After a tough set of weeks filled with tournament and SEC/ACC Challenge play, Notre Dame’s men’s and women’s basketball teams are back in South Bend to resume non-conference play.
On the men’s side, the Irish return after a 13-point loss to No. 15 Miami on Saturday to take on Western Michigan. The Broncos have struggled to start the year with losses against Northwestern, Ohio State, North Dakota State, Georgia State and St. Thomas (MN). Notre Dame has played well on defense, integrating players such as Tae Davis and Kebba Njie into the rotation filled almost entirely with newcomers. On the offensive end, the Irish rank in the bottom 15% in efficiency. Tuesday’s match against Western Michigan should serve as an opportunity for Micah Shrewsberry to experiment.
On the women’s side, fresh off an impressive road win against then-No. 20 Tennessee, Niele Ivey leads her team in a matchup against Lafayette. Lafayette has dropped games to Syracuse and Rutgers this year. The Irish are still without guards Sonia Citron and Olivia Miles, who are out due to injury. Notre Dame’s last blowout came two weeks ago against Chicago State. Ivey has been playing key players — such as Citron — late into games, so watch for the Irish to run up the score if things go according to plan. This week marks the first week of the season that freshman guard Hannah Hidalgo did not win the ACC Rookie of the Week. Hidalgo had a bit of an off-game against Tennessee, as the Irish instead relied on their post players.
Both games tip off at 7:00 p.m. and are available to stream on ESPN+.
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