Notre Dame defeats Miami 69-54 in ACC tournament second round, advancing to Friday’s quarterfinal

Notre Dame advances in ACC Tournament with 69-54 win over Miami in Duluth

Notre Dame moved into the quarterfinal round of the ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament on Thursday, March 5, 2026, defeating Miami 69-54 at Gas South Arena in Duluth, Georgia. The result sent the fifth-seeded Fighting Irish forward to face fourth-seeded NC State on Friday, March 6, with tipoff scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET.

Miami, seeded 12th, built an early edge before Notre Dame flipped the game in the opening quarter. After trailing 16-12, the Fighting Irish closed the gap with a 9-0 run to take a 21-16 lead and finished the first period ahead 23-19.

Second-quarter defensive stretch proved decisive

The defining sequence came in the second quarter, when Notre Dame’s defense limited Miami to four points over 10 minutes. Miami shot 2-for-11 from the field in the period and committed seven turnovers, allowing Notre Dame to extend the margin to 37-23 by halftime after scoring the final seven points of the half.

• Quarter scores: Miami 19-4-17-14 (54), Notre Dame 23-14-21-11 (69)
• Miami’s four-point second quarter was its lowest-scoring quarter of the season

Hannah Hidalgo leads balanced Notre Dame scoring

Guard Hannah Hidalgo scored a game-high 28 points for Notre Dame and added eight rebounds, five assists and five steals. Notre Dame also received double-figure scoring from Cassandre Prosper (12 points) and Iyana Moore (11 points).

Notre Dame carried a 37-23 lead into halftime after holding Miami to four points in the second quarter.

Notre Dame pushed the advantage further in the third quarter, outscoring Miami 21-17 to take a 58-40 lead into the final period. Hidalgo scored 12 points in the third quarter, converting 5 of 6 shots during that stretch.

Miami’s late push cut the lead, but Notre Dame closed

Miami mounted a fourth-quarter run to make the game competitive, scoring the first 10 points of the final period to pull within 58-50 with 4:46 remaining. Notre Dame responded immediately with a 6-0 burst that restored a double-digit cushion, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Gisela Sanchez and a finish at the rim by Malaya Cowles.

The win added to Notre Dame’s historical success in the conference tournament and in the series against Miami. The Fighting Irish improved their all-time record against the Hurricanes to 28-6 and moved to 24-6 all-time in the ACC Tournament.

Notre Dame’s quarterfinal against NC State remains set for Friday, March 6, in Duluth.