Notre Dame Runs The ACC Table: Three-Point Play

One goal down this season. At least three more to go.

Notre Dame won its third straight outright Atlantic Coast Conference title in as many seasons in the league with a 70-58 victory versus Boston College on Saturday afternoon at the Purcell Pavilion.

It was the second time the No. 2 Irish (28-1 overall, 16-0 in the ACC) ran the league table the past three seasons, and overall the Fighting Irish hold a 54-1 record against ACC foes since joining the conference. They also won the Big East in 2012 and 2013, giving it five straight conference titles.

On Senior Day, fifth-year senior guard Madison Cable tallied a game-high 20 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the floor, and on defense she recorded five steals. Her combination of leadership, talent and unselfishness rubbed off on the entire team that had to withstand the surprising departure of would-be senior Jewell Loyd to pro basketball, the exodus of captain/starting forward Taya Reimer in December, a preseason year-ending injury to freshman backup point guard Ali Patberg and the uncertainty of whether sophomore post Brianna Turner would be healthy this season after missing six games with a shoulder injury.

“I thought it was a phenomenal accomplishment for us to go through [conference play] undefeated,” head coach Muffet McGraw said. “Credit the seniors and the whole team. What we went through this year … I think we got better throughout the year, especially the freshmen. But what would we have done without Madison Cable coming back and [Turner’s] shoulder making it through?

“We are so blessed to have this class, these amazing young women. They just keep fighting every single day and find a way to win. No matter how ugly it gets at times, we rely on our defense, we rely on our rebounding, and these two [Turner and Cable] heavily.”

Turner finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals, while freshman guard Arike Ogunbowale also chipped in 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting to go with eight rebounds and four assists. The Irish built a 42-24 halftime cushion while converting 16 of 22 (72.7 percent) from the floor, and led by as many as 22 points in the third quarter before the Eagles chipped away at the lead. Sophomore Kathryn Westbeld sat out her second straight game while resting an injured ankle.

Next up are three more goals:

• Winning the ACC Tournament, where the Irish swept through with a 3-0 mark each of the first two seasons. The tourney in Greensboro, N.C., begins Wednesday, but because Notre Dame has a double bye, it doesn’t play until Friday in the quarterfinals.

• Advancing to a sixth consecutive Final Four. The four No. 1 seeds are clear with No. 1 UConn, the three-time defending champion, and then Notre Dame, South Carolina and Baylor, which have only one loss apiece. UConn is the sole defeat for both the Irish and the Gamecocks.

• The national title. UConn’s dynasty stands in the way most conspicuously, but just like the Brooklyn Dodgers losing four World Series against the “damn Yankees” from 1947-53 before winning it in 1955, you keep striving for the gold until you reach it.

Three-Point Play

1. Cable Service — Described as “the heart and soul of this team” by McGraw, Cable led the team in minutes per game (30.4), three-pointers made (58), three-point percentage (45.7) and steals (54), and ranked second in rebounds (165) and scoring (13.6 points per game). Unofficially, she also paced the team in charges taken and times hitting the floor with hustle plays or by sacrificing her body. McGraw noted that Cable even takes charges in practice from the men’s practice players — a unique trait.

Last year Cable was a complementary figure off the bench, and whether she was really needed for a fifth year this season with the All-American Loyd supposedly returning and three prominent freshmen enrolling was debatable. She has evolved as impressively as anyone in the nearly three-decade McGraw era. Which brings us to …

2. Reflecting On The Team — The coach’s personality will infiltrate a team, but Cable’s has too. This team does not have a megastar like a Ruth Riley, Skylar Diggins, Kayla McBride or Loyd — although Turner is getting closer and might be a year away. Cable is understated, not flashy, but effective. In recent years, the Irish would have destroyed struggling teams like Clemson and Boston College at home by at least 30 points on an off night. This year, it defeated them by 19 and 12, respectively. It’s not a dominant unit that overwhelms, but it is tough minded, and gets the job done methodically, blue collar and intelligently as one — which mirrors who Cable is.

3. Finding Marina — While Ogunbowale’s game has significantly improved all around in the last month (especially her court vision and passing), fellow rookie Marina Mabrey has hit a bit of the proverbial freshman wall. On Saturday, she played only a minute in the second half and nine overall while not taking a shot. Senior Hannah Huffman (20 minutes) and sophomore Mychal Johnson (17 minutes) took her minutes, as did senior/sister Michaela Mabrey (30 minutes). With a week before the Irish play in the ACC Tournament, the team’s fourth leading scorer with about 11 points per game has an opportunity to find her second wind.