Notre Dame women's basketball exits ACC Tournament with loss to Miami

Notre Dame had a chance to knock down a shot that would be replayed over and over again by Irish faithful. It would have gone down as one of those types of March moments. Of the unbelievable, are you kidding me, did you see that variety. The kind of moment this month gets so much acclaim for.

It just didn’t go down.

Senior guard Dara Mabrey popped free on the right wing and fired away. If there was anyone head coach Niele Ivey wanted to take a game-tying attempt with less than five seconds left, it was the player who has made more than twice as many triples as anyone else on the roster. The look was good. The release was as pure as it could be from the range the shot was taken from. It wasn’t the most stress-free environment to shoot in, either. Consider the circumstances.

Miami 57, Notre Dame 54. Time ticking down in a hurry. One shot to tie. Game over if it doesn’t go in.

The ball clanked off iron and landed in the hands of a Hurricane. Game over indeed. Less than 24 hours after knocking off No. 2 seed Louisville, No. 7 seed Miami took down No. 3 seed Notre Dame, 57-54, to reach the ACC Tournament Championship Game for the first time in program history.

“The three to tie it, I thought it was an incredible look,” Ivey said. “Credit to Miami, and it’s something we’re going to learn from. Unfortunately it was in March, but we definitely will take a lot from this game.”

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Notre Dame now awaits March 13’s selection show to find out where the Irish (22-8) will head for the NCAA Tournament. Notre Dame likely needed a victory Saturday to get back in the picture as a top-16 overall seed. Barring something unforeseen, Notre Dame will end up as a No. 5 seed — oh so close to hosting the first and second rounds in the comfort of Purcell Pavilion as a No. 4 seed.

Ivey is looking forward to the next week either way.

“I feel like we’re going to have a lot of time to get rest,” Ivey said. “We’re down, we only have seven healthy bodies, so it’s an opportunity for us to get some rest, recovery, and just work on us until we can figure out what the road looks like.”

BOX SCORE

Another slow start for Notre Dame

Notre Dame showed some fight to even get within three at the buzzer. The Irish fell behind 9-0 at the start and only scored four points in the first quarter, which marked the second time this week scoring less than five in the first frame.

Ivey’s team shot 2-of-11 from the floor in the first. Nothing came easy. Miami closed off the interior and forced mid-range jumpers. The Irish also weren’t able to get out in transition. In the half court, Notre Dame likes to feed the post. Above all, Notre Dame likes to get out and run.

Neither thing happened early, and it severely hampered the Irish. Miami led 12-4 after 10 minutes.

“I just think the ball didn’t drop for us,” Ivey said. “I thought we were a little bit tentative and then we finally got a chance to get going. I thought they came out hot.”

Foul trouble sinks in for Fighting Irish

Notre Dame felt the effects of only having the seven healthy bodies Ivey mentioned when three of the most important ones got into foul trouble. Maya Dodson, Olivia Miles and Maddy Westbeld — a trio that combined for 31 of Notre Dame’s points — all had two first-half fouls.

Despite having just two bench players, neither of whom can really replicate what Dodson provides in the post on either end of the floor, Ivey was only able to get 29 minutes out of her graduate senior center. Dodson finished the game with four fouls. Westbeld, Miles, Mabrey and freshman Sonia Citron, who had 10 points, seven rebounds and four assists, all had three fouls by game’s end.

Notre Dame isn’t able to play the aggressive brand of basketball it hangs its hat on when its best players are forced to play timid because of foul concerns. It definitely can’t play its best brand of basketball when Dodson is watching from the bench.

“In the beginning we were just kind of sluggish and then I got those two fouls, so that totally changes the trajectory because I’m usually the one in the center calling things out,” Dodson said.

Notre Dame zone defense gets spotty

Notre Dame tied the score at 26 at halftime, but Miami took a six-point lead into the final frame. The Hurricanes hit three huge threes and beat Irish defenders to the rim time and time again in the third. The Irish zone looked to have worn down a bit by then.

“I felt like they moved the ball around very well,” Ivey said. “They did a great job of putting the ball on the floor, mixed it up. And it took us a minute to really kind of adjust to the athleticism.”

Athletic mismatches have been a concern for the Irish all season, even against teams with a lesser body of work like Miami. Miles is a savvy point guard. Mabrey is a sharpshooter. But they aren’t the most physically gifted players at the top of a zone defense. Same goes for Westbeld and Citron on the edges down low. A lot of offensive talent between those two, but there are wing players who can drive right by both. Miami had some who did just that.

The rest period is certainly going to help Notre Dame get right mentally and aid in healing bumps and bruises, too. But at the end of the day, Notre Dame had a great opportunity to advance to the ACC Tournament title game for the first time since 2019 after Louisville lost Friday. As it turned out, the Irish fell victim to the same foe — one playing desperate, hungry and with a will to win.

“Miami is a great team and we’re in March so anything can happen,” Citron said. “But they’ve really been playing well, playing together, playing really competitively and sharing the ball, moving it around, so I’m definitely not surprised.”