The Eternal City Tip Off brought NCAA basketball to Rome on Sunday, and Hannah Hidalgo made sure it the Notre Dame vs Villanova clash counted. The senior guard posted 32 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds as No. 13 Notre Dame women's basketball routed Villanova 99-75.
Pope Comes to Watch Notre Dame vs Villanova in Rome
The event served as both schools’ season openers at Palazzo dello Sport, with Pope Leo XIV — a Villanova alum — on hand.
Despite the papal support, the Wildcats had no answer for Hidalgo. The two-time ACC Player of the Year went 4-for-4 in the second quarter with two 3-pointers. She reached 18 by the break, part of a 21-point Notre Dame lead that Villanova couldn’t cut into.
Hidalgo wasn’t working alone, though. Transfer Leah Macy added 27 points and a game-high 14 rebounds in her Notre Dame debut while Madison St. Rose chipped in 17.
On the other end, the Wildcats posted 27 third-quarter points for their best stretch, but the Irish answered with 25. Hidalgo added nine more in the fourth before heading to the bench.
The NCAA basketball outing marked her 21st career 30-point game, and her ninth with at least 32. After four years with Notre Dame, the only line missing from Hidalgo’s résumé is a national title. But on Sunday, she played like someone closing in on one.
