Five-star prospect Cassandre Prosper adds to Notre Dame's recruiting roll

No Twitter for the No. 16 women’s basketball prospect in the 2023 class. No Facebook, either. And just three posts on a recently opened Instagram account.

The third post, though, is potentially seismic for the future of the Notre Dame women’s basketball program.

On Saturday night, a couple of hours after the ninth-ranked Irish finished off Cal, 90-79 in St. Louis, the five-star wing player from Canada announced her commitment to Notre Dame, and subsequently signed her Letter of Intent. The the eight-day early signing window runs through Wednesday.

“We are thrilled about adding five-star guard and Canadian superstar Cassandre Prosper to our Notre Dame family,” Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey said. “She is an explosive, dynamic guard with an incredible motor and skill set that is unmatched.

"Her international experience, athleticism, and scorer’s mentality will be an immediate asset to our program. Words can’t describe the excitement that I have for our future.”

WATCH PROSPER'S ANNOUNCEMENT ON INSTAGRAM

Prosper joins five-star guard Emma Risch of Melbourne Fla., the No. 20 prospect in the class per ESPNw, who signed Wednesday. Ivey hopes to make it a trio by adding five-star point guard Hannah Hidalgo from New Jersey, who’s scheduled to announce her decision Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. EST on a live stream on the SportsCenterNEXT Instagram account.

Prosper chose the Irish over national champ South Carolina, Duke, North Carolina and Arizona. With forward size and guard skills, Prosper calls Rosemere, Quebec, home but attends school at Cairine Wilson Secondary School in Orleans, Ontario — near Ottawa — and plays for Capital Courts Academy.

“She’s got a small forward game,” said Dan Olson, owner and director of Collegiate Girls Basketball Report. “She can shoot the 3. She can beat you off the dribble into the lane. She can jump over you. She’s a special player.

“She’s not as aggressive in going to the basket or on the glass, but she’s still pretty impressive. She may be 6-2, 6-3, but she plays like she’s 6-4, 6-5."

Hidalgo is a 5-foot-7 point guard from Merchantville, N.J. In three seasons at Paul VI High School in Haddonfield, N.J., Hidalgo has averaged 21.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 5.4 steals per game under her coach/father Orlando Hidalgo.

In July, the No. 5-rated player in the class helped lead Team USA to a 7-0 record and a gold medal in the 2022 U17 FIBA World Cup in Debrecen, Hungary. Ivey and associate head coach Carol Owens made the trip to Eastern Europe to see and be seen by Hidalgo and a handful of other Irish recruiting targets.

She took an official visit to ND the weekend of Sept. 10. In addition to Notre Dame, Hidalgo named UCF, Duke, Ohio State, Michigan and Stanford as finalists.

Risch’s senior season at Palm Bay Magnet High School starts Wednesday, As a junior, the 6-2 Risch averaged 20.5 points per game, 6.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.1 steals. She shot 45% from 3-point range, and will eventually slide into the role currently held by grad senior Dara Mabrey at Notre Dame, but she offers more size and a more well-rounded skill set.

Mabrey and center Lauren Ebo are the only two players on the Irish roster with expiring eligibility after this season.

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