The Notre Dame women’s basketball program made big moves to close out the early signing period, nabbing a pair of previously uncommitted top-25 recruits this week.

The Fighting Irish signed Hannah Hidalgo, the No. 5 recruit in the Class of 2023, on Tuesday after picking up Cassandre Prosper, the 12th-ranked player in the Class of 2023, a day earlier.

The early signing period allowed players to sign their National Letter of Intent with schools, beginning on Nov. 9 and running through Wednesday. While many were already committed to their respective schools, making the early signing period a formality, others were still uncommitted.

A five-star point guard, Hidalgo was the program’s biggest signing. During her three years at Paul VI (N.J.), she’s averaged 21.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.4 steals per game. She was also a part of the United States U17 national team that went 7-0 and claimed a gold medal at the 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup.

Hidalgo chose the Fighting Irish over the likes of Duke, Michigan, Ohio State, Stanford and UCF.

“Hannah brings swag, competitiveness and a relentless drive that will instantly elevate our program,” Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey said in a press release. “She is-multi dimensional, lightning fast and tenacious defensively with a scorer’s mentality and a high basketball IQ. Hannah does a great job of pushing pace and making everyone around her better.”

She’s Irish! ☘️

Welcome home, @HannahHidalgo!#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/WHSPuccF4A

— Notre Dame WBB (@ndwbb) November 15, 2022

Prosper is another five-star prospect for Notre Dame. The 6-foot-2 forward was named MVP of the 2022 Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association Final 8 High School Championships last March after posting 33 points, 15 rebounds and two assists in the final game. Hailing from Montreal, Quebec, Prosper was also recognized as the league MVP for Cairine Wilson Secondary School, averaging 23.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game over 10 contests last year.

“She is an explosive, dynamic guard with an incredible motor and skill set that is unmatched,” Ivey said. “Her international experience, athleticism and scorer’s mentality will be an immediate asset to our program.”

Here are two other previously uncommitted top-25 players who signed this week:

Juju Watkins (No. 2), USC

The 6-1 guard signed her NLI on Tuesday in front of a packed gymnasium at Sierra Canyon (Calif.). The signing aired live on ESPN’s “SportsCenter.” Watkins is the reigning MaxPreps National Player of the Year and was the MVP at the U17 World Cup this summer. She chose USC over Stanford and South Carolina, potentially altering the trajectory of the Trojans’ women’s basketball program in the process.

“This is a young woman with transcendent talent, but she is also uniquely motivated,” USC coach Lindsay Gottlieb said about Watkins in a press release. “She is about things bigger than herself: her family, her team, her community, her city. Juju had the courage to stay home and is driven to bring USC women’s basketball back to prominence.”

Milaysia Fulwiley (No. 15), South Carolina

The 5-6 guard brings a dynamic skill set to the Gamecocks. Fulwiley is the three-time reigning South Carolina Basketball Coaches Association 3A State Player of the Year and has averaged over 20 points in each of her last three seasons. She’s coming off a 2021-22 campaign in which she averaged 29.6 points 8.8 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 4.6 steals per game for W.J. Keenan (S.C.).

The Columbia, S.C. native received an offer from the Gamecocks when she was in seventh grade. All four of South Carolina’s 2023 signees are ranked inside the top 50.

“She is a dynamic, explosive guard with exceptional speed, court vision and flair,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said about Fulwiley in a press release. “Her scoring mentality and competitive drive will be an immediate asset to our program.”

Trent Singer is the High School Editor at Just Women’s Sports. Follow him on Twitter @trentsinger.

Welcome to another episode of Sports Are Fun!

Every week on Sports Are Fun! presented by Amazon Business, co-hosts soccer legend Kelley O'Hara, sports journalist Greydy Diaz, and JWS intern BJ serve up their hottest takes on the biggest women's sports headlines.

This week, the Sports Are Fun! team is joined on the couch by hit women's soccer-focused social media and podcast duo Alanna Locast and Shannon Fay of SoccerGrlProbs to talk — what else? — the state of head coach Emma Hayes's ever-evolving USWNT.

Firstly, they get to work hashing out the US national team's 3-0 win over China PR — and which USWNT player they think has a shot to make the 2027 World Cup roster.

"We're going to start with women's national team winning 3-0 against China on Saturday," O'Hara introduces. "They won with goals from Cat Macario, Sam Coffey, and Lindsey Heaps — not
Horan, I'm starting to get that right."

"It's not a major tournament year, so this is just a friendly," she continues. "I'm curious if anybody has initial thoughts from this game?"

"It's very fun to see the unpredictability watching them play," says Locast. "We've seen the style that the US plays and you expect where certain players are going to be. I'm watching, and the creativity and just how unpredictable they are, I would not want to mark those three forwards."

"I agree," says O'Hara. "It's very clear that Emma is laying the foundation in a way that everybody understands what their total shape should look like at any point during the game, not just where they specifically should be. Which I think is a really important part of the evolution of the team."

"It's fun to watch. The player pool is so deep now," echos Fay. "I know she wants to have an idea on the team by June, so what's going to happen? I don't know."

Along with the recently USWNT friendlies, the Sports Are Fun! crew also tackles NCAA softball's Women's College World Series, US stars dominated the French Open, the recent Grand Slam Track event, and so much more.

'Sports Are Fun!' intern BJ digs up a spicy Pride month throwback

Before the Sports Are Fun! regulars get into all things USWNT, however, intern BJ gifts everyone a very special throwback social media clip in honor of LGBTQ+ Pride month.

"You guys, I want to say happy Pride month," BJ says to the group. "Specifically happy Pride month to Kelley, because a listener DM'd me yesterday and shared a fun little memory of Abby Wambach and Sydney Leroux on the US national team a couple years ago..."

"This wasn't a couple years ago!" says O'Hara, squirming. "This was 10 years ago."

"You know what? I was being generous," quipped BJ. "But it's y'all checking a coach of another team."

"Wooow, Kelley," laughs Diaz.

"For those who are listening, it's a series of gifs of Abby, Kelley, and Sydney Leroux. And the coach walks by and they're like, 'She's kind of hot,'" BJ says as the crew cracks up. "They're full, like, dogs are barking."

"Oh my God," laughs O'Hara. "I've seen this before pop up on the socials. And I didn't remember this happening, but then when it came up again, obviously this did happen. And I do think that is what we were saying. I'd need to call Abby to confirm."

"You don't need to call anyone, because your lips are saying exactly those words," says Locast.

About 'Sports Are Fun!' with Kelley O'Hara

'Sports Are Fun!' is a show that’ll remind you why you fell in love with women's sports in the first place.

Join World Cup champ, Olympic gold medalist, and aspiring barista Kelley O'Hara as she sits down with sports journalist Greydy Diaz and a revolving cast of co-hosts and friends. Together, they're talking the biggest, funnest, and most need-to-know stories in the world of women’s sports.

From on-court drama to off-field shenanigans, to candid (and silly) chats with the most important personalities in the space, this show screams "Sports Are Fun!"

Subscribe to Just Women's Sports on YouTube to never miss an episode.

The world No. 1 USWNT is gearing up to take on No. 40 Jamaica on Tuesday night, capping the two-friendly international break with a match spotlighting both the past and future of the program.

After opening the stretch with a 3-0 Saturday win over No. 17 China PR in St. Paul, Minnesota, major roster rotations are expected in St. Louis, Missouri, on Tuesday as US head coach Emma Hayes continues evaluating fresh and familiar on-field combos.

"I want to make sure that, whether you start, whether you come into the game [off the bench], it shouldn't alter our level," Hayes told media this week. "If anything, we should keep finding other levels in us."

Plenty of young firepower will feature on Tuesday's pitch, but the clash will also celebrate a recently retired USWNT great.

Two-time World Cup champion, Olympic gold medalist, and St. Louis product Becky Sauerbrunn will take center stage, with Energizer Park even doling out bobbleheads in the standout center back's likeness.

"I've got a locker room — not just the senior players, but less experienced players — that talk about [Sauerbrunn] in the highest esteem, both as a leader and as a human being," said Hayes of the longtime USWNT captain. "I don't think you could want anything more than that in life, to have people talk about you like that."

How to watch the USWNT vs. Jamaica friendly on Tuesday

The USWNT will take on the Reggae Girlz at 8 PM ET on Tuesday in St. Louis, Missouri, with live coverage on TNT.

The WNBA Commissioner's Cup is back with its 2025 edition, as the annual in-season tournament raises both stakes and incentives across the league.

Winning percentage, point differential, and head-to-head records all factor in as both Eastern and Western Conference teams battle it out for a shot at the competition's $500,000 prize pool.

Launched in 2021, the Commissioner’s Cup runs concurrently with the regular season, drawing on in-conference matchups to build a team's overall Cup record.

The 2025 competition opened on June 1st, tipping off three straight weeks of conference play that will culminate in a July 1st championship final between the Eastern and Western Conference winners.

Last season's final foreshadowed the eventual WNBA Finals, as the Minnesota Lynx topped New York to lift the 2024 Commissioner's Cup before the Liberty enacted revenge by taking the 2024 Championship a few months later.

Hoping to lift both trophies this season, New York started the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup party with a 48-point statement win over the Connecticut Sun last Sunday.

How to watch Tuesday's 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup games

Every WNBA game on Tuesday will have Cup stakes, starting with the Washington Mystics' visit to the Indiana Fever at 7 PM ET on NBATV.

Then at 8 PM ET, the Minnesota Lynx will host the Phoenix Mercury, airing on ESPN3, before the Dallas Wings close out Tuesday's slate in Seattle against the Storm at 9:30 PM ET on ESPN.

With injuries mounting across the WNBA, several teams have started stocking up on recently waived free agents, bolstering their depleted rosters with hardship signings as they head into a busy stretch of the 2025 regular season.

With both guard Kahleah Copper and forward Alyssa Thomas sidelined, the Phoenix Mercury signed former Atlanta Dream guard and 2023 first-round draft pick Haley Jones to a rest-of-season hardship contract on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Fever picked up ex-LA Sparks guard and 2021 first-rounder Aari McDonald on Sunday, with Indiana looking to boost their backcourt depth in light of injuries to guards Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham, and Sydney Colson.

These hardship signings come in clutch to keep benches stocked and WNBA teams in action.

However, the longevity of these early-season additions remains uncertain as teams attempt to balance league-maximum 12-player lineups with restrictive salary caps.

Hardship contracts allow teams to temporarily expand the salary cap, but when injured players return, so do tough roster calls — much to the dismay of front office decision-makers.

"More bodies would be good," Fever president Kelly Krauskopf told reporters with a wry laugh ahead of McDonald's signing.

Roster limitations will likely be a key issue when CBA negotiations rev up, with this week's emergency signings only adding fuel to the fire.