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Newsstand: Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo named finalist for two national player of the year awards

IMG_7504by:Jack Soble•03/26/25•

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Hannah Hidalgo (3) reacts in the first half against the Louisville Cardinals at the Purcell Pavilion. (Photo by Matt Cashore-Imagn Images)

Hannah Hidalgo was named a finalist for two national player of the year awards Monday as she leads Notre Dame into the Sweet 16.

Hidalgo is up for Naismith Women’s Player of the Year and the Wade Trophy, both of which are given to the best player in women’s college basketball. She put together a second-straight All-American season, averaging 24.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 3.7 steals per game.

The 5-foot-6 sophomore guard from New Jersey shot with startling efficiency, drilling 47.3 percent of her shots from the field, 40.8 percent from three-point range and 86.3 percent from the free-throw line. She also brought her turnovers down from her prolific freshman year, lowering them from 3.4 per game to 2.8.

For the Naismith Women’s Player of the Year award, Hidalgo is a finalist alongside UCLA’s Lauren Betts, UConn’s Paige Bueckers and USC’s Juju Watkins — who, sadly, will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL suffered Monday night. For the Wade Trophy, Hidalgo will compete with Bueckers, Watkins and Texas’ Madison Booker.

No. 3 Notre Dame will take on No. 2 TCU in the Sweet 16 at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday in Birmingham, Ala. The Irish reached the NCAA Tournament’s second weekend for the fourth year in a row under head coach Niele Ivey, defeating Stephen F. Austin in the first round and Michigan in the second.

Notre Dame tweets of the day

These running backs look dangerous.

Fan support for Notre Dame women’s basketball is better than ever.

It might not have led to any commitments yet, but the Irish have a ton of momentum on the recruiting trail.

Quote of the day

“It’s a lot different, Notre Dame now vs. when [my dad] played here. But at the end of the day, the blue and gold stays the same. The values and the principles that the team holds have been consistent.”

— Notre Dame wide receiver Jerome Bettis Jr.

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