What's next for Notre Dame women's basketball? NCAA Tournament waiting game

Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey probably didn’t know it at the time. She was was busy, after all.

During her team’s ACC Tournament semifinal matchup against Miami on Saturday, ACC Network flashed an infographic on the screen. It showed the Fighting Irish as a No. 5 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. However, if they beat the Hurricanes, they would move into an ultra-important No. 4 seed position according to ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme.

Did Ivey have any way of knowing those specifics? No. She had a game to coach. A tightly-contested, scratch-and-claw type of game at that. But was she at least a little aware of those sort of stakes going into the matchup? She had to have been. She’s known for a while now that Notre Dame has been living on the edge of potentially hosting the first and second rounds of the big dance or having to go play in someone else’s house.

Sunday’s 57-54 loss to the Hurricanes likely burst the bubble. The chances Notre Dame gets to stay at home at Purcell Pavilion, a place the Irish have produced a 13-1 record this season, when the NCAA Tournament begins on March 18 are now very slim. The conference tournament was a chance to bolster those odds with one last triumphant push, and a 1-1 record in Greensboro, N.C., simply didn’t do enough.

Just don’t tell Ivey it’s signed, sealed and delivered.

“That’s definitely not in our control,” she said. “I talk to the group about how far we’ve come this season. Our growth and maturation has been incredible, and I feel like we put ourselves in an incredible position to host. We have an incredible fan base, so I’m hoping we get that opportunity.”

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The top 16 overall seeds get to host. Notre Dame woke up Sunday sitting at No. 19 in the NET Rankings. A 22-8 overall record and the third best ACC record (13-5) in the league are both very strong figures. Just not strong enough. Not when four ACC foes — No. 2 NC State, No. 5 Louisville, No. 6 North Carolina and No. 11 Virginia Tech — are firmly ahead in the NET.

Notre Dame notched victories over three of those teams. It was the team they couldn’t beat, however, that likely kept the Irish out of a position to host. Louisville beat Notre Dame twice by an average margin of 24 points. A week ago, the Irish trailed the Cardinals by 42 points in their own building — the one they so desperately want to play two more games in. The committee will remember that blowout.

Ivey was correct to a degree, though. Notre Dame did exhibit growth and maturation relative to last year’s 10-10 record. The Irish were left out of the postseason. One year later, they’re firmly in the NCAA Tournament no matter where they have to play. Wherever it ends up being, there is still a viable path to the Sweet 16. A No. 4 vs. No. 5 seed matchup isn’t doomsday for a team that has beaten a potential No. 1 seed (NC State).

One more big step in the maturation process is making a March run in a hostile environment. Purcell Pavilion, site of that monumental win over the Wolfpack, was so good to the Irish this season. The road, not so much. At times, Notre Dame looked like a completely different team away from home. If that happens again, it’ll be a short stay in the tournament. But if the Irish find a gear they couldn’t quite get to against Miami on Saturday, then making it to the second weekend is a serious possibility.

And oh how sweet that would be for a team that would have just been happy to be here a few months ago.

“I didn’t get an opportunity to make the tournament last year, and it’s something that obviously is extremely important to me,” Ivey said. “I know we put ourselves in the position to do that, and I’m super grateful for that. We’ll just look forward to seeing what happens and we’ll be ready.”

The NCAA Tournament selection show is one week from today; Sunday, March 13.