'We're gonna be fast.' Notre Dame women's basketball coach Niele Ivey, Irish ready to fly

SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame women’s basketball is less than four weeks from go time, and the Irish intend to make that a time they show just how fast they can go.

“The two areas identity-wise that I want for our team” are pushing pace and playing aggressive defense, coach Niele Ivey said during Tuesday afternoon’s team media day.

“I talk about that every year,” Ivey conceded of an up-tempo offense, “but I think we’re gonna be fast, and even faster (if Olivia Miles comes back from last season’s knee injury), and defensively, I feel like we have the bodies that can (play fast). We’re gonna impact the ball more aggressively this year. I would like to extend our defense. It’s something we’ve been working on. … Everyone being in great shape is gonna allow us to play faster defensively and do more things defensively to disrupt offenses.”

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After hosting Purdue Northwest in an Oct. 30 exhibition, the Irish tip their regular season Nov. 6 against South Carolina in Paris, France, the first-ever U.S. men’s or women’s college basketball game slated for that city.

South Carolina stands No. 3 in ESPN’s latest preseason ratings, while ND is No. 11.

The style of ball Ivey wants is one best-served by having depth, and the Irish say they have it, with or without Miles, the second-team All-American guard whose timeline for a return remains clouded after April 11 right knee surgery.

Even without Miles, ND’s blend of proven players and promising ones runs long.

There’s junior guard Sonia Citron, an All-Atlantic Coast Conference first-team selection last season, and Maddy Westbeld, part of the All-ACC second team, and fellow returning starting senior forward Kylee Watson each from a club that went 27-6 last winter, won the regular-season league crown at 15-3 and advanced — sans Miles — to the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16.

There’s also KK Bransford and fellow guard Cass Prosper, who both saw key minutes and flashed promise as freshmen last year.

There’s a pair of highly regarded incoming freshmen in Hannah Hidalgo, ESPN’s No. 1-rated point guard and No. 5 player overall in the high school class of 2023, and Emma Risch, whose 3-point shooting has drawn comparisons by Ivey to record-setting former ND sharpshooter Alicia Ratay.

There are grad-student reinforcements from the transfer portal in ex-Fordham star Anna DeWolfe at guard and ex-Pepperdine rebounding leader Becky Obinma inside.

There are other veterans in junior forward Nat Marshall and grad guard Jenna Brown, along with former walk-on Sarah Cernugel.

Though just two players exhausted their eligibility last season, they are starters Dara Mabrey and Lauren Ebo.

“I think it’s exciting,” Ivey said of the depth the Irish nonetheless possess. “It’s definitely going to be really competitive (for minutes). It’s been super competitive. … I’m excited for the possible lineups. I’m excited for Liv to be able to play with Hannah. I’m excited for different rotations with our offense. Cass brings a different layer. KK brings a different layer.”

Prosper, who draws high praise from Ivey for her defense, says the battles for playing time have been fierce, but friendly.

“It’s strong,” Prosper said. “Everyone deserves to play, everyone is working hard to play. That’s on the coaches (to decide). … They know us, they have their trust in us, and we trust in them.”

“We have all the pieces,” said Citron, to contend for a national title.

Hidalgo says her only expectation for the season is “to win.”

“I mean, we have a phenomenal team,” Hidalgo said. “We’re fast, we’re super talented all-around. We can shoot the ball, we have great IQ, so we wanna win. We wanna go all the way.”

While the Notre Dame roster lists just four forwards, compared to nine guards, and the projected stars are primarily the guards, Hidalgo says not to sleep on the forwards.

“Our bigs are so versatile,” Hidalgo said. “They can get the ball, they can push it, outlet it, then go sprint and post up.”

Ivey points to Watson as a contender to be the team’s most improved player.

“She’s a completely different player being in my system for a year,” Ivey said. “The way she’s attacked the offseason and summer has been honestly so impressive. She’s definitely somebody you guys are gonna look at me like, ‘Wow, Kylee looks confident.’ She’s in amazing shape. She’s just playing the game. The game is coming easy to her.”

Under Ivey, the reigning ACC Coach of the Year now entering her fourth season, the Irish have improved each winter.

They went 10-10 overall, 8-7 in the ACC, in her COVID-shortened first season, after marks of 13-18 and 8-10 during Hall of Famer Muffet McGraw’s final go-around. They added a 23-9 overall mark and a third-place 13-5 in the ACC in Ivey’s second season, before adding last season’s 27-6 and 15-3 with a second straight Sweet 16.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notre Dame women's basketball preview: Look for up-tempo Irish offense