Notre Dame Women Advance To Sweet 16 Regional In Lexington
Junior point guard Lindsay Allen is known as “The Facilitator” for bringing out the best in her teammates with her floor leadership and unselfishness. On Monday night during Notre Dame’s 87-70 win over Indiana in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, she took matters into her own hand on both ends of the court.
Allen still led the Fighting Irish in assists (seven) and steals (a career-high five), but it was her season-high 22-point output (on 10-of-13 shooting from the floor) in two different crucial stretches that helped move Notre Dame into the Lexington Regional this weekend in the Sweet 16.
The first came when the Irish led 35-32 with just less than three minutes left until halftime. Allen scored the last five Fighting Irish field goals of the half, mainly on drives and pull-up mid-range jumpers, plus off a steal she made, to build a 47-37 cushion at the intermission. She had 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor in the first 20 minutes.
“We kept getting the same shots — either the free throw line jumper, a layup for me and a layup for [Brianna Turner],” Allen said. “It was just reading the defense and taking what they gave us.”
The scrappy Hoosiers stayed aggressive, though, and a 12-1 run cut their deficit to 56-54 with 2:47 left in the third quarter. Indiana then made a pass that looked like it could set up a layup — until Allen tipped it, grabbed the loose ball and fed freshman guard Arike Ogunbowale on a breakaway layup. Allen then stole the in-bounds pass and laid in a basketball for a 60-54 cushion.
On the ensuing possession, fifth-year senior Madison Cable made another steal and was breaking away for a layup when she had a nasty spill by the basket support after IU junior Karlee McBride — sister of former Notre Dame All-American Kayla McBride (2010-14) — went after the ball. Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw after the game commented that she didn’t think it was a flagrant foul, but the mostly partisan Irish fans in attendance (5,750) booed McBride — who scored 17 points and made 4 of 6 shots from three-point range — every time she touched the ball thereafter. For McGraw, that was a turning point.
“When Maddie got fouled, the crowd really got into it,” McGraw said. “I thought she got a little chip on her shoulder and from that point on she really wanted the ball. She hit back to back threes shortly after that and I thought that was the game.”
The Irish built the lead up to as much as 22 points while finishing 34 of 62 (54.8 percent) from the field and 15 of 18 (83.3 percent) from the foul line. Notre Dame’s defense also held 19-points-per-game scorer Tyra Buss to 10 points on 3-of-16 shooting, switching assignments on her throughout the game.
Turner missed several good looks inside (8-of-17 shooting), but still finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots. Cable contributed 16 points and five rebounds, while freshman guard Marina Mabrey provided a huge spark in 23 minutes off the bench, especially in the first half, finishing with 15 points (11 in the first half) and three assists while also helping defend Buss.
Three-Point Play
1. The Lexington Regional
For the second year in a row, Notre Dame will face Stanford in the Sweet 16, this time on Friday at Lexington, Ky., with tip-off scheduled at 9:30 p.m. ET. The No. 4-seed Cardinal escaped with a 66-65 win over South Dakota State, a team the Fighting Irish defeated 75-64 on Nov. 21 while on the road. Stanford has been in six of the last eight Final Fours and is the most recent team to defeat No. 1 UConn (November 2014), so it can never be taken lightly. Notre Dame won last year 81-60, with Allen pouring in a career-high 28 points.
More surprising is the other end of the regional saw No. 2 seed Maryland — which was ranked No. 5 in the country — lose 74-65 to Washington. The No. 7-seeded Huskies will play the host team Kentucky Wildcats in the other regional semifinal.
2. Basketball U.
Notre Dame and Syracuse are the only two schools that saw both their men’s and women’s basketball teams advance to the Sweet 16 this month. At the same time, Notre Dame is the lone school in the country to also have its football team play in a Big Six bowl and be invited to the 16-team NCAA Tournament men’s hockey field.
Last year, Notre Dame was the sole school to see both of its basketball teams advance to the Elite Eight.
3. Whatever It Takes
In the first-round win over North Carolina A&T, Allen didn’t even attempt a field goal in 21 minutes while handing out 10 assists. She is fully capable of averaging double-digit scoring, evidenced by her output against the Hoosiers (or her 51 total points in the two regional games last year), but for the greater good of the team she is at the 9.0 mark in scoring. She is as valuable as any floor general in America on both ends.