Olivia Miles on fighting back from season-ending ACL injury in junior year: Wanted to prove to myself that I can do something hard 

Part of why Olivia Miles has taken the D1 circuit by surprise is her absence in the 2023-24 college basketball season. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard suffered an ACL injury in her right knee while facing Louisville in Feb 2024. The setback sidelined her from the 2022 postseason and the entire 2023 season.

As she slowly climbed the ranks this season, Miles revealed that she used her struggles as a motivation to get past her injury and return stronger than ever.

"[I wanted to] prove to myself that I can do something hard and push through adversity and overcome such a challenge that not a lot of people could have done," she said in an interview with SLAM Magazine.

Olivia Miles has made waves for her ability to steer Notre Dame and her playmaking this season. She is putting up career-best numbers, averaging 16.4 points, 6.9 assists, 6.2 rebounds and 1.5 steals on 53.6% overall shotmaking and 43.6% 3-point shooting.

Nationally, Miles ranks fourth in dimes, 14th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.79) and first in triple-doubles this season (three). Two of those stat lines came back to back in the Fighting Irish's last two games of 2024, making Miles the first player to garner consecutive triple-doubles in the ACC.

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Candace Parker has high praise for Olivia Miles

Two-time WNBA MVP and former champion, Candace Parker, has been mesmerized by Olivia Miles' game, IQ, maturity and leadership for Notre Dame.

In a recent interview with B/R W Sports, the former Tennessee star shared that the versatile guard is her favorite player to watch in college. She also said that Miles is already ready for the big league.

"My favorite player to watch in college basketball is Olivia Miles," Parker said. "I think she is the one player that's gonna really surprise a lot of people at the next level because her game is just WNBA ready. The way she moves, the way she plays, the way she makes people around her better."

Miles has led Notre Dame to a 17-2, 8-0 ACC record, winning over potential contenders like the UConn Huskies, Texas and USC Trojans.

Miles and Co. will be in action when they face the Virginia Tech Hokies at Cassell Coliseum on Thursday.