Success for Shea or a chance for more payback vs ND?

[msf22b]

Mikayla may not be quite the generational player that Sarah is (and a lot of Vandy fans might well disagree)
but she is a unique talent and talk of shutting her down is silly.

ESPN​

Hannah Hidalgo calls Mikayla Blakes 'Caitlin-type of level' scorer​

• 
  
  Andrea AdelsonMar 26, 2026, 03:20 PM ET

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Nobody needs to tell Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo that Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes leads the nation in scoring. She has her own thoughts on how hard Blakes is to defend.

...Hidalgo referenced Caitlin Clark when asked what makes Blakes so effective as a scorer.


"The way she's able to put the ball in the hoop, it's like Caitlin-type of level," Hidalgo said Thursday during a news conference previewing the game. "She can score on all three levels, whether that's getting all the way to the basket, her midrange, or her three. Of course, that's always tough to guard."

 

[schmendrick]

Who cares? Let them scrap it out and whichever one it is, let's trounce them soundly.

 

[Cuango]

I would love to have Shea and Vandy win and go to the Elite Eight, and my satisfaction will be even higher when that means they also knocked ND out of the tournament.

While Shea and Vandy are a bit of a "dangerous unknown", Notre Dame is a "dangerous known" entity that has started to click and I want no part of that in the Elite Eight.

Yeah, given a choice, I’d much rather face Notre Dame for the Final four than Vanderbilt! My reasoning is quite simple; Vandy is far and away the more talented team and I’m honestly a bit scared of Shea’s team! She will have an (several) enormous advantage over almost any other coach in the tourney as she knows Geno’s style and strategy better than anyone we will face! Plus, her team is simply far and away the better of the two and she will have the added emotional boost of her team desperately trying to win for her! I know we will be favored either way but……I’d rather play Notre Dame than Vandy for sure!

 

[Kat]

Wanting "payback" for past losses is silly.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Wanting "payback" for past losses is silly.

It is an integral part of fandom, making a win all the more delicious.

 

[Purduke]

It is an integral part of fandom, making a win all the more delicious.

This. Maybe it's having grown up as an Iggles fan for 60 years, but beating Dallas still tops anything like the feeling of seeing Andy, Reich or Peterson make the playoffs.

Wow -- I lose 90% to 10% -- too many nice people in CT.

 

[fireford]

We'll know soon enough who the first team to punch their ticket to the elite 8 is. Photo courtesy of Ava Black's (the one with the knee brace) dad (friend of a friend).

 

[slepers]

The nd vandy game is as ugly as it gets. It’s not good defense it is crappy play

 

[Rowdy831]

I would rather play Notre dame. I think they are easier. Path of least resistance. I want that final four appearance bad.

Edit: what the guy above said. I am not looking past North Carolina. I have a lot of respect for them.

Vanderbilt is a one trick pony and if she is defended, like she will be against ND and UConn I think you will see just how mortal she it. I like her but outside of offense she hasn't been all that impressive.

 

[Henry]

I'd rather face Vandy, and felt that way before this game started. I'd rather face the team with little tournament experience that's never played against us. I don't like playing a team multiple times in a season.

 

[Linart]

Final minutes, game is tied!

 

[Ozimoto]

The Irish make it to the Elite 8. Unfortunate for Vanderbilt. They had their chances.

 

[HuskyNan]

ND wins 67-64

Vandy’s two best players took the last 2 shots to win the game but unfortunately it was not to be

 

[jaydee602]

Notre Dame advances to the Elite Eight. They play the UCONN/ NC winner on Sunday at 1PM.

 

[Rb335]

Hidalgo with an all time performance. Blakes looked very nervous in the first half. Ended 7/26 from the floor, yikes. Credit to ND, never expected them to be in this position.

 

[DemonDeac22]

ND wins 67-64

Vandy’s two best players took the last 2 shots to win the game but unfortunately it was not to be

Two clear 3-pointer looks to TIE the game in the last 14 seconds…

 

[Centerstream]

I only watched the last 16 seconds. Yuk (IMHO). Hidalgo with a triple double. Hmm.

 

[jaydee602]

ND wins 67-64

Vandy’s two best players took the last 2 shots to win the game but unfortunately it was not to be

ND wins 67-64

Vandy’s two best players took the last 2 shots to win the game but unfortunately it was not to be

Notre Dame won despite being 1 for 17 from 3 point range.
They also shot 13 free throws compared to Vandy's 25 foul shots!
Mikayla Blakes had 26 points, but was only 7 for 26 on field goal attempts. She had as many foul shots as the whole Notre Dame team!

 

[Charliebball]

Watched the entire game........Hidalgo is clearly a major talent and plays with a similar defensive gusto as KK and K9.......that said, the majority of her baskets were on uncontested layups as Vanderbilt's help defense was nonexistent for large parts of the game, especially in the first half.........I'm not making any comments about a future meeting with ND until UNC is in the rearview mirror.....

 

[packwrap]

Wow, I'm glad they eventually play the actual game. What a heavyweight bout!

Superman just beats Batman&Robin.

Game really could have gone either way. Freshman Galvan with an MVP performance. Blakes on an off day, used free throws to almost foul out ND and still get the job done.

Hidalgo crazy with 30pt, 10 assists, 10 steals triple double.

Game really delivered on the hype.

 

[ec33]

All that moaning about UConn being forced to play an outsized 2-seed due to seeding rules and they end up actually facing a 6-seed (factoring out the possibility of UConn losing against UNC).

 

[Bone Dog]

Hidalgo is clearly a major talent and plays with a similar defensive gusto as KK and K9.......that said, the majority of her baskets were on uncontested layups as Vanderbilt's help defense was nonexistent for large parts of the game,

Yes, Vandy's defense did not account for Hannah very well. But I don't want to take anything way from her, just because an opposing team failed to prepare for her adequately. She's also carrying a wounded duck of a team into the Elite Eight, and that's not nuthin'. She walked onto the court today not knowing what was in store for her team, but she had the same absolute resolve she always brings to every game.

 

[Charliebball]

Yes, Vandy's defense did not account for Hannah very well. But I don't want to take anything way from her, just because an opposing team failed to prepare for her adequately. She's also carrying a wounded duck of a team into the Elite Eight, and that's not nuthin'. She walked onto the court today not knowing what was in store for her team, but she had the same absolute resolve she always brings to every game.

I agree.......the odds are quite good that ND would be staring at a losing season without Hidalgo's contributions, never mind reaching this far in the big tournament.......still, Vanderbilt's defensive weaknesses allowed HH to do pretty much whatever she pleased, driving over, under and around a mostly matador defense.....

 

[uh-no]

on the positive side, don't want shea to have so much success that she doesn't come back home

 

[Mike72fl]

With about 20 seconds to go, Vandy had a chance to tie or retake the lead, Blakes had the ball and tried to do too much and too fast; she turned the ball over.

 

[CTFan]

Hidalgo is a forced to be reckoned with. She propels her teammates to be better than they actually are. This is a much better team than the one that lost to us earlier this season. They certainly have weaknesses, but they have faced adversity and have shown tremendous grit. Our bench is superior, and we can spread talent instead of relying on one superstar.

This will be a very interesting game to watch.

 

[H Dog]

Mikayla may not be quite the generational player that Sarah is (and a lot of Vandy fans might well disagree)
but she is a unique talent and talk of shutting her down is silly.

Well I guess we’re not going to find out if it was silly or not since she and Vandy underperformed and lost to a much lower seeded team that Uconn dominated a few months ago. But, suffice it to say I disagree with your statement and opinion. I’ve been watching UConn for decades now shutting down supposed big time uniquely talented players and this team and KK in particular have defensive talents that routinely take teams and their top scorers totally out of their games. I’ve watched Blakes and Vandy several times this year and they appear to be a textbook example of a team aka player that our Huskies would shut down and frustrate. HH found that out after having her way at times against us the 2 years prior.

 

[Skeets]

Yes, Vandy's defense did not account for Hannah very well. But I don't want to take anything way from her, just because an opposing team failed to prepare for her adequately. She's also carrying a wounded duck of a team into the Elite Eight, and that's not nuthin'. She walked onto the court today not knowing what was in store for her team, but she had the same absolute resolve she always brings to every game.

A very good description.

 

[HopJim]

Hidalgo is a forced to be reckoned with. She propels her teammates to be better than they actually are. This is a much better team than the one that lost to us earlier this season. They certainly have weaknesses, but they have faced adversity and have shown tremendous grit. Our bench is superior, and we can spread talent instead of relying on one superstar.

This will be a very interesting game to watch.

One of the more compelling non-UConn games I've seen in years. Both teams were both clutch and appeared nervous on many alternate posessions. Not always pretty but great game to watch.
Looked at the 4th Q again and one observation that could impact ND's performance against Huskies. Not taking anything away from Hidalgo's performance-one of the best in March in many years-but in at least 3-4 of her 4th Q "steals," the replay showed she slapped the offensive player's arm, not the ball but no foul called. During our game against NC, most bumps were called a foul. Both teams play a very aggressive style of defense so it will be interesting to see how the refs call this upcoming game.

 

[Bone Dog]

but in at least 3-4 of her 4th Q "steals," the replay showed she slapped the offensive player's arm, not the ball but no foul called. During our game against NC, most bumps were called a foul. Both teams play a very aggressive style of defense so it will be interesting to see how the refs call this upcoming game.

I'm not sure I saw it the same way you did. Hannah definitely got away with several fouls in the 4th. But I didn't see the bump fouls get whistled much in the UNC game. There were at least 4 flops by UNC that the refs refused to whistle. If they'd been in a persnickety mood, there could have been a lot of fouls called. A classic case was the two steals Hannah got from Galvan at the half court line. Both were clear fouls as the replay revealed, but only one of them was whistled. Missed calls like that in the closing minutes are game changers.

My sense is the refs, at least in this regional, have decided to "let them play." This means Hannah will have a green light to push the boundary on reach-ins. But so will KK, Kayleigh and Sarah.