Notre Dame women advance in NCAA tournament after beating Colonials

NOTRE DAME, Ind. -

Notre Dame women’s basketball beat Robert Morris Friday 79-49. Players say it was a bit of a rough start, but they’re happy with the outcome.

“Considering the layoff we had, I thought we played pretty well. The first game’s a tough one, you know it’s like it’s the start of the tournament. Everybody’s just a little on edge,” said Notre Dame Women’s basketball head coach Muffet McGraw.

They may have been ­a little on edge, but Notre Dame started off in the lead right out of the gate, with a layup by Brianna Turner.

The Colonials crept up on the Irish a few times.

Players say part of it is probably the two-week rest.

“I think we haven’t played in a week, so we’re a little slow. Our offense is a little slow, missing a few things on defense, but survive and advance. We’re happy we won, and we’re just getting ready for the next game,” said senior guard Marina Mabrey.

Sunday, the Irish take on another Indiana team, number nine seed Purdue.

“I think you know as we advance in the tournament, the opponents get tougher and the stakes get higher, things like that. But I think it’s great for us to be at home, and you know, it’s going to be a great crowd with us at home and Purdue right down the road from us, it’s going to be a great atmosphere,” said senior guard Lindsay Allen.