“Showing better play than Paige Bueckers and JuJu Watkins”: Hoops fans astonished after Hannah Hidalgo pulls off impressive no-look pass once again
Hannah Hidalgo pulled off another highlight-worthy assist during Notre Dame's game against Loyola Maryland on Saturday. Near the end of the third quarter, Hidalgo dove on the floor for a loose ball. As she secured the possession against Maryland's Kailey Kalet, she tossed the ball behind her head, perfectly positioning it into the hands of a driving Liatu King for a wide-open layup.
Fans flooded the comments section following Hidalgo's highlight:
"She did this twice in one season??? Insane," a fan wrote.
"Isn’t this the second time she did that🤯," another fan commented.
"I'm saying Hildago is showing better play than Bueckers and Juju," another fan wrote.
More fans joined in to praise the guard's unique skillset:
"Best WCBB player and it’s not a debate," a fan commented.
"Straight box office top ten highlight machine," another fan wrote.
"Most outsanding hustle in the nation," another fan commented.
Hidalgo displayed similar sequence in the Dec. 5 game against Texas. She poked the ball away from Rori Harmon, dove on the floor for the loose ball, and then tossed a no-look transition pass to Olivia Miles for a layup (0:58).
Hidalgo's Notre Dame is the only program to defeat JuJu Watkins' and Paige Bueckers' teams this season
Even though Notre Dame does not hold the top spot in AP rankings, the program has defeated two of the biggest contenders for the NCAA championship: the UConn Huskies and the USC Trojans.
The Fighting Irish secured these victories by double-digit margins: defeating JuJu Watkins' USC on Nov. 23 (74-61) and Paige Bueckers' Huskies on Dec. 12 (79-68). Additionally, Hannah Hidalgo posted better stat lines than the two college basketball stars.
Her near-tripple double of 29 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists overshadowed Bueckers' 25 points, three rebounds and two assists. While Watkins matched Hidalgo's 24 points and six rebounds in November, the Notre Dame guard outdid the Trojans' star with eight assists, five steals and better overall shooting.
With that, Hannah Hidalgo, averaging 25.2 points, is also leading Paige Bueckers (20.8 points) and JuJu Watkins (24.8 points) on the 2024-25 season scoring leaderboard.