Weekly Reflection: March IS HERE!!!
...and Hannah Hidalgo is plays a different game.
Greetings, Congregation.
What a weekend! As the seasons are winding down, the men’s teams are fighting for conference tourney seedings while the women’s teams renew old rivalries to serve some cold dishes of revenge. And if you are Hannah Hidalgo, you are serving it with a spork! Here is a recap of the weekend.
In Case You Didn’t Witness:
Many favored teams did their job this weekend, but some lost ground. Here are some highlights.
ACC WBB: They had their chances:
#21 North Carolina 74 - #12 Duke 69: Leading the ACC at 16-1, the Duke Blue Devils went into Carmichael Thunderdome for an old fashioned Tobacco Road grudge match, but could not close the door on the Tar Heels, who were seeking revenge (and maybe a top 16 seed with home court advantage on the line.) They had their chances at the end but strong free throws in the final minute kept the game out of reach. If they meet in the ACC tournament, it will be in the final. Let’s hope it happens!
Four fouls won’t stop Hannah from a good steal. Notre Dame 65 - #10 Louisville 62: It is known. These programs are rivals. They don’t like each other. With a Duke loss earlier in the day, the Cardinals now had a chance to take a share of the regular season title away from the Blue Devils. But Hannah Hidalgo said, “Hold my Guinness” and took over a tough fought battle against the home team. There were lead changes. Hannah was even in foul trouble, earning her 4th with 8:32 left. She sat for 2.5 minutes and the small Irish lead vanished to a four-point deficit by the time she returned. However, even with four fouls, she managed to spark a steal with 14 seconds left to run the clock down and put the game out of reach. Hannah’s final line was 30 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 steals — her third game this season with 30+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists, and 5+ steals. She is the only player in the country to have done that. More on Hannah in CoB Saturday School below.
MBB: The Saints Come Marching In:
Saint Mary's 70 - #9 Gonzaga 59: In what could be the last regular season meeting of these hated WCC rivals, the Gaels Gone Wild from behind the arc as Mikey Lewis scored 21 of his 31 total points from behind the arc to capture the win and part of the regular season crown from said rivals. If the Zags had won, they would have won the conference outright, but with a loss, they have to share the title. It must be weird for both teams to get trophies after the game and neither of them were just participation trophies.
#15 Saint John’s 89- Villanova 57: As expected, St. Giovani's Red Sauce head coach Rick Pitino had his squad ready to rumble in the Garden against Philly's Future Knicks. The shellacking the Johnnies took at UConn last week was going to be an anomaly. All week was speculation on whether or not Pitino would wear his white suit for the white out at MSG…which he did. Meanwhile, Pope Leo's private secretary, Villanova coach Kevin Willard, made it very clear that his new papal boss is much better than his old boss, saying working for Pitino was a "miserable experience."
#23 Saint Louis 91 - Duquesne 76: This game is not much of a story. At 16-13, the other Dukies are really more in the Magnolia Cupcake league for a team like Saint Louis. After all, the Atlantic 10's team with the most googled mascot has been ripping through opponents all season. But after a late surge from VCU, they are only leading the conference by one game. Both teams have 2 games left in their regular seasons with both playing George Mason. However, the Billikens does welcome basement-dwelling Loyola Chicago to end the season, so unless they take a massive stumble, the conference championship is all but clinched.
Big XII MBB: Lastly, there is a true pecking order in the Big XII after a gauntlet of ranked teams all battled. First it was #2 Houston who lost to #4 Arizona and then #14 Kansas. But then Kansas in turn fell to now #2 Arizona, raising the Wildcats back to the top of the standings. Meanwhile, #4 Iowa State was minding their own business until they were Raided by #16 Texas Tech on Saturday, losing 82-73. That's ok, because the Cyclones have a redemption game on Big Monday at…#2 Arizona. (sigh). Needless to say, that didn't end well. Iowa State is now 3-3 in their last 6. Such is life in the Big XII.
The Infoulable!
Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.
MBB: Miami of OH is just 2 games away from going to Disneyworld!
#21 Miami of Ohio! (29-0 overall, 16-0 MAC!): Bye weekend
Next: Tuesday 3/3 at Toledo of Ohio (7p, ESPN+)
WBB: UConn did it and ran undefeated through the regular season.
#1 UConn Huskies (31-0 overall, 20-0 Big East):
✅ Sunday: UConn 85 - St. John’s 49
Next: Saturday 3/7 at TBD - Big East Tournament (12p, Peacock)
NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 87 - D3 NCAA Tourney starts Thursday and the Violets are the #1 overall seed … of course! Here comes the 3-peat!!
#1 New York University Violets (87-0 overall, 25-0 this season, 14-0 UAA):
✅ Saturday: NYU 80 - Brandeis University 58
Next: Friday 3/6 vs. UMaine-Farmington (7:45p) First Round!!
NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violets’ Stairway to the Rafters
✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)
Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)
Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)
CoB Saturday School!
What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?
Hannah Hidalgo is not burdened. She is auditioning.
Ok, I need to bring this back in a bit. I know I write a lot about Hannah Hidalgo in this publication, but I just find her game so inspiring as an absolute fan of the game. She is the type of player whose games get circled on my calendar. And, this season, it got hard to watch at times. Not because if her performance - her numbers are all up - but because I was spoiled with the last two seasons with the team that surrounded her. After many graduations and transfers, I didn’t expect a lot from this team this season, so I just sat back and enjoyed the Hannah show.
After the win at Louisville on Sunday, I have swapped my rose-colored glasses for ones in Notre Dame gold.
Back in January, I wrote that Hannah Hidalgo looked tired. Worn down by a brutal season where she had to step up and be the complete engine. Let me be clear, I don’t want to criticize this roster — it’s a good roster. It’s just not the Miles, Citron, King, Westbeld, Hidalgo roster. She needed to play way more minutes than usual. She needed to be both the defensive leader -and- the offensive leader. As expected, she came for the challenge, but it looked to be wearing her out at times.
I saw this as a problem. This was not sustainable and how long would Hannah want to burden this pressure. Notre Dame isn’t winning the title this year — of course I can’t predict the future, but I’m pretty certain of that. And while next year’s team has a loaded incoming freshman class worth getting excited about, a title then feels unlikely too as freshmen need to adapt to the next level. My logic had me wondering the dreaded question: will Hannah Hidalgo say “I want a championship” and jump headfirst into the portal? There is not a team out there that wouldn’t try to get her.
Let’s be honest — I don’t want her to go. If she did, she would break no more ND program records. She would not rise her name into the rafters next to her coach Niele Ivey. She would no longer be a legend for this historic program. All would be reset. She might break national records elsewhere, but when you move, you reset all metrics to zero. I get the lure of a title with one year left. But to walk away from that legacy is a steep price.
However, Cassie Chantel (aka Coach C.) completely gave me a new point of view. In her Instagram post today, Coach reframed it entirely, and she’s right: the lesser roster isn’t a burden. It’s an audition. An audition for the next level. It’s an opportunity to shine under adversity. She gets to look at the people who make draft picks and say, “See? I got this.” It’s the feature, not the bug.
Down four on the road with foul trouble? Got it. Banked a three at the buzzer? Got it. Need a steal to stop the No. 10 ranked Cardinals from tying the game? You bet! Open layup with 14 seconds left, chose to run clock instead? Naturally.
That’s not a tired player. That’s a leader who understands this game with high-Q. That’s a player building her case, one impossible situation at a time. I misread the locker room. Hannah Hidalgo knew exactly what she was doing.
We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)
The final week of the men’s season wraps this week, while the conference tournaments start up for the majors on the women’s side.
MBB:
Tuesday - 7p: Clemson at #17 North Carolina (ESPN)
Tuesday - 7p: Toledo at #19 Miami of OH (ESPN+I Infoulable Watch!!
Tuesday - 7p: George Mason at VCU (CBSSN)
Tuesday - 7p: Kentucky at Texas A&M (ESPN2)
Tuesday - 9p: BYU at Cincinnati (ESPN2)
Thursday - 8p: #3 Michigan at Iowa (Peacock)
Friday - 9p: #19 Miami of OH at Ohio of OH (ESPN2) Infoulable Watch 2!
WBB: Mostly conference tourneys this week. Please check conference schedule for specifics.
Thursday - 11a: Clemson at Virginia (ACCN)
Thursday - 12p: USC at Washington (B1G)
Final Seconds
Ok, friends! March is HERE!
12 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)
16 days until First Round (March 19-20)
32 days until Final Four (April 4)
And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.
Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.