Notre Dame Comes Up Short in Upset Bid; Drops ACC Semifinal Heartbreaker to Duke 65-63
- Brenden Duffy
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
Notre Dame’s run at an ACC Championship has come to an end following Saturday’s Semifinal 65-63 loss to the conference’s regular-season champions, the Duke Blue Devils.
Photo via Notre Dame Athletics
Five-seed Notre Dame and the top-seeded Duke Blue Devils met on Saturday in an ACC Semifinal matchup at Gas South Arena in Duluth, Georgia. The Irish earned their spot in the semis after defeating 12-seed Miami in the Second Round on Thursday, followed by an 81-63 victory over four-seed NC State in Friday’s Quarterfinals. After receiving First and Second Round byes, the Blue Devils defeated nine-seed Clemson 60-46 in their Quarterfinal appearance on Friday. The Irish and Blue Devils most recently met in Durham on January 4th, when the Blue Devils bested Notre Dame 82-68.
With the Irish seeking revenge for the regular-season loss at Duke, they were able to give the Blue Devils a run for their money on Saturday. Ultimately, Duke’s size advantage was too much for Notre Dame, getting repeatedly dominated in the paint and out-rebounded by 15, which left easy second-chance opportunities for a talented Blue Devils team.
A somewhat sloppy, yet tightly-contested, first quarter saw Duke dominate the first four-to-five minutes, looking like they were going to put the game away early. The Blue Devils started the game on a 10-0 run, led by the ACC’s runner-up for player of the year, Toby Fournier, and Taina Mair. Multiple Irish turnovers, including two from Cassandre Prosper, led to easy Blue Devils points to begin the contest. Hannah Hidalgo knocked down the Irish's first points with a jumper with 5:02 on the clock; however, these points were taken away during the quarter break after a review determined it was a shot-clock violation. Iyana Moore got the Irish’s first (real) points with 4:44 on the clock with a pair of free throws. Unfortunately, Duke’s early rush was not done as Delaney Thomas rattled off five straight points to extend the Blue Devils' lead to 15-2 with 3:58 remaining in the quarter. Notre Dame was able to make it a bit of a game near the end of the quarter, going on a 9-0 run with seven points coming from Moore, to cut their deficit to 11-15 with 25 seconds remaining. Duke was able to tip-in a buzzer-beater to give the Blue Devils a 17-11 advantage after one. Moore led Irish scorers with nine points in a quarter that was highlighted by seven Notre Dame turnovers and just 3-12 shooting from the field.
The Irish opened the second quarter with a pair of back-to-back baskets to cut the deficit down to two early in the frame. After a couple of traded buckets, the Blue Devils opened their lead back up with a 14-4 stretch, featuring a pair of threes, that lasted from the 6:13 - 2:30 mark. This run extended Duke’s lead to 33-23. Then, Prosper and Duke’s Arianna Roberson exchanged converted-and-one opportunities with the Blue Devils holding their ten-point advantage with 1:52 left in the half. Hidalgo was able to go on a quick 5-0 run, including a converted and-one chance, to cut the Irish deficit to 31-36 with 48 seconds on the clock. Duke was able to finish a second-chance basket to close out the half with a 38-31 lead. Hidalgo paced the Irish offense with 11 of their 20 second-quarter points on 5-6 shooting from the field.
Prosper and Fournier kicked off the second-half scoring with back-to-back second-chance tip-ins, with the Blue Devils holding their seven-point lead with 8:41 on the clock. Notre Dame then woke up, going on an 8-0 run capped by KK Bransford’s fourth three-pointer of the season that gave the Irish their first lead of the day, a 41-40 advantage with 6:20 left in the third quarter. Duke’s Mair took the lead right back, though, going on a 5-0 burst by herself to put the Blue Devils back on top 45-41 with 3:32 left. Then, Vanessa de Jesus buried a three, and Moore hit two free throws to put the Irish up 46-45 with 1:33 remaining. After Duke’s Jordan Wood and the Irish’s Bransford each made one free throw, Gisela Sanchez closed the quarter with a layup off a Duke turnover to send Notre Dame to the final quarter with a 49-46 lead. Six different Irish players etched their names in the scoring column in the third, with De Jesus’s six points on 2-2 shooting from deep leading the way. The Notre Dame defense forced six Duke turnovers as the Blue Devils managed just eight points in the frame while shooting 3-12 from the field.
‘Grand Theft’ Hidalgo got the fourth quarter started with a steal leading to an easy layup to extend Notre Dame’s lead to 51-46. Duke was able to tie the game quickly with a 5-0 run with 8:46 to play. After de Jesus converted a layup to put the Irish back in front by two, the Blue Devils went on a 6-0 stretch featuring three different scorers to put the one-seed in front 57-53 with 6:46 on the clock. Moore was able to make it a one-point game after she hit a three with 5:53 remaining. The ACC’s top two players, Hidalgo and Fournier, then traded a couple of baskets with Duke still holding a 61-60 advantage with 2:04 left. Mair was able to hit a clutch three for the Blue Devils to put them up by four, but Hidalgo responded right back with a three of her own off a steal by Prosper to keep the Irish within one, 63-64, with 1:10 to play. With 52 seconds left, Malaya Cowles fouled a Duke shooter, and she hit one of two free throws to give the Blue Devils a late 65-63 lead. Unfortunately, the Irish were unable to convert on their final possessions after missing two three-point attempts, and Fournier blocked Moore’s last-second game-tying two-point attempt to send Duke to the ACC Championship. Hidalgo led the Irish’s fourth-quarter offensive efforts with nine points as the team shot just 6-19 from the field to close the game.
The Duke Blue Devils will take on the winner of North Carolina/Louisville in Sunday’s ACC Championship. For the Irish, they now await their NCAA Tournament fate with Selection Sunday looming on March 15th. Through their late-season efforts, Notre Dame has proven they are a completely different team from just two months ago, when they went on a 1-4 stretch in mid-January. The NCAA Committee should respect this aspect of the Irish’s play with a 5-seed likely on the table.
Irish Stars
Hannah Hidalgo: 24 points (surpassed Skylar Diggins to become Notre Dame’s #2 all-time leading scorer), 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, +2, 40 minutes played
Cassandre Prosper: 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals, 1 block, -3, 33 minutes played
Gisela Sanchez: 4 points (2-2 FGs), 2 steals, 1 block, +5, 18 minutes played
Key Team Stats
Field Goal Percentage: Duke (40%) - ND (38%)
Three Point Percentage: ND (33%) - Duke (26%)
Free Throw Percentage: ND (79%) - Duke (55%)
Turnovers: Duke (20) - ND (14)
Rebounds: Duke (47) - ND (32)
Second Chance Points: Duke (18) - ND (6)
Points in the Paint: Duke (38) - ND (24)
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