Hannah Hidalgo spills the beans of Notre Dame preparing for Paige Bueckers’ UConn & JuJu Watkins’ USC: “Very intentional what we do in practice”

No. 2 Notre Dame is looking ahead to the NCAA Tournament. The Fighting Irish remain undefeated in ACC play, and with just six games left in the regular season, sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo says her squad is already preparing to face other top teams.

"We're very intentional [with] what we do in practice," Hidalgo told Rachel Annamarie DeMita in an interview posted to Youtube Wednesday. "Everyone's focused. Everyone's locked in."

Hidalgo further analyzed Notre Dame's preparation for ranked matchups and the mental aspects involved.

"It's really just a mindset and it starts a week before the game even starts," Hidalgo explained.

Syndication: The Courier-Journal - Source: Imagn

Hidalgo told DeMita that she prays before big games and tries to get out of her own head by avoiding social media. With 75,000 Instagram followers, she uses her account to promote her NIL deals and her performance on the court.

What might Notre Dame's postseason look like & how does Hannah Hidalgo fit into that?

Notre Dame currently sits atop the ACC, a conference that includes ranked opponents such as No. 10 NC State, No. 12 UNC, No. 13 Duke, No. 19 Georgia Tech and No. 23 Florida State. The Fighting Irish will face three of these ranked teams before the end of the regular season.

If the tournament were determined by the current AP Poll rankings, Notre Dame would receive a top seed, as would No. 1 UCLA, No. 3 Texas and No. 4 South Carolina. However, there are over two weeks left in the regular season and conference tournaments to be played before the NCAA Tournament seeds are decided.

Syndication: The Courier-Journal - Source: Imagn

Last season, in her freshman year, Hannah Hidalgo helped the Fighting Irish make it to the Sweet Sixteen. She emerged as an essential piece to the team's success even in her first season. Hidalgo was named ACC Rookie of the Year, ACC Defensive Player of the Year and received the Dawn Staley Award, given to the top guard in the country.

Notre Dame's star guard has continued to develop as a sophomore. Her 25.9 points per game are second only to FSU's Ta'Niya Latson. Hidalgo has also improved her field goal percentage, 3-point percentage and free throw percentage this season.

Syndication: Austin American-Statesman - Source: Imagn

The Fighting Irish haven't lost a game since November, and it seems that Hidalgo's team has a clear outlook for the postseason.