Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey, commit Leah Macy win gold with USA Basketball
If Notre Dame ever wins a championship while Leah Macy is on the roster from the fall of 2025 through the spring of 2029, it won’t be the first shared between her and Fighting Irish head coach Niele Ivey. That duo won a gold medal on Sunday night at the FIBA U18 AmeriCup in Colombia.
The United States beat Canada, 80-69, in the championship game last night. Macy a 6-2 forward, did not appear in the closely contested game, but she played in all five games leading up to it — three group games plus the quarterfinals and semifinals. Ivey was one of two assistant coaches serving head coach Teri Moren, meanwhile.
In the five games Macy played, she scored 6.2 points per game on 44.8 percent shooting. She also had 4.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 13.2 minutes per game. Macy played her best game of the tournament against the Dominic Republic in the quarterfinals. She scored 14 points on 5-of-9 (55.6 percent) shooting. She made all 4 of her free throw attempts and grabbed 7 rebounds, dished out 4 assists and came away with 1 steal.
Macy, the No. 12 recruit in the class of 2025 according to ESPN HoopGurlz, committed to Notre Dame on May 6. The Bethlehem (Ky.) High School product was also considering UConn, Louisville and Kentucky. She told Blue & Gold one of the main reasons she chose Notre Dame was the coaching job Ivey has done and the way Ivey is able to connect with her players.
“A big part of it for me was the culture that Coach Ivey has built,” Macy said. “She brings in such good people with an amazing staff to support them. Her and her staff want what’s best for the kid as a person, player and student. So that was really big for me.”
Here’s a look at how Macy fared in every game she appeared in at the AmeriCup.
Leah Macy’s 2024 FIBA U18 AmeriCup
| Opponent | Min | Pts | FG | 3PT | FT | OReb | DReb | Reb | Ast | PF | TO | Stl | Blk | +/- |
| Brazil | 10 | 0 | 0/3 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| Puerto Rico | 15 | 5 | 2/7 | 0/2 | 1/2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 26 |
| Mexico | 15 | 8 | 4/8 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 28 |
| Dominic Republic | 14 | 14 | 5/9 | 0/1 | 4/4 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 35 |
| Argentina | 12 | 4 | 2/2 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 31 |
| Averages | 13.2 | 6.2 | 50% | 0% | 83.3% | 2 | 2.8 | 4.8 | 1.6 | 0 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 0 | 25.6 |
