Hannah Hidalgo could be playing in the WNBA right now, but the senior returned to Notre Dame to go to war for Niele Ivey one more time to see what this program can do in the ACC and in March Madness. She might just be the best player in the country, and she was just named as the preseason ACC Player of the Year.
Hidalgo Selected As ACC Preseason Player Of The Year
CHARLOTTE – The ACC announced its 2026-27 preseason awards on Tuesday, with Hannah Hidalgo earning ACC Preseason Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive season, as voted on by the league’s coaches and media.
Freshman Jacy Abii also earned preseason conference recognition, as the Dallas, Texas, native was named to the Preseason All-Freshman Team.
Preseason ACC Player of the Year – Hannah Hidalgo
Coming off a junior season in which she earned Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year and WBCA National Defensive Player of the Year honors, along with the Nancy Lieberman Award, ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year awards, Hidalgo enters her senior season at Notre Dame as one of the nation’s premier players.
Hidalgo earned ACC Player of the Year and ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors for the second consecutive season in 2026, becoming the first player in conference history to win both awards in back-to-back seasons.
Hidalgo put together one of the most statistically dominant seasons in college basketball history a year ago. She led the ACC in scoring at 25.3 points per game and the nation in steals at 5.6 per game, while averaging 6.9 rebounds and 5.2 assists per contest. She is the only men’s or women’s college basketball player this century to average at least 25 points, five rebounds, five assists and five steals per game. Her 202 steals set an NCAA single-season record.
Hidalgo has also joined an exclusive group of four major-conference players this century to record at least 2,000 points, 500 rebounds, 400 assists and 400 steals in a career: Alana Beard (Duke), Shernise Johnson (Miami) and Armintie Price (Ole Miss). Hidalgo is the first to reach those milestones before completing her junior season.
Preseason All-Freshman Team – Jacy Abii
Abii arrives in South Bend as one of the nation’s top incoming freshmen. A five-star recruit, she was ranked the No. 9 overall prospect in the 2026 ESPNW SC NEXT 100 and named a 2026 McDonald’s All-American.
Abii also brings extensive international experience with USA Basketball, averaging 8.3 points per game at the 2024 FIBA U17 Women’s Basketball World Cup. She was previously a member of the United States team that competed at the 2023 FIBA U16 Women’s AmeriCup.
Notre Dame opens the season with an exhibition against Truman State on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. ET inside Purcell Pavilion before beginning the regular season against Villanova at noon ET on Nov. 1 at the Eternal City Tip-Off in Rome.
