Why Niele Ivey played starters late in 4th quarter blowout of Michigan
03/23/2025 05:32 PM
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish cruised to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament following their 76-55 blowout over Michigan in the round of 32. The Fighting Irish had several starters in the game late despite the score, and Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey explained postgame that she did so for the seniors, as per Irish Illustrated.
“I wanted that moment for all the seniors, just to really get the celebration and the honoring from the fans,” Ivey said. “I wanted them to have that celebration for all that they’ve done for this program.”
With the higher seeds hosting the first two rounds of the women’s NCAA Tournament, this was the final home game ever for the Notre Dame seniors. Among that group was Sonia Citron, Maddy Westbeld, Kylee Watson, Liatu King, Liza Karlen and Sarah Surnugel.
That group could possibly include Olivia Miles who has one year of college basketball eligibility remaining should she choose to use it. Miles opted to play through an ankle injury with this being Notre Dame’s final home game of the season.
In the meantime, Niele Ivey and Notre Dame are headed to Birmingham for the Sweet 16 where they await the winner between TCU and Louisville. This is Ivey’s fifth season at the helm for the Fighting Irish, and she’s complied an overall record of 115-37.
During the past five years, Ivey has led Notre Dame to the NCAA Tournament in four consecutive seasons. The past three years, the farthest the Fighting Irish advanced in March Madness was the Sweet 16. Notre Dame obviously has bigger aspirations this season as they were consistently ranked among the elite teams in the country.
Out of that senior group for the Fighting Irish, one player in particular that stands to gain a lot from a strong tournament run is Sonia Citron. Miles is already considered a lottery lock should she declared for the WNBA Draft, but in recent months Citron has been steadily shooting up draft boards.
The post Why Niele Ivey played starters late in 4th quarter blowout of Michigan appeared first on ClutchPoints.
