Yahoo Sports Notre Dame to headline first ever women's college game broadcast on NBC and Peacock
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will take on the California Bears in the first-ever women's college basketball game to be broadcast on NBC and Peacock.
The game, which will take place at 4 p.m. ET on Nov. 12, will be part of the Citi Shamrock Classic. Citi and Notre Dame partnered together for the event, which will include more than the game. The day before the contest, Notre Dame will host a luncheon with "marquee speakers from the realm of business and women’s athletics." The two-day event will focus on holding conversations addressing "gender equity and women’s athletics."
With the new partnership, which was facilitated by Notre Dame Global Partnerships, Citi and Notre Dame have promised future events aimed at elevating women's sports and closing the gender gap in college athletics. Citi's head of global public affairs Ed Skyler said the company was excited to support women's basketball, which has been "underrepresented for far too long."
Notre Dame looking for more success after making Sweet 16 last season
Notre Dame coach Niele Ivey will look to lead her team to a win after surging to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament last season. Ivey turned in a 10-10 record in her first season as a coach before leading Notre Dame to a 24-10 record last year. The team upset Oklahoma in the second round of the NCAA tournament before falling to No. 1 seed NC State in the third round. NC State went on to lose to UConn in the Elite 8.
Charmin Smith and the Bears will look to jump over .500 after going 11-13 last season.
The game, which will be held at the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, will be a homecoming for Ivey and Smith, who grew up in St. Louis. Ivey — who attended Cor Jesu Academy in St. Louis — called it a "full circle moment" for her basketball career.
“I would like to thank Citi for the opportunity to showcase our women’s basketball program on this major stage in the inaugural Citi Shamrock Classic,” Ivey said. “This is a full circle moment to come back home to St. Louis where my basketball journey began. It’s an overwhelming feeling to think about the positive impact this will have in my community and for our sport. I hope to continue to inspire and empower the next generation of young leaders and athletes.”
After going to Cor Jesu Academy, Ivey went to Notre Dame, where she was a member of the women's basketball team. Ivey was selected by the Indiana Fever in the second round of the 2001 WNBA draft. She spent five seasons in the WNBA before becoming a coach. Ivey was named an assistant coach at Notre Dame in 2007. She also spent one season as an assistant with the Memphis Grizzlies before being named Notre Dame's coach following Muffet McGraw's retirement.
Tickets for the Citi Shamrock Classic will go on sale Sept. 23.
