The No. 3-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish arrived at the Cayman Islands Classic riding high. Fresh off an upset of the then-No. 3 USC Trojans in Los Angeles, the Irish had an argument for being the best team in the nation, and maybe having the best player in the nation.
On Friday afternoon, the No. 17-ranked TCU Horned Frogs punctured Notre Dame’s perfection and knocked them off their pedestal, coming back from 14 points to win 76-68.
However, with just over three minutes remaining in the third quarter, it appeared that the Irish were poised the cement their case of the nation’s best team. After a jumper from senior guard Olivia Miles, the Irish led by 14 points, 39-53, seeming slated to cruise to 6-0.
TCU grad guard Hailey Van Lith then responded with a jumper of her own. To that point, Van Lith had only made one field goal and scored just six points. That made shot shifted things for Van Lith, as she netted two more jumpers on the Horned Frogs’ next two possessions. Still, the Irish duo of Miles and sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo were matching Van Lith’s flurry with scores of their own, giving the Irish an 11-point lead, 56-45, heading into the final frame.
Back-to-back triples from TCU grad guard Madison Conner to open the fourth quickly cut Notre Dame’s advantage to five points. Game on! If the Irish had begun to imagine some postgame beach time in the Bahamas, they needed to immediately disabuse themselves of any such daydreams. Following a messy few minutes of play, Notre Dame was unable to reclaim momentum. TCU grad guard Agnes Emma-Nnopu nailed a 3 with under four minutes to go to give the Horned Frogs a lead they would not relinquish, as, after an empty Irish possession, junior guard Taylor Bigby made it back-to-back triples for the Frogs.
A pair of made jumpers from Van Lith and grad center Sedona Prince extended TCU’s lead to nine points with under two minutes remaining, enough of a cushion to seal the comeback and secure the upset. The Horned Frogs shot better than 61 percent from the field and over 44 percent from 3 in the fourth, a spate of timely hot shooting necessary for their triumph.
Van Lith ended up scoring 19 of her 21 points in the second half, serving as the engine that drove TCU’s turnaround. She also continued to show off her improved distribution skills, finishing with seven assists.
A number of those dimes set up Prince, who was solid from the jump for the Horned Frogs. She tallied a 20-20 game, scoring 20 points and grabbing 20 boards, along with swatting eight shots. She effectively neutralized Notre Dame’s starting frontcourt of freshman Kate Koval, who was scoreless and fouled out, and senior Liatu King, who had eight points on nine shot attempts.
While Notre Dame’s backcourt has received much attention, consistent production from their frontcourt also has been important to their early season success. Without it on Friday, a greater offensive burden was levied on the Irish guards, with Hidalgo, Miles and senior guard Sonia Citron all having less efficient afternoons. Hidalgo did still stuff the stat sheet with 27 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals. Miles finished with 16 points, four assists and four boards, while Citron scored 14 points.
In addition to Van Lith and Prince, TCU was boosted by Conner, who made three 3s on her way to 18 points. Bigby also added a trio of triples for nine points.
With their second win over a ranked opponent, having beaten the then-No. 13 NC State Wolfpack in mid-November, TCU will be under pressure to prove that they belong in the top-10 conversation by closing out the Cayman Islands Classic with a victory over South Florida on Saturday night (7:30 p.m. ET, FloSports). Notre Dame will look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon when they meet Utah (5 p.m. ET, FloSports).
