Luke Dunavant
The Ole Miss Rebels Women’s Basketball team’s 2023-2024 season is officially over as they fell to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 71-56 on Monday, March 25. After the Lady Rebels defeated the Marquette Golden Eagles from the Big East in the Round of 64, the team was simply outplayed by the ACC Tournament champion Fighting Irish in the Round of 32.
Ole Miss had a magical season, but that all came to an end. Many held out hope that the team could pull a magnificent upset like they did last year against Stanford, but Notre Dame’s First Team All-American Hanna Hidalgo was too great a force for the Lady Rebels to handle.
The leading scorer for the Lady Rebels was guard/forward Madison Scott with only 15 points, a clear indication that the offense struggled in this one. The team was down for the entire game, dominated by the Irish’s overwhelming offense.
Ole Miss Head Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin coached an incredible season, and this game does not diminish that. Plain and simple, Notre Dame was a much better team than the current Lady Rebels.
A slight silver lining came shortly after the game, though, as guard Kennedy Todd-Williams announced she would return to play for Ole Miss next season. She now joins teammate Scott to form a lethal duo of returning players.
First half:
The first half was absolutely horrendous for the Lady Rebels’ stars, as Scott finished the half 1-5 from the field with the Rebels down double digits going into the half. Todd-Williams was the leading scorer for the first half, but she only scored in single digits.
Ole Miss could not stop the red-hot Notre Dame team in any sense of the word. The only brightside for the Rebels was the fact that they were consistently getting rebounds.
McPhee-McCuin tried almost everything in her arsenal to keep up with the Fighting Irish, but it was to no avail; this was always going to be a tough matchup, as Notre Dame’s offense can overpower just about any team in the country.
Second half:
The second half was just as ugly as the first, only, only helped by the Lady Rebels actually scoring the ball.
This would have been consequential if they would have been able to defend at the same level. Scott and guard Marquesha Davis continued to struggle, combining for 11 total points.
Notre Dame was playing a seven-person lineup, and three of them scored in the double digits. It was not until late in the second half that Ole Miss got a player in double figures. The third quarter ended with the Rebels down 19 points, and a comeback looked improbable.
Scott finally started to get things going, scoring seven points at the beginning of the fourth quarter. The team started to slightly rally, as Notre Dame was halted in their tracks. However, the Irish quickly got their groove back, surging past the Rebels to close the game out 71-56.
What’s next?
With this loss, the 2023-2024 season comes to a close for the Lady Rebels. This more than successful season saw Ole Miss start ranked No. 12, win the Battle 4 Atlantis championship and finish in the top three in the SEC regular season.
All the attention now shifts to the offseason. How will Coach Yo navigate the transfer portal to improve the team’s roster? How will the returning players develop over the seven-month break?
We will soon figure out the answers to these pressing questions, but one thing is for certain: Ole Miss Women’s Basketball is here to stay.
