Hannah Hidalgo lost to Bellarmine by 8 points. No, not the Notre Dame team, but Hidalgo alone. Hidalgo put up 30 points, 13 steals, and 10 assists during Notre Dame’s 110-38 blowout in just 22 minutes. She notched her second-ever triple-double in Notre Dame’s seventh-largest win in program history.
“Coming off an incredible sophomore year. Yeah, she’s just ready for it. I’m excited that she’s going to be the face of women’s basketball. But she’s earned it and deserves it,” Niele Ivey said before the season. And Hidalgo is certainly meeting the expectations with her performances so far. Her current performance has her on track to be in strong contention for the Player of the Year.
Who is Hannah Hidalgo?
Hannah Hidalgo is an American college basketball player for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The 5’6 “guard” is in her junior year at the program, having been identified as a five-star recruit and the number five player in her class (and the best point guard) by ESPN. Right from her rookie year, Hidalgo has been the number 1 option at Notre Dame, winning the ACC Rookie of the Year (2023–24) and ACC Defensive Player of the Year (as a freshman). She has evolved into one of the best players in the country.
What is the Player of the Year Award?
There isn’t one single “Player of the Year” award. Women’s college basketball has multiple major national POY honors, each with its own voting body and criteria. The most prominent being the Naismith Player Of The Year, Wade Trophy, and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award by the USBWA.
The Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year Award is given to the nation’s best women’s college basketball player. The recipient of the Naismith Trophy is determined by a board that includes NCAA basketball head coaches, administrators, and media members. The Naismith College Player of the Year Award was expanded to include women in 1983.
The Wade Trophy is the oldest national player of the year honor in college women’s basketball, first being awarded in 1978. While the awards are different, each has a singular goal: to crown the best women’s college basketball player in the country. Hidalgo is already listed in the watchlist of all three awards while being crowned as an ACC Preseason player of the year.
How Hannah Hidalgo Builds the Player of the Year Case?
The numbers speak for themselves for Hannah Hidalgo. In 11 games so far, she is averaging 25.1 points (3rd nationally), 6.1 steals (best in the country), 5.1 assists, and 6.1 rebounds, which are all career highs. She is shooting 48.8% from the field and 22% from the 3-point line. Beyond just the surface numbers, Hannah Hidalgo’s advanced metrics also indicate that she is among the best players in the country.
Hidalgo has led a Notre Dame side that was gutted this offseason to a 9-2 record. She is the heartbeat of this team, with the usage rate touching a whopping 34.7%.
Per Barttorvik, Hidalgo has the highest Points Over Replacement Per (Adjusted) Game with 8.0 among high major teams. That ranks even better than UConn Sarah Strong, who is another premier contender this season. Yes, the outside shooting is lagging behind other metrics, but the majority of aspects of her game currently rank among the best players in the nation.
[Image of Twitter post about Hannah Hidalgo]
What Records Help Hannah Hidalgo Win Player of the Year?
It’s been only 11 games, but Hannah Hidalgo has already notched up multiple records to her name. She broke the program record for most points against Akron with 44 points. Scoping out, she also broke the NCAA record for most steals in a game in the same match-up with 16. She now has 77 straight games with 10+ points, which is also a Notre Dame record.
Hidalgo scored 200 points and notched 50 steals through nine games for the second time in her career (2023-24). All other NBA, WNBA, and D-1 men’s or women’s players have done that just once, further highlighting her blistering start. Hidalgo has also earned three ACC Player of the Week honors so far this season. She was named to the USBWA National Team of the Week after her triple-double against Bellarmine as well. So, Hannah Hidalgo is right there in the conversation among the likes of Strong, Audi Crooks, Azzi Fudd, and others.