Notre Dame’s Liatu King and Olivia Miles shine in 105-61 win – Indianapolis News | Indiana weather | Indiana Traffic

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Liathu King scored 24 points and Olivia Miles had a triple-double. No. 6 Notre Dame beat Mercyhurst 105-61 on Monday in the first game of the women’s college basketball tournament for both teams.

King, who transferred from Pitt and was the ACC’s Most Improved Player last season, made her Notre Dame debut memorable. The 6-foot forward finished 11 of 13 from the field with a double-double and 11 rebounds.

Miles, a 5-10 senior guard, missed last season while recovering from a knee injury. She had 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. She scored three and one basket.

All-American Hannah Hidalgo scored 19 points, had nine rebounds, six steals and two assists. Kate Koval scored 18 points and Cassandra Prosper 17.

Bailey Koons led Mercyhurst with 20 points.

Takeaway

Notre Dame: Despite missing four key players – Sonya Citron (foot), Lisa Karlen (foot), Kylie Watson (knee), Maddie Westbeld (foot) – Notre Dame had enough firepower to bolster its sixth place in the ranking.

Mercyhurst: It was an ambitious debut for the Lakers, facing a top-10 team in their first game at the Division I level. The Erie, Pennsylvania school didn’t do well throughout the competition.

Key Point

Miles made a deep pass and sent a dazzling laser to King, capping a brilliant second-quarter fast break, a showcase play that signaled Miles’ return to full-time play.

Key Statistics

Notre Dame scored 105 points and shot 60 percent from the field (45 of 75), but shooting 3 of 17 from 3-point range (18 percent) should be cause for concern.

Next

The Fighting Irish travel to West Lafayette to take on in-state rival Purdue on Sunday. The Lakers play DePaul on Wednesday.