UM women push No. 5 Notre Dame but come up short on late missed three-point shots

Four three-point tries in the final 78 seconds.

Any one of them would’ve tied the score.

However, all four shots missed, including three by Destiny Harden.

As a result, the host Miami Hurricanes, playing perhaps their best game of the season, lost 66-63 to the fifth-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish in an ACC women’s basketball game on Thursday night.

Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey indicated she was nervous with unranked Miami shooting to potentially send the game to overtime.

“Harden is the queen of buzzer-beaters in the ACC,” Ivey said. “We wanted to have a hand in her face and run their shooters off the three-point line.”

Maddy Westbeld had 15 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and two steals to lead Notre Dame (11-1, 2-0) to its fifth consecutive win. Teammate Olivia Miles had a near triple-double with 12 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.

Miami (7-6, 0-2), which lost its third straight game, was led by Harden, who had 12 points and nine rebounds. She scored nine of her points during Miami’s third-quarter surge, but she went 0-for-6 from three-point range in the contest.

“This game showed us we can compete with any team in the country,” Harden said. “This is the first game that I thought we were connected as a team on both ends.”

The Hurricanes also got 12 points from Haley Cavinder and 10 points from Lashae Dwyer.

But with Notre Dame leading 66-63, Miami went empty on three-point attempts by Harden (with 1:18 left), Karla Erjavec (with 39 seconds remaining); Harden (seven seconds) and Harden again on the game’s final shot.

“You don’t win many ACC games shooting just 15 percent in the fourth quarter,” Miami coach Katie Meier said. “We had great looks. If Destiny has a wide-open three-pointer or Karla, I’m like, ‘OK, that’s Miami. That’s who we are.’

“We played with pace, energy and effort. We loved every shot we took in the fourth quarter. That’s a game that could’ve gone either way.”

The Irish improved their all-time record against Miami to 24-6. Notre Dame also avenged its loss to Miami in last season’s ACC Tournament.

In the first quarter, Notre Dame shot 57 percent and led 21-13. Miami hit on only 35 percent. Westbeld had nine points in the quarter on 4-for-4 shooting, including a three-pointer.

Westbeld went scoreless in the second quarter — she missed her only shot — but Notre Dame still extended its lead 41-31 lead at halftime.

Harden scored the first five points of the second half, cutting Miami’s deficit to 41-36. In fact, Harden scored nine of Miami’s first 11 third-quarter points.

A Dwyer layup with 1:04 left in the third gave Miami a 53-51 lead, capping a 9-0 run. It was Miami’s first lead since 4-2. Dwyer had seven of the nine points in that run, and the score was tied 53-53 heading to the fourth.

Cavinder hit a three-pointer to start the fourth quarter, giving Miami its largest lead of the game at 56-53.

But Notre Dame surged back, and the Irish held on at the end.

Despite the loss, Meier was pleased that her team, after allowing 41 first-half points, held Notre Dame to 25 after intermission.

For the game, Miami forced 22 Irish turnovers, but the Hurricanes couldn’t overcome 35 percent shooting, including 2-of-14 on three-pointers.

“That’s the team we need to be,” Meier said of Miami’s second-half defense. “Notre Dame is really talented. But so is Miami.”