Considering that Olivia Miles played 28 minutes in the Notre Dame women’s basketball team’s blowout win over Michigan, you might have assumed that she was 100%.
You wouldn’t have been alone if you figured she was at least pretty much healed up. Especially since the days before Sunday’s contest, her coach was telling anyone who would listen that the injury wasn’t that bad. However, as it turns out, Miles was very close to sitting out the Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s second round NCAA Tournament game. Until she said “eff it” and decided she was going to play whether she had a badly sprained ankle or not.
The Notre Dame women’s basketball team star addressed that after the 76-55 win where she scored 8 points and dished out 5 assists to go with her 4 steals. She also, hobbled to the announcer’s table after the game to thank the fans in what was officially the last home game of the season, and possibly the last home game of her career.
Olivia Miles gutted out an ankle injury. She guessed her body was working at 45%.
— Bennett Wise WSBT (@BennettWiseWSBT) March 23, 2025
"It was a 50/50 shot I was going to play. I woke up thinking I wasn't going to play. Then I was like, 'Eff it. I want to get out there.'"
Miles: 8 pts, 5 ast, 4 reb.
An absolute fighter. pic.twitter.com/yLKfvVsDAY
Notre Dame basketball star Olivia Miles said ankle was ‘45%’
“Probably like 45,” Miles said in the locker room when asked how good she was feeling. “Yeah, like it was a 50-50 shot if I was gonna play, like I woke up thinking I wasn't gonna play and then I was just like 'eff it like I want to get out there.”
Olivia Miles emotionally addressed the crowd at Purcell Pavilion after her final home game in South Bend. She gutted out a severe ankle injury to help the Fighting Irish beat Michigan, 76-55, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
— BlueandGold.com (@BGInews) March 24, 2025
Notre Dame legend ☘️pic.twitter.com/ffdYvAKye1
Miles added that once she made the decision she was going to play, it was all about finding a way to get ready. Even if she knew she wasn’t going to be anywhere close to 100%.
“I worked with my trainer all day yesterday all morning and you know luckily I had some some help with some meds but other than that um you know just you know toughing it out out there.”
The question now for Notre Dame women’s basketball fans is whether or not she can play the next game, a Friday night tilt against 2nd-seeded TCU, led by Hailey Van Lith. The two programs will clash on Friday in a matchup that determines who gets a trip to the Elite 8.