The Southern Utah Thunderbirds are the underdogs as they prepare to open NCAA tournament play this week, but they still would have preferred to see their opponent at full strength.
So when news broke Thursday that Notre Dame’s star point guard Olivia Miles would miss the remainder of the season with a knee injury, the Thunderbirds expressed only sympathies.
Miles was a second-team Associated Press All-American who averaged 14.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 2.1 steals for the Fighting Irish this season. She suffered an undisclosed knee injury in Notre Dame’s regular-season finale and will undergo surgery next week. Even without Miles on the floor, the No. 3-seed Notre Dame will be a tough test for the Thunderbirds.
The 14-seeded Southern Utah made the tournament after winning the WAC championship last week — a victory that stamped a remarkable turnaround after a 4-7 start to the season.
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