SOUTH BEND, Ind. — If there is a strength to Wake Forest’s game, it resides with its pace and its solid work on the defensive side.
Through the first 14 games, it was forcing a 37 percent field-goal rate and allowing 57 points a game.
And the No. 3 Notre Dame women’s basketball team didn’t even blink — it had 53 points by halftime.
Shooting 63.5% from the field AND the 3-point line in the first half, Notre Dame rolled to a 22-point first half lead enroute to a 100-64 victory in front of an announced Purcell Pavilion crowd of 6,753 on Thursday.
How about this for a defining stat in dominance? The Irish had 30 fast-break points to Wake’s zero.
None.
More Content
► Notre Dame football injury report: RB Jeremiyah Love officially available
► Who and what Notre Dame football is as it ambles up to history's doorstep
► Notebook: James Franklin's big-picture takes dominate Orange Bowl presser
► CFP Playoff Players to Watch: No. 7 seed Notre Dame vs. No. 6 seed Penn St.
► Where they were ranked: Breaking down the talent of CFP's final four
It was the fourth time the Irish have reached the 100-point level this season, and they are the highest-scoring team in program history through 15 games at 89.13.
The game was originally scheduled for a 7 p.m. start, but was moved up a couple hours to give fans a chance to watch the 13-2 (4-0 ACC) basketball team and the Orange Bowl football game with its listed 7:30 start.
Wake, which has never beaten an Irish team in 13 meetings, dropped to 7-8 and 0-4 in the ACC, one of those losses coming in overtime to Louisville.
One thing Wake doesn’t do is put up a lot of points and has only one player averaging in double figures.
So, once the Irish took control early in the second quarter, it was a pretty safe bet where this would wind up.
After taking a 25-15 first quarter-lead, the Irish defense went into overdrive, forcing seven of an eventual 19 turnovers over the next 10 minutes and creating long Wake droughts to build a 53-31 halftime edge.
Hannah Hidalgo, No. 2 in the country in scoring at 26 a game, led the Irish with 23 on 8-for-11 shooting, fueled by a six-steal performance. She also, by the way, is second in the country in steals at 4.0 game.
She didn’t need to come close to meeting her 36-minute-per-game average (20th in the country) and played only 27.
There was plenty of offensive help to go around, and the Irish wound up with 24 assists in their 37-for-67 field goal shooting (55.2%, 35.3% on 3s).
Better yet, they reduced their turnover total from 21 last Sunday against North Carolina, to 11.
Forward Liatu King had 17 points, as the Irish piled up 48 points in the paint, Sonia Citron had 16, Olivia Miles 13 (with nine assists) and Kate Koval 11.
Maybe the most encouraging total was the 14 delivered by grad student Maddy Westbeld. Her entrance in her first home game of the season at the 4:17 mark, and her first bucket of the season with less than a minute to go in the first quarter, drew the loudest crowd reactions of the evening.
Westbeld sat out the first two months of the season, recovering from August foot surgery.
“The way the crowd embraced her when she got into the game was awesome,” said Irish coach Niele Ivey. “It’s so hard as a senior to have to sit out for so long, so I’m really happy for her.
“Having a lot of depth and opportunities for rotations and matchups, I was really pleased with this win. With the physicality and long stretch of the season, having more bodies to be able to compete is only going to help us.”
After not even taking a shot in her 13-minute season-opening appearance in last Sunday’s win at North Carolina, the 6-3 Westbeld went 6-for-11 from the floor, including a couple 3s in five attempts. She also had six rebounds — ND had a 41-33 edge on the boards — in 18 minutes.
“I think I definitely felt way more comfortable today with my body movement and everything,” Westbeld said in a postgame radio interview.
She started practicing full-go when the team regrouped after Christmas and knows she is just beginning to build up her game stamina.
“I feel like I’m getting better every single day. I’m trying to push myself… I’m just having fun with it.”
She also is adjusting on the fly to new teammates King, Liza Karlen and Koval.
“I’m just learning how they play, and they’re learning about me,” Westbeld said. “We’re just building that chemistry.”
The Irish wound up with 15 steals and six blocks, and scored 25 points off those Wake turnovers.
The league challenges get a little tougher coming up with Clemson, 10-5 and 3-1 in the ACC going into a Thursday game hosting the Irish Sunday (2 p.m. on the CW), and 15-0, 3-0 Georgia Tech, ranked 13th, visiting South Bend on Jan. 16.
“It’s super exciting to have everyone back,” King said. “Coach Ivey says it all the time, ‘Pick your poison.’
“Any of us can go out there and give opponents a hard time.”
Or, like Thursday, they all can.
• Talk with Notre Dame fans on The Insider Lounge.
• Subscribe to the Inside ND Sports podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, Podbean or Pocket Casts.
• Subscribe to the Inside ND Sports channel on YouTube.
• Follow us on Twitter: @insideNDsports, @EHansenND and @TJamesND.
• Like us on Facebook: Inside ND Sports
• Follow us on Instagram: @insideNDsports
