What Notre Dame women’s basketball coach Niele Ivey said at ACC Tipoff
Notre Dame women’s basketball coach Niele Ivey was in Charlotte on Tuesday for ACC Tipoff, a media event where coaches and players from every program in the conference have a chance to preview the upcoming season. Here are some things Ivey said about her Fighting Irish.
On junior point guard Olivia Miles’ rehab of her knee injury
“She’s doing well. She’s about seven months past surgery and starting to jog the last couple weeks. So it’s an individual decision. I’m going to pivot whichever way she decides, if she’s coming back or if she takes a little bit more time. But she’s doing well.”
On who Notre Dame’s leader is without Miles on the floor
“I would say Sonia Citron and Maddy Westbeld. Those two have the most experience. Sony led us last year, took over the point position. I thought she did a great job of just being in the fire, being resilient. Also Kylee Watson. Those three, I’m really leaning on. Three different characteristics of leaderships. Those three, I’m going to rely on heavily this year.”
Who is the enforcer type on the team like Marina Mabrey was for Notre Dame?
“Hannah Hidalgo is a Marina Mabrey. She’s a dog. She has those characteristics.”
On coaching Hidalgo
“It’s been great. She’s a sponge. We had an opportunity to play overseas this summer, so we had two games. I had a chance to really get with her in practice, watch a lot of film with her and just understand the way she thinks the game. So that was great for me and for her. A lot of communication. It’s going to be a lot of hand-holding. But she’s a learner. She wants to learn. She wants to get better. She’s really hard on herself as all point guards are, but she’s done a tremendous job of soaking everything in and trying to learn as much as she can.”
On what she senses is different about this Notre Dame team
“I think this group is working the hardest I’ve ever been a part of. They’re really competitive. Our gym is competitive. We were always competitive in the past, but this year this group, I just love the competitive atmosphere that they’ve created.
“They’re working hard to make each other better. The way that they work, they’re just really committed. When anyone walks into our practice, they leave and they’re like, ‘That group is really bought in.’ That’s a credit to these two right here, a credit to what we’re trying to accomplish. We know what to expect. We know what we need to do. I just love, like, their competitive drive that they have this year.
“I feel like people are going to see this team and they’ll be, ‘They’re fun to watch, they’re electric, they’re really competitive but they play for each other.'”
