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Irish say oui to opening 2023-24 WBB season vs. South Carolina in Paris

All-American Olivia Miles (left), ND head coach Niele Ivey (right) and the rest of the Irish will open next season In Paris.
All-American Olivia Miles (left), ND head coach Niele Ivey (right) and the rest of the Irish will open next season In Paris. (Matt Cashore, USA TODAY Sports Network)

For a while, the Notre Dame and South Carolina women’s basketball programs were on a collision course in the recent NCAA Tournament.

It appears they still are, just at a more exotic venue.

The Irish and South Carolina jointly announced Wednesday they’ll open the 2023-24 season against each other on Nov. 6 — and in Paris, France.

It’ll be the first time a college basketball game, men’s or women’s, will be staged in Paris and the first time ND has played a regular-season women’s basketball game outside of North America.

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“Notre Dame is playing under the shadow of Notre Dame!” Irish coach Niele Ivey said in a statement. “We are absolutely thrilled to be heading to Paris to participate in this historic matchup between two storied women’s basketball programs.

“It’s always been my mission to break barriers and provide opportunities for my players to have life-changing experiences. Women’s basketball is on the rise right now, and having this exposure continues to grow the game on an international platform.”

The Irish finished 27-6 this past season, won the ACC regular-season championship and advanced for the second year in a row to the NCAA’s Sweet 16. South Carolina went 36-1 and reached the Final Four before falling to Iowa, 77-73, in a national semifinal.

Had the Irish upended No. 2 seed Maryland, they would have faced South Carolina next in a regional final game in Greenville, S.C.

Both programs and coaches have strong traditions of success. Ivey wa was the 2023 ACC Coach of the Year. She has been a part of all nine of Notre Dame’s Final Four runs as a player or an assistant coach, including the 2001 (as a player) and 2018 (as an assistant coach) national titles.

Dawn Staley is a four-time Olympic gold medalist (three times as a player, one as a coach) and the three-time Naismith Coach of the Year. She led South Carolina to national championships in 2017 and 2022.

The Irish are 3-2 all-time against the Gamecocks, including a 3-0 mark at neutral locations. Notre Dame has won the last three meetings, including most recently a 92-85 victory at the November 2017 Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Fla.

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