Notre Dame's lone league defeat in two years of ACC play was avenged Friday afternoon in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals held in Greensboro, N.C.
The No. 2-ranked Irish improved to 29-2 with a 77-61 win versus Miami, which had upset Notre Dame 78-63 on Jan. 8 in Coral Gables. Although the Hurricanes looked to make it interesting again by cutting their deficit to 48-43, balanced scoring and strong defense led the Irish victory.
Notre Dame will play No. 16-ranked Duke at noon on Saturday in the semifinals. The Irish defeated the Blue Devils 63-50 at the Purcell Pavilion in February.
ACC Player of the Year Jewell Loyd had 16 points and eight rebounds while ACC Freshman of the Year Brianna Turner tallied 13 points to go with 10 rebounds. Sophomore forward Taya Reimer - who missed the first Miami game while taking a temporary leave of absence from the team for personal reasons - scored 13 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked three shots.
The two instant sparks off the bench also reached double-digit scoring. Madison Cable finished with 13 points, highlighted by 8 of 8 from the foul line, and seven rebounds in 24 minutes while freshman Kathryn Westbeld totaled 10 points and four boards in 22 minutes. Sophomore point guard Lindsay Allen just missed being the sixth player in double figures, finishing with nine points and four assists.
The No. 2-ranked Irish improved to 29-2 with a 77-61 win versus Miami, which had upset Notre Dame 78-63 on Jan. 8 in Coral Gables. Although the Hurricanes looked to make it interesting again by cutting their deficit to 48-43, balanced scoring and strong defense led the Irish victory.
Notre Dame will play No. 16-ranked Duke at noon on Saturday in the semifinals. The Irish defeated the Blue Devils 63-50 at the Purcell Pavilion in February.
ACC Player of the Year Jewell Loyd had 16 points and eight rebounds while ACC Freshman of the Year Brianna Turner tallied 13 points to go with 10 rebounds. Sophomore forward Taya Reimer - who missed the first Miami game while taking a temporary leave of absence from the team for personal reasons - scored 13 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked three shots.
The two instant sparks off the bench also reached double-digit scoring. Madison Cable finished with 13 points, highlighted by 8 of 8 from the foul line, and seven rebounds in 24 minutes while freshman Kathryn Westbeld totaled 10 points and four boards in 22 minutes. Sophomore point guard Lindsay Allen just missed being the sixth player in double figures, finishing with nine points and four assists.
