Hannah Hidalgo’s response to Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey’s comments on leadership after Olivia Miles transferred to TCU spoke volumes about the star guard’s mindset after the departures
Hannah Hidalgo’s response to Niele Ivey’s query spoke volumes about the star guard.
Notre Dame will have to lean more heavily on Hidalgo after fellow star Olivia Miles transferred to TCU, leading to a rather icy confrontation between the two stars when the two reconnected in South Bend for a WNBA preseason game. So icy was the meeting that WNBA legend Sue Bird implored TCU and Notre Dame to face off and settle their differences on the court.
With Hidalgo set to be the Fighting Irish’s leader both on and off the court, Ivey, Notre Dame’s head coach, set forth a challenge to her star guard. In an episode of ESPN’s ‘Full Court Press,’ Ivey was spotted discussing how the situation will change for her star, with Hidalgo’s response indicative she is ready for the challenge.
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“Next year, future, you know, transfers and bringing people in, like everybody I’ve talked to, is kind of like ‘Winning’s first,'” Ivey began to the star. “And it’s work ethic and hungry, you know what I’m saying? They have their mindset. I think the biggest thing next year is the intangible piece – the leadership.
“Just because you’re upperclassmen now, you get a chance to just really be that vocal person, how do you feel about that? Let me just say, I’m so excited.”
In response to her coach, the 20-year-old shared that she, too, feels Ivey’s excitement for the upcoming season despite the losses the program incurred over the break. “I feel like we have a great foundation with the leadership that we do have,” Hidalgo said to Ivey’s comments.
“But I feel like for me, I think this year I’ve really grown, I’ve seen and know how I want to lead. I’m gonna say this and do something different, building that chemistry off the court and then being around each other, just having that family environment.”
With Miles gone and Hidalgo the next biggest star on the team, Ivey posited that the guard will be the one who will be leading the way in women’s college basketball.
“Whatever you need, just let me know because next year, you’re gonna be the face of women’s basketball,” Ivey claimed. “Because not only are you a great player, you’re a great person.”
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In the end, Hidalgo sees the changes Notre Dame has undergone as a positive, rather than how others outside the program see what has happened in South Bend.
“There’s been a lot of change and that could be bad or good,” she continued. “I think it’s all about perspective, but I think it’s a blessing to have a fresh start.
“You know, we got great leaders, we got people that want to work, we got people that want to win, we got people that aren’t gonna complain, that are gonna get in the gym, put their head down and put their nose in the dirt and work.”
As a sign of that leadership, Hidalgo finally apologized for sharing a controversial anti-same sex video after almost a year of fans and prominent basketball names expressing their disappointment with the guard.
