The South Carolina and Notre Dame women's basketball programs will kick off next season with a game in Paris, France, Notre Dame announced in a Wednesday tweet.
The teams will face off in the historic matchup in Paris on Nov. 6. It will be the first-ever collegiate basketball game, men's or women's, that will be played in the French capital.
“Notre Dame is playing under the shadow of Notre Dame!” Notre Dame Head Coach Niele Ivey said, via Notre Dame. “We are absolutely thrilled to be heading to Paris to participate in this historic matchup between two storied women's basketball programs.
“It's always been my mission to break barriers and provide opportunities for my players to have life-changing experiences. Women's basketball is on the rise right now, and having this exposure continues to grow the game on an international platform.”
The two women's college basketball powerhouses did not play a game against one-another last season, but concluded an exciting 2022-23 season at the top of their respective conferences.
South Carolina nearly finished with an undefeated basketball season as they rocketed to the top of the Southeastern Conference standings, taking spots over LSU, Tennessee and Ole Miss as they went 16-0 in conference play. Notre Dame ended their season with a 27-6 overall record and a 15-3 record in the Atlantic Coast Conference, taking first place in the conference with spots over Duke and Virginia Tech.
Notre Dame and South Carolina faced off in the 2015 Division I Women's Basketball Championship Final Four. Led by the 22 points scored by now-Seattle Storm guard Jewell Loyd, Notre Dame took a 66-65 win over South Carolina before they moved on to face UConn in the National Championship. Now-Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson countered with 20 points, nine rebounds and four blocks off the bench for the Gamecocks.
“It's surreal right now, can't believe that we're here,” Loyd said of advancing to the title game, via ESPN. “Glad we played the early game and can get some rest.”
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