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Notre Dame Women’s Basketball: Irish survive Texas A&M to advance

By Jordan Small

COLUMBUS, OH - APRIL 01: Arike Ogunbowale #24 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates after scoring the game winning basket with 0.1 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to defeat the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs in the championship game of the 2018 NCAA Women's Final Four at Nationwide Arena on April 1, 2018 in Columbus, Ohio. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs 61-58. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OH - APRIL 01: Arike Ogunbowale #24 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish celebrates after scoring the game winning basket with 0.1 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to defeat the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs in the championship game of the 2018 NCAA Women's Final Four at Nationwide Arena on April 1, 2018 in Columbus, Ohio. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs 61-58. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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The Notre Dame women’s basketball team was back in action on Saturday afternoon. In the Sweet 16, the Irish defeated Texas A&M, 87-80.

After beating Michigan State on Monday, the Notre Dame women’s basketball team went out to Chicago to take on Texas A&M in the Sweet 16. They took down the Aggies 87-80 to advance to the Elite 8. Arike Ogunbowale led all Irish scorers with 34 points. Jessica Shepard added 24 points and 14 rebounds.

Arike Ogunbowale takes over

Arike Ogunbowale is known for being a big game player. She has been known to make a few big shots once or twice, but Saturday was a complete performance. She had 34 points, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

But it was the second half when she really came alive. With her team neck-and-neck with A&M, Ogunbowale put the team on her back and took over. Late in the game, she had multiple steals that helped the Irish expand their lead. If she is able to continue on this tear, it will be difficult for teams to stop her.

Defense put to the test

It’s no secret that the Irish defense has been less than stellar this season. In recent weeks though, it seemed that it had been getting better. Against Texas A&M, the team struggled to slow down the Aggies offense. Especially against the three point shot, the Irish allowed eight three pointers, good for 47 percent from behind the line. At the end of the day, they were able to slow them down when they needed to most, but it will need to improve before they take on their Elite 8 opponent.

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Next Up

The Irish will take on the winner of Stanford-Missouri State in the Elite 8 in Chicago. The game will tip off at 9:00 p.m. on Monday night.