This week on The IX Sports Podcast College Basketball Edition, hosts Melissa Triebwasser and Michael Waterloo take a break from preseason conference previews to sit down with Notre Dame Head Coach Niele Ivey.
Ivey said she is proud of the person and player star guard Hannah Hidalgo has come over the course of her career at Notre Dame, which set to come to a close at the end of this season.
“She’s gotten better every year. She has has broken almost every record. She’s got a couple more to break here at Notre Dame. She’s in the conversation of one of the best guards ever to go come through our program, so I’m really — I’m really proud of her and just really excited for senior year,” Ivey said.
Ivey admitted that she is biased, but thinks Hidalgo should go first in the WNBA Draft next spring.
“No matter her size, it’s her heart that’s bigger than her size. And when you have somebody that has a will to win, who continues to thrive to get better every time she steps on the court, who plays at a such a high level every time, and she plays with a ton of confidence, she’s the most competitive and passionate player I’ve ever been around. I feel like you — she’s a gem for any coach in the WNBA to have,” Ivey told Waterloo.
Triebwasser asked Ivey about how she thinks Madison St. Rose, a graduate transfer out of Princeton University, will fare with the Fighting Irish this season.
“First of all, her IQ. I mean, somebody coming from the Princeton program — She’s a winner, she’s won at every level, so she was extremely dominant in the Ivy League,” Ivey said.
Ivey said that she likes using the portal to supplement the rest of her team, and said that recruiting out of high school is still important to the way she builds the program.
To hear more from Ivey, including who she thinks will surprise fans and opponents alike this season, be sure to tune in to the episode.
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