Notre Dame guard Hannah Hidalgo dropped 44 points and grabbed 16 steals in a historic performance Wednesday in the Fighting Irish’s 85-58 win over Akron.
The Notre Dame junior set a program record for points scored and an NCAA record for the most steals in a game by a male or female player.
“Defense first. Defense wins championships,” Hidalgo said. “I make sure that I bring the energy for my team defensively so we can get out in transition and get buckets.”
The women’s steals record was previously 14, set by Old Dominion’s Ticha Penicheiro in 1998 and matched by Georgia Tech’s Jill Ingram in 2008. The men’s steals record is 13, accomplished twice by Oklahoma’s Mookie Blaylock, in 1987 and 1988.
Notre Dame’s previous scoring record was 41, recorded by Ruth Riley in 1999 and Jewell Loyd in 2014. Loyd is now a WNBA star with the Las Vegas Aces, and Riley helped the Irish win the national championship in 2001.
Hidalgo finished Wednesday’s game with nine rebounds, four assists and 16-of-25 shooting in 28 minutes.
“That’s what my teammates need from me, and I want to be consistent in doing that, so I know I got to bring it defensively,” Hidalgo said. “I told my teammates that I would be aggressive on the defensive end, so I made sure I was intentional in doing that from the jump.”
Hidalgo was quick to deflect the glory from her historic game Wednesday, saying she was one part of a unit.
“I just love this team so much. To be able to do it with the group that we have here … I wouldn’t want to do (it) with anyone else,” Hidalgo said.
Her teammates didn’t shy away from celebrating the two-time All-America first-teamer’s big game. Teammate Cass Prosper waited with a water bottle and sprayed Hidalgo after she entered the locker room.
Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly reported that Ruth Riley scored 41 points in a 1988 game. Her high-scoring game occurred in 1999. The article has been corrected.
