CORAL GABLES, Fla. — The past week has been quite successful for the Notre Dame women’s basketball squad, highlighted by their return to the top spot in the AP Top 25 on Monday, followed by an impressive defensive performance during their victory over Miami on Thursday night.

In that game, Notre Dame secured a decisive 82-42 win, but for coach Niele Ivey, the critical statistic was the 42 points her team allowed Miami to score, marking a season-best for defensive efficiency.

“We executed everything we needed to do on defense,” Ivey remarked after the game.

From the beginning, Notre Dame established a solid defensive presence. The Hurricanes struggled significantly, missing their first nine attempts, which allowed the Fighting Irish to jump to a swift 10-0 lead. Throughout the match, Miami experienced stretches of poor shooting, going 0 for 12, 0 for 7, and 0 for 6 at various points.

In a particularly surprising statistic, Miami could not convert any of its 16 attempts from beyond the arc, which is the second-lowest performance in ACC history for a team in conference games over the last two decades. The record for worst showing belongs to Clemson, which went 0 for 19 against Louisville four years ago.

“This demonstrates the growth we’ve aimed for since the start of the season,” Ivey noted. “We wanted our team’s identity to center around strong defense.”

The Fighting Irish’s achievement of limiting their opponents to just 42 points not only surpassed their previous best of 46 points given up against James Madison but also marked a significant achievement in limiting their opponents’ shooting to just 27%, which is one of their best defensive efforts this season.

“They’re undefeated in the league for a reason,” noted Miami coach Tricia Cullop. “They’re an exceptionally talented team.”

As the season continues, Notre Dame aims to maintain this defensive prowess while building on their momentum as they climb back to the pinnacle of women’s college basketball.