Liatu King scores 23 points as No. 3 Notre Dame pulls away late to beat Clemson 67-58

CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Liatu King had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Olivia Miles added 17 points and nine assists and No. 3 Notre Dame held on to beat Clemson 67-58 on Sunday without AP Preseason All-American guard Hannah Hidalgo.

Hidalgo had her right foot in a boot before the game and did not play.

King stepped up in her place, making 10 of 14 shots from the field as the Irish (14-2, 5-0 ACC) remained unbeaten in conference play. Miles made all six free throws and Sonia Citron chipped in with nine points and six rebounds for the Irish, who have won nine straight.

Loyal McQueen and Hannah Kohn each had 14 points for Clemson (10-7, 3-3), which was just 6 of 16 from the field in the fourth quarter.

Tessa Miller brought Clemson to within 49-46 with a layup with about eight minutes to play, but the Irish recaptured the momentum and King began to take over. She scored the next four points as the Irish built a double-digit lead to create some breathing room.

Takeaways

Notre Dame: It wasn’t the prettiest win for the Irish and not having Hidalgo certainly disrupted their rhythm. But the Irish won the battle on the glass (40-35) and shared the ball well with 19 assists and showed some championship mettle.

Clemson: It was a solid effort for the upset-minded Tigers, but the fell a little short thanks in part to shooting just 20% from beyond the 3-point arc.

Key moment

Maddy Westbeld’s 3-pointer with 1:44 left gave the Irish a 12-point lead, all but ending Clemson’s bid for an upset.

Up next

Both teams are in action Thursday night with Notre Dame hosting No. 13 Georgia Tech and Clemson at Georgia Tech.

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