The Competitive Cloth that Binds Hannah Hidalgo to Notre Dame's Past

Notre Dame is on the brink of playing in the Sweet 16, its third straight trip to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament under Niele Ivey in her 4th season as head coach. The Sweet 16 is a significant accomplishment, but also a stepping stone into another level of success: make it past, and you’re in a very special air. Leading the Irish to the Sweet 16 this season, freshman sensation Hannah Hidalgo has sewn herself into the binding cloth of competitiveness forged by the point guards of Notre Dame’s past.

Regardless of age, Hidalgo has put together one of the finest seasons seen by a player in the Blue and Gold. The team as a whole has an opportunity to cement itself even further, with the verve and feel of a group that just has it right now, in spite of so much adversity faced throughout the year.

Punching your ticket as a team to the Final Four is a stamp of approval for programs. It’s a recognition that you have what it takes to make it to the final weekend of the collegiate season. While earning the title of National Champions is the ultimate goal, the legacy defining status, the Final Four is such a pivotal linchpin in creating that window. One stellar run can open the door for more in the future, shifting perspective, perception, and possibility for a program.

The games have a different air as they take center stage for a glorious weekend, all eyes trained, everyone in basketball collecting at the same location to witness the defining moments that will be harped on in conversation around the sport, around the history of programs, and the accolades of individuals for years to some.

The Fighting Irish had never made the Sweet 16 as a program until Niele Ivey set foot on campus as a player in 1996. While she would miss the majority of her freshman year recovering from a knee injury and subsequent surgery, the standard for Muffet McGraw’s team would elevate with Ivey at point guard, culminating in a National Championship in 2001, her final collegiate season before a professional career.

When Ivey returned to South Bend in 2007 after her playing career, she’d help usher in another era of Irish basketball, an assistant on McGraw’s staff for the next 12 seasons. The Irish would ascend from a good to great program the next few years, planting themselves as one of the elite destinations in college basketball: Skylar Diggins-Smith spearheaded an alteration of the team’s trajectory.

“It did not matter if we were down 1, down 20, down 5… having her on the court, we had a chance to win,” says Ivey of Skylar.

Born and raised in South Bend, attending Washington high school, Diggins-Smith grew up watching Ivey, idolizing her play, seeing the same fierceness and competitiveness that she would emulate herself (and still does) as her game took flight.

“You say why Notre Dame? I say why not,” said Diggins-Smith in an interview with a local news station after signing her national letter of intent.

She’d go on in the interview to speak on the importance of staying near her family and having her support system in place. Ivey would become a crucial part of that support system as she transitioned into college. Fresh off of her own playing career, Ivey was hands-on on the court, jumping into practice and sharing her craft with the Irish’s guards.

The pair had built a strong bond during Skylar’s recruitment, Ivey playing a pivotal role in her deciding to come to Notre Dame. That relationship only strengthened and furthered, spending countless hours the next four years dissecting film together, breaking down what one another saw, and making revelations in film study become consistent play on the hardwood.

In Skylar's freshman season, the Irish made it to the Sweet 16, leading the team in scoring and steals and earning an All-American honorable mention. The 2011 season, her sophomore year, would mark Notre Dame’s first return to the National Championship game since winning it all in 2001, sparking a run of making the Final Four in 7 of the next 8 seasons.

She wasn’t on every single roster that made those runs, but without her kindling the fire, Notre Dame doesn’t reach those same heights, as Ivey puts it. Skylar went viral as Notre Dame ascended, inspiring a generation with Headband Nation as she rocked her signature wrap headband while earning three All-American nods and two Big East Player of the Year awards, honing her game each passing season.

“Sky was so different and special. Her fire and competitiveness is unmatched… Tamika Catchings is the only other person that was as relentless as Skylar,” says Ivey.

Ivey played alongside the Hall of Famer when she was part of the Indiana Fever from 2001-04. She describes her passion and energy for the game as “magical” something that was tangible, palpable in the air at practice, and impossible not to soak in and feed off of. Skylar matched that, and now Hannah Hidalgo is doing the same, says Ivey.

Everyone first saw Hidalgo’s gifts on a national stage as Notre Dame and top seeded South Carolina faced off in Paris for the first game of the season. She shined brightly, scoring 31 points and dazzling with highlight plays. 

Throughout the recruitment process, Ivey was constantly reminded of Skylar in how Hannah played the game. While there are key differences between them, she notes, the swagger, confidence, and relentlessness was a striking parallel. Ivey always had the feeling that Hannah could be special, but she knew this year was bound to be before the season even started. She showed out in Croatia, as the Irish toured and played exhibition games overseas late in the summer. However, a closed scrimmage against the University of Toledo set the stage; the Rockets advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2023 and returned their starting 5.

“She had 21 points at the half… the HALF,” says Ivey emphatically.

“this kid is so special. When you can finally see her in the system, in a controlled environment setting with refs, that was when I was like, Wow.”

Early on in the process, Hannah’s “eyes weren’t set on Notre Dame,” as she tells it. But, Niele was consistent throughout her high school career and the recruiting process, something that resonated with her as she got older and closer to a college career.

“Especially overseas, I had a completely different environment, I wasn’t playing my best, but she was constantly talking to me, reassuring me throughout the whole process…. When I was lower in the rankings, she was recruiting me just as hard as when I was top 5, and that was big for me,” says Hannah.

She recognized Niele was someone she wanted to play for after going through a tough time in U17, but still seeing that unwavering commitment to her, while also still being honest about her game.

“Being a strong African-American female that has played at the highest level as a collegiate athlete and in the WNBA, just being relatable, them both being point guards… I know that’s something that connected with them,” says Ivey of her recruitment of the star guards.

Hannah also met Diggins-Smith on her official visit to South Bend, and they talked one on one. Skylar relayed that Notre Dame is “guard university” that this place would set her up for life, preparing her for the pros, but also establishing an even stronger support system. 

The two would talk again before the season, with Skylar setting a baseline for Hannah.

“I was just talking on the phone with Sky and she was like, I want you to be leading the ACC in steals,” says Hannah

When Skylar Diggins-Smith tells you to do something, you do it.

Hidalgo led the ACC and Division 1 basketball as a whole with 4.6 steals per game. She also broke Skylar’s single season record in steals at Notre Dame.

Hannah is laser-focused, much in the same way Skylar was at the same age. You compare their interviews side by side, and you come away with such a similar feeling. You know in your head that these are the words and thoughts of a teenager, but you wouldn’t know it just by listening to the resolve and determination.

“She’s dangerously disciplined,” says Ivey.

That played out early on in the season once practice started. The staff had to stay on top of Hannah to keep her fresh and remind her that it was only September, there was a whole season ahead, games hadn’t even been played yet.

She’d hang back in the gym after practice, caught two hours after still shooting. That got shut down quickly.

This season was going to be unlike anything Hannah had experienced in high school. She committed in mid-November of 2022, with the intention of coming in and playing alongside of and learning from star guard Olivia Miles. That of course changed just before last season’s ACC Tournament as Miles unfortunately injured her knee.

“When you’re a point guard running a team with so many injuries that we’ve had… I don’t even think other players on our team can fathom, Liv (Miles) can, but that is not easy,” says Ivey.

There were some freshmen moments earlier in the season. It’s been a huge learning curve to come in and lead a Power 5 program against top competition, and yet, the Irish stand as ACC Tournament champions and winners of 10 straight. It’s a testament to how the team as a whole has coalesced, and to the maturation of Hannah’s game and mindset throughout the season.

Niele pulls out her phone to read off a quote from Oscar Wilde that she feels is emblematic of Hannah’s situation and how the team’s had to grow.

Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It gives you the test first and the lesson afterwards.

Much like Skylar before her, Hannah and Niele have watched film together throughout the season one on one, sorting through those tests to find the lesson and apply it. Hannah and Olivia talk back and forth regularly to break down the game and take pointers, but not being able to see and learn through Olivia’s examples shown on the court is difficult. Ivey says that it takes three years for most point guards to truly understand Notre Dame’s system, a Princeton style offense that’s been in place since Skylar was running the show. 

You may know the plays, but do you know why they’re run? Do you know why each player does what they do in a given action? Can you play with the right timing and rhythm? 

They pour over and parse through every detail when watching games back, working to come to a common understanding in how coach and player see the court.

“Part of the beauty of me being the head coach here, that was a point guard here, I’m telling her exactly what I had to do and what I had to figure out,” says Ivey. She did the same with Cassandre Prosper last season, coming into the college game mid-way through the season as an early enrollee.

Why did you take this shot? How could it have been better? Do you see how you could’ve changed your timing to open up this pass? What would’ve been the right decision?

It’s a constant back and forth and the most crucial part of Hannah’s development outside of the live reps in game. They typically decipher the flow of the game rather than just singular clips, picking apart energy, time and score and how that affects decision-making, and further delving into the intangible things in the game.

Hannah also sees how much more goes into being a point guard and leader that doesn’t even have to do with her actual play. Teammates look to her on court. They feed off her energy, watch her behavior, and notice how she reacts to things.

“Kinda having that weight, it can definitely be tough, but I have a great support system around me… I just see it as such a blessing, having a coach that has so much trust in me, comparing me to someone as talented and phenomenal as Sky who has done so much for this program,” says Hannah.

Ivey is remarkably proud of how Hannah has handled the season and matured over the course of it. Ivey is always educating and teaching, and Hannah is constantly soaking it up and seeking out more: She wants to be great. That’s come with tough conversations, which Hannah has welcomed, but has also given herself the space necessary to do it. Picking up a three year plan on the fly and needing to iron it out in four months is no small task, but she’s flourished.

Through that constant communication, their bond as player and coach have grown. They speak the same language and have a burgeoning comfort level, something Hannah is proud of. It was a significant adjustment coming to South Bend, learning new coaches, new teammates, and adapting to a new environment.

She’s still evolving and growing as a leader, and Ivey has seen her continue to elevate in that area.

Hannah is one of the most energetic players you’ll come across in any level of the sport. She’s constantly talking to herself, hyping herself up, and stoking her internal fire throughout a game. It’s not for show, that’s just how she operates. Gameday Hannah is the only Hannah, as you’ll see her picking up practice players 94 feet and diving for loose balls at the behest of the staff.

Ivey is continually molding her into a more vocal leader, the next stage of her growth, says Niele.

“I just want to keep growing with my teammates, I want to keep building that chemistry… just learning my teammates more and growing together. I want to keep winning, I want to go far in the Tournament, and I want to eventually win the Championship,” says Hannah, vocalizing her goals into existence.

When I first met with Niele before the start of the year, she told me that Hannah Hidalgo would be a program-changing player. It’s the kind of thing you don’t take lightly, but you also have to see it play out to understand in totality. Watching this season unearth, the growth of Hannah, the growth of the team, and the run they’ve made over the past month, it’s more than evident already that Hannah has hit that expectation. Following the footsteps of the great point guards before her at Notre Dame, while simultaneously charting her own course, the Irish are poised to ascend, and a meeting with third-seeded Oregon State in the Sweet 16 is the next thread in Hannah Hidalgo’s impact on the program.