What to know about Notre Dame women's basketball vs. North Carolina

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•01/07/24•

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For the first time since four days before Christmas, Notre Dame tips off at home inside Purcell Pavilion in South Bend. The No. 16 Fighting Irish (10-2) host North Carolina (10-4) at 5 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Here’s everything you need to know about the matchup.

Notre Dame women’s basketball at Pitt game info

  • Teams: No. 16 Notre Dame (10-2, 1-1) vs. North Carolina (10-4, 2-0)
  • Head coaches: Niele Ivey (71-27, fourth year at Notre Dame); Courtney Banghart (340-150 overall, 86-47 at North Carolina; fifth year at UNC)
  • Date: Jan. 7, 2024
  • Location: Purcell Pavilion (South Bend, Ind.)
  • Time: 5 p.m. ET
  • Television: ESPN2
  • TV broadcasters: Pam Ward & Stephanie White
  • Radio: 99.9 WQLQ-FM in South Bend
  • Radio broadcaster: Sean Stires

Matchup notables

• Notre Dame is coming off a nail-biting 71-66 victory at Pitt. The Panthers have the second-worst overall record of any ACC team at 6-9, but every game is not a given for as long as the Irish’s star junior guards Olivia Miles and Sonia Citron remain sidelined with knee injuries. Ivey said last week there is still no timetable for either of their returns. Sophomore Cass Prosper and graduate student Jenna Brown remain out indefinitely, too, giving Ivey just eight scholarship players to work with.

• Oops. It might only be seven. That’s because it’ll be worth monitoring the status of Notre Dame senior forward Maddy Westbeld as well. She did not play in the fourth quarter at Pitt after taking a blow to the head. Ivey said Westbeld felt nauseous, which is obviously a symptom of a concussion. It’s not known if Westbeld has one, but if she does not suit up Sunday that’d likely be the reason why.

• Excluding Citron’s 20.3 points per game in three games, Westbeld is No. 2 on the Irish roster in scoring at 14.7 points per game. She’s Notre Dame’s No. 1 rebounder at 9.4 boards per game. In a season that’s been heavily affected by injuries, again, Westbeld has been part of the glue keeping it all together.

• Freshman guard Hannah Hidalgo has been Gorilla Glue, meanwhile. She’s Notre Dame’s No. 2 rebounder at 6.3 per game. She leads the Irish in points (24.5), assists (6.1) and steals (5.8) per game. Her scoring average ranks No. 3 nationally, and she leads the country in steals.

• North Carolina is led by two senior guards in Deja Kelly and Alyssa Ustby. Hidalgo will likely be matched up on the former, the Tar Heels’ leading scorer at 14.7 points per game. But Kelly is no slouch at 13.1 points per game, and she’s also grabbing 9.4 rebounds per game at 6-1. She’ll be a unique matchup for the Notre Dame defense.

• The Tar Heels endured a three-game losing streak at the end of November but have since won five of six. The lone loss in that stretch was a 76-64 defeat against then-No. 17 UConn. UNC also has losses against then-No. 16 Kansas State and No. 1 South Carolina. Both of those were by seven points. The Heels held the Wildcats to 65 points and the Gamecocks to 63.

• Notre Dame’s offense went cold in the middle quarters at Pitt. It nearly cost the Irish a game against a team that isn’t going to win many in conference play. Returning home helps, but playing a defense as stingy as North Carolina’s does not. The Heels allow fewer points per game (56.5) than Ivey’s Irish (60.0). Ivey is always harping on defense. It could be a defensive slugfest if the Irish are low on personnel again. For as long as that’s the case, style points don’t matter. Notre Dame just needs to find wins where it can get them.

• Notre Dame owns the all-time series, 10-4. North Carolina won the last game, 60-50, in Chapel Hill on Jan. 8, 2023. The Irish are 5-0 against the Tar Heels in South Bend.

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