Madison Hayes scores 16, tight defense helps No. 6 NC State beat No. 16 Notre Dame 59-43

Updated Feb. 15, 2024 9:15 p.m. ET

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SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Madison Hayes scored 16 points and a relentless defensive effort by No. 6 North Carolina State powered the Wolfpack to a 59-43 victory over No. 16 Notre Dame on Thursday night.

The Wolfpack held Notre Dame to a season-low point total, and also held the No. 3 scorer in the nation, Hannah Hidalgo, to a career-low 10 points on 4-for-19 shooting.

Notre Dame’s previous low this season was 57 points in a 61-57 loss to North Carolina on Jan. 7. It was the fewest points scored by the Fighting Irish since a 64-38 loss to Louisville in last season’s ACC Tournament.

River Baldwin had 14 points and 10 rebounds while Saniya Rivers contributed 10 points and 10 rebounds for N.C. State.

Maddy Westbeld scored 14 points to lead Notre Dame and Sonia Citron scored 13.

The Wolfpack (22-3, 9-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) are one game behind league-leading Virginia Tech in the conference standings.

N.C. State bolted to a 16-2 lead on the way to a 19-7 advantage at the end of the first quarter. The Wolfpack harassed the Fighting Irish (18-6, 8-5) into missing nine of their first 10 shots and committing seven early turnovers.

“This is a tough place to play,” N.C. State head coach Wes Moore said. “(Notre Dame) is a very talented team. I’m real proud of the way we came out at the start of the game and jumped on them. I think that probably gave us some confidence.

“We have a lot of work ahead of us,” said Moore, whose team plays Georgia Tech followed by Norht Carolina, Duke and Syracuse in the next two weeks. “That’s why this was big, to go on the road against a great team and find a way to win really sets the tone for the stretch we have coming up."

Notre Dame’s 5-6 freshman standout Hidalgo, who set an ACC record by being named the league’s Rookie of the Week for the 11th time, was scoreless in the first half, the first time in her collegiate career she was held without a point in a half.

Hidalgo entered the game leading the ACC in scoring with a 25.1 points per game average but was 0-of-9 shooting in the first half and didn’t score until the 7:17 mark of the third quarter.

“We noticed that she likes to drive right, so we tried to make her go to her left side … just do it without fouling,” Hayes said. “We were just trying to follow the scout. We know that Hannah Hidalgo is a really great player. As a freshman, she’s really good. Don’t doubt her abilities to score.”

Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey credited N.C. State with tough defense, but was disappointed in her team’s focus and 27% shooting (18 of 67).

“I’m very disappointed in the way we started this game,” Ivey said. “I did not feel that we were mentally here and ready for the entire game. Hats off to N.C. State. They’re a great team. I just did not think we had any fight in this game for whatever reason. It might have been the first game I’ve ever seen where we only had two people score at the half."

Westbeld had 12 points and Citron six.

Westbeld blamed herself.

“We have a lack of leadership, and I will put that on myself,” Westbeld said. “It’s my job to make sure that my team is ready. We have to make sure that the little things are taken care of. That’s on me, too, to hold my teammates accountable and to hold myself accountable.”

BIG PICTURE

North Carolina State: The Wolfpack won their fourth consecutive road game as they look to lock down a double-bye in the ACC tournament.

Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish continued to improve in rebounding. The Irish outrebounded Notre Carolina State 47-40 and had a 13-7 edge in second-chance points.

UP NEXT

North Carolina State: Hosts Georgia Tech on Sunday.

Notre Dame: At Duke on Monday.

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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball

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