The Notre Dame Women’s Basketball team was always going to experience a drop-off after the best WNBA draft class in the programs history walked out the door. Arike Ogunbowale, Marina Mabrey, Jessica Shepard, Brianna Turner and Jackie Young were absolutely the exception, and should never be considered the standard. What they did at Notre Dame was remarkable, but unfortunately, you can’t control the height of the bar they set in the minds of fans.
As a result, this season has been extra-disappointing to those who follow Notre Dame Women’s Basketball.
There have, however, been a couple of bright spots and signs of hope for the future this season.