TCU guard Hailey Van Lith is NCAA Tournament’s best story

The Horned Frogs will play No. 1 Texas (34-3) in the Elite Eight.

Van Lith, a fifth-year senior, scored a game-high 26 points and added nine rebounds and four assists.

Per ESPN, the 26 points were the most by a TCU player in women's NCAA Tournament history.

She outscored Notre Dame by herself in the fourth quarter, 12-10, including an open three which gave the Horned Frogs a six-point lead and drew a priceless reaction from her father.

With Saturday’s win, Van Lith, who began her collegiate career at Louisville (2020-23), is headed to the Elite Eight for the fifth time in five seasons.

Although her teams have always been successful, Van Lith’s 2025 run with TCU has been part of a redemption arc for the 2024-25 Big 12 Player of the Year.

Last year, Van Lith reached the regional finals with LSU. The Tigers lost to national runner-up Iowa, and Van Lith had an ugly game, ending with nine points and constantly losing one-on-one battles with former Hawkeyes guard and NCAA all-time leading scorer Caitlin Clark, who scored 41 points.

Her performance was best remembered for the helpless shoulder-shrug she gave following one of Clark's nine three-pointers.

In four NCAA Tournament games last season, Van Lith averaged 6.8 points, three assists and 2.3 rebounds while shooting 20% in 28.3 minutes per game.

Van Lith has been an entirely different player this tournament. Her 10 field goals against Notre Dame were her most in the Sweet 16 or beyond, and her 21 attempts were the most she's had since the 2022 regional semifinals against Tennessee.

During the postseason (including the Big 12 Tournament), Van Lith is averaging 19.7 points, 5.8 assists, five rebounds and a steal per game while shooting 49.4%, including 37.9% on three-point attempts.

Van Lith couldn't have penned a better ending to her college career, which still has at least one more page.