SOUTH BEND, Ind. — It was total domination from start to finish, largely facilitated by a rookie.
On Monday, No. 10 Notre Dame topped Purdue Northwest in an exhibition contest, 110-48. Hannah Hidalgo led the Irish with 23 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals in just over 25 minutes played. She went 8-9 from the floor and 2-3 from deep.
“I was so excited for it to be my first college game,” Hidalgo said during the postgame press conference. “I love my teammates. I can’t wait to see what we bring to Paris.”
Notre Dame began the game on a 21-0 run, holding the Pride scoreless until the 4:17 mark in the first quarter. The first 10 minutes ended with the Irish up 35-4 after Purdue NW committed 15 turnovers. Notre Dame’s highest scoring quarter last season came against California (31).
Throughout the first half, Notre Dame ran the floor. The Irish scored 21 fast break points off of 15 steals and 22 total Purdue NW turnovers. Hidalgo had 4 of those steals and threw a couple of dimes down the floor to her teammates for easy layups.
It was a balanced scoring attack offensively through 30. Five players had at least 8 points. Hidalgo led the way with 12, and Sonia Citron posted 11.
The Irish offense stayed hot in the third quarter. Citron added 11 more points and ended up with 22. Notre Dame notched 23 offensive rebounds compared to Purdue NW’s 5.
Nat Marshall and Becky Obinma were forces on defense. In her Irish debut, Obinma posted a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Marshall had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals.
The Pride’s lifeblood during the game came on three-pointers. Purdue NW posted 10 total three-pointers for 62.5 percent of their scoring. Abbie McDowell had six of those and went 6-9 from behind the arc.
Up next, Notre Dame heads to Paris to play South Carolina in the first ever collegiate basketball game — men’s or women’s — played in the City of Lights.