#3 Notre Dame Eliminated by #2 TCU in Sweet 16; 4th-Quarter Collapse Sends Irish Home

For the fourth consecutive year, Notre Dame’s season has come to a close in the Sweet 16. TCU’s Hailey Van Lith and Sedona Prince combined for 47 points in the Horned Frogs' 71-62 Saturday afternoon victory in Birmingham.

Photo via Notre Dame Athletics

The game began with the two sides trading baskets until a couple of made three-pointers from TCU put the Horned Frogs up 8-4 2:43 into the contest. Following a Maddy Westbeld three that brought the Irish within one point, TCU went on a quick 6-0 run to put themselves up 14-7 with 5:25 on the clock. The offenses went quiet from 4:42 to 2:43 as each squad struggled to find the bottom of the basket. Notre Dame broke the dry spell with five unanswered points to bring the Irish within one possession, 16-13, with 2:04 remaining in the quarter. TCU responded with a pair of scores but it was Notre Dame’s quarter-ending 6-0 run that allowed this game to remain competitive. A Sonia Citron layup with two seconds left cut the Irish deficit to 20-19 after the first ten minutes. TCU’s Van Lith and Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo and Liatu King led their respective offenses with six points apiece. The Irish duo of Hidalgo and King also combined for five of their team’s six total first-quarter rebounds.

Notre Dame took their first lead since there was 8:43 remaining in the first quarter right out of the gates in the second. Another Citron layup followed by a three from Olivia Miles gave the Irish a four-point, 24-20, lead 1:11 into the frame. The rest of the quarter was a back-and-forth affair. TCU closed the half with a pair of free throws that cut their deficit to 35-33 entering the break. Miles led all second-quarter scorers with seven points on perfect shooting splits as six different Irish scorers got on the board in this frame.

In the first half, TCU’s hot shooting was the main story as they remained within just one possession. The Horned Frogs finished the half shooting 50% from the field, including 43% from three. The Irish offense shot just 38% from the field, including an uncharacteristically low 18% from deep. Their defense did enough to hold the first-half lead as they forced eight TCU turnovers, leading to 13 Irish points. Notably, Hidalgo tallied three steals and Cassandre Prosper added two blocks in the half.

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Out of the break, TCU tied the game at 35 immediately with a layup. Notre Dame then caught fire with a 9-0 run led by Hidalgo which put the Irish up 44-35 with 6:22 on the clock. The Horned Frogs then staged their comeback, going on an 8-0 run led by Van Lith which cut their deficit to just one, 46-45, with 2:56 remaining in the quarter. After a couple of traded baskets, TCU scored four unanswered to take a 51-50 lead with just 11 seconds left. This lead was short-lived as King made a layup with time expiring to give the Irish a 52-51 advantage heading into the final frame. In the third quarter, TCU was led by Van Lith and Prince who each tallied six points. Notre Dame was led by Hidalgo and King, who also had six points apiece in the quarter.

TCU were the ones to catch fire in the fourth quarter, opening the frame on a 7-0 run led by Van Lith which put the Horned Frogs up 58-52 just 1:54 into the final period. This advantage would end up being too much for the Irish, as they were out-scored 20-10 in the quarter, ultimately leading to a TCU 71-62 Sweet 16 win.

The second half was, again, marked by great shooting from TCU and below-average shooting from the Irish. The Horned Frogs shot 50% from the field including 40% from three, while also shooting 16-16 from the free throw line in the half. Notre Dame shot 26% from the field, including 25% from deep.

TCU will play the winner of Texas/Tennessee on Monday evening in an Elite Eight matchup.

Notre Dame looks ahead to year six of the Coach Ivey era with some roster management needed as the Irish may have to replace four starters from this season's squad.