Game time, TV information set for Notre Dame vs. Maryland in Sweet 16
Notre Dame gets another crack at Maryland. The No. 3 seed Fighting Irish (27-5) face the No. 2 seed Terrapins (27-6) for the second time this season on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. ET (ESPN).
Maryland’s Diamond Miller hit a buzzer-beater at Purcell Pavilion to give the Terps a 74-72 road victory on Dec. 1. It was Notre Dame’s first loss of the season. The second bout between the two heavyweights is an NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 clash at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. Winner keeps dancing. Loser goes home.
Notre Dame will play without sophomore point guard Olivia Miles for the fifth consecutive game. She injured her right knee in the regular season finale on Feb. 26 and will have surgery later this week according to Irish head coach Niele Ivey. The Irish have also been playing without graduate student guard Dara Mabrey since Jan. 22. She tore her ACL against Virginia.
“This group, the resilience of this team, the toughness of this team is unbelievable,” Ivey said. “Not a lot of people thought we would be up here headed to the Sweet 16 and we have a belief, lot of love, lot of trust in our locker room.”
Maryland has its high-scoring trio of Miller, Abby Meyers and Shyanne Sellers healthy and ready to roll, meanwhile. They combine for 47.9 points per game on average. They had 48 between the three in the Terrapins’ 77-64 victory over No. 7 seed Arizona in the round of 32.
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Maryland has the nation’s No. 9 scoring offense at 79.4 points per game. In the four games Notre Dame has played without Miles, who averaged 14.3 points and 6.9 assists per game, the Irish have only averaged 59.8 points. They’re coming off a 53-48 victory over No. 11 seed Mississippi State in the round of 32.
The Irish are seeking their 11th Elite Eight appearance in program history. They were a few possessions away from that stage of the tournament last year in what was ultimately a heartbreaking 66-63 loss to NC State. Maryland is also seeking its 11th Elite Eight appearance in program history. The Terps have not advanced that far since 2015. Notre Dame has not been since 2019.
Winner of Saturday’s matchup will play either No. 1 seed South Carolina (34-0) or No. 4 seed UCLA (27-9) in the regional championship game on Sunday.
