Skylar Diggins-Smith reflects on Notre Dame vs UConn rivalry while considering her alma matter as Final Four team
Seattle Storm star Skylar Diggins-Smith attended the Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s 79-68 win over the Connecticut Huskies in one of the most intense rivalries in women’s basketball. The veteran guard returned home to see her alma mater dominate one of the best teams in college basketball behind Hannah Hidalgo’s impressive performance.
A video shared on Instagram on Friday shows Diggins-Smith reflecting on the rivalry, remembering the 2001 championship they won, how the program kept producing talent and the history between coach Muffet McGraw and coach Geno Auriemma.
“It’s still going, it’s still a lot of the line every time we play and that’s how it felt back when I was in school. And we love it when we get to get one because we understand the rivalry and how it is, it’s one of the best in women’s basketball and it’s always a great game and tonight was no different.
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Asked about how far this team can go, she said that they could make it to the Final Four and even challenge for the championship this season.
“I think we’re electric, you know? We’re not the only thing that’s going through injuries and things like that, but as we get players back, we start to see the potential of this team and I told Niele and I say it all the time, we’re as talented as any team in the country right now. I think we’re talented. I think we could be a Final Four team, I think we could be a championship team,” Diggins-Smith said.
After this win, the Fighting Irish improved to 8-2 for the season after Hannah Hidalgo dropped a game-high 29 points to outscore Paige Bueckers (25 points). They will return to action on Sunday against Eastern MI.
Skylar Diggins-Smith had a complex first season with Seattle Storm
After a tumultuous three-year tenure with the Phoenix Mercury, Skylar Diggins-Smith joined the Storm to try to win a championship alongside Jewell Lloyd. She played 40 games, averaging 32.0 minutes, 15.1 points, 2.6 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 42.7% from the field and 86.7% from the free-throw line.
Despite having a talented roster with Skylar Diggins-Smith, Jewell Lloyd, Eze Magbegor and Nneka Ogwumike, among others, the Storm couldn’t find consistency. Diggins-Smith went from averaging 19.1 ppg in her last season in Phoenix to just 15.1 with the Storm.
They finished fifth in the WNBA standings, facing the Las Vegas Aces and losing to them 2-0 in the first round of the 2024 playoffs.
