Notre Dame Fighting Irish star guard Hannah Hidalgo has continued her excellent performances as she enters her junior year of collegiate basketball. The Merchantville, New Jersey native broke an NCAA record, helping her team secure a massive 85-58 win over Akron on Wednesday.
Hidalgo was one rebound away from recording a unique triple-double in the team’s win over the Zips. Hidalgo recorded 44 points, nine rebounds, and 16 steals to break the NCAA steal record, held by Ticha Penicheiro of Old Dominion in 1998.
Hannah Hidalgo Gets Candid on Breaking the NCAA Record
After the match, ESPN SportsCenter’s Ryan Smith asked if growing up among four brothers helped her defense, and this is what the 5-foot-6 guard had to say:
“Yeah, absolutely. I think just taking pride in my defense, me always being the smallest player on the floor always, ever since I was younger, I had to really hone into defense, Hidalgo said in the interview. “So, I know that I was always told that defense wins championships.”
She continued, “And so really just taking pride in locking up defensively and just getting my points, that’s getting stops and running in transition.”
In another video posted by ACC Network last year, a 10-year-old Hidalgo was seen playing with her elder brother’s team in 2015. Playing for the Life Center Academy Boys’ Team in Burlington, New Jersey, Hidlago also converted a tough three-pointer, a skill she has often demonstrated in her collegiate career.
The Fighting Irish were locked in defensively in their match against the Zips. They forced 38 turnovers, of which 30 were steals, and scored 41 points. Hidalgo shot an impressive 16-for-25 from the field, including 3-for-6 from beyond the arc.
Furthermore, she recorded 28 points in the first half and scored the first 12 points to gain a 14-0 run, giving her team a 41-22 lead in the second quarter.
Three games into the season, Hidalgo has led Notre Dame to a perfect 3-0 record. Furthermore, she is averaging a national best 34.3 points per game. Along with some outstanding scoring numbers, Hidalgo is also grabbing 7.7 rebounds, dishing out 5.0 assists, stealing the ball 7.7 times, and recording 0.3 blocks in 29 minutes per contest.
She also scored 32 points against the Chicago State Cougars and 27 points in the 98-52 win against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights.
The Fighting Irish will now be on the road to face the No. 14 Michigan Wolverines in Detroit on Saturday. The Wolverines are also undefeated this season, with a 2-0 record after defeating the Canisius Golden Griffins and Harvard Crimson.