Hannah Hidalgo nets 32, No. 13 Notre Dame knocks off Villanova in Rome

Hannah Hidalgo scored 32 points and Leah Macy added 27 as No. 13 Notre Dame defeated Villanova 99-75 in the NCAA women's basketball season opener played Sunday in Rome.

Hidalgo, a senior guard who entered the season with 2,460 points scored, hit 11 of 19 shots from the floor, 8 of 10 free-throw attempts and two 3-pointers.

Macy converted 11 of 14 shots from the floor and added a game-high 14 rebounds. Madison St. Rose pitched in with 17 points for the Fighting Irish.

Villanova was led by Jasmine Bascoe, who tallied 26 points and a game-high nine assists. EJ Bender, who knocked down all three of her 3-point attempts, was the other Wildcat in double figures with 14 points.

After a Bender layup cut Villanova's deficit to 10-9 at the 4:12 mark of the first quarter, Notre Dame scored the next eight points to build an 18-9 lead. They led 20-13 after 10 minutes, but extended that advantage to 45-24 just before halftime. The Irish knocked down 9 of 16 shots from the floor in the second quarter, including 5 of 10 from beyond the arc.

The Wildcats could only get as close as 15 points during the second half. After a tip-in by Kennedy Henry cut the deficit to 76-60 with 7:54 remaining, Macy responded with a layup and a three-point play to extend the margin to 21 points.

Notre Dame hit 55.9% from the floor (38-of-68) for the game and scored 50 points in the paint.

--Field Level Media