games with a career high five assists. Also her 17 rebounds over the last two games were more than the previous seven games combined.
Freshman sensation Maddy Westbeld is riding a career-high seven-game double-digit scoring streak. The Ohio native is also coming off of a 20-point, 11-rebound double-double, her second of the season. It also marked the first 20-point double-double since Anaya Peoples against DePaul on Dec. 11, 2019.
BRACKETOLOGY REPORT
“Great moments are born from great opportunity.” According to the latest bracketology report from ESPN’s Charlie Creme, the Irish are listed as the First Four Out. Wake Forest is listed as the First Team Out as UNC hangs in the Last Four In, in a very bubbly ACC this year. In the final two games of the regular season, Notre Dame welcomes in Florida State on Thursday and No. 6/5 Louisville on Sunday. The Irish even have an opportunity to climb as high as a No. 4 seed for the ACC Tournament next week.
APPROACHING MILESTONE: 700
When it comes to the Mabrey family, that’s a whole lot of buckets. Queens of three some might say. Marina graduated in 2019 as the program’s all-time career made three-pointer leader, draining a total of 274. Michaela converted a career total of 228, while Dara now boasts 191. All-in-all, the Mabreys have totaled a whopping 693 splash-downs.