Notre Dame has squashed all the doubters — here’s why they haven’t lost a step after iconic coach retired

The buzz surrounding the Notre Dame women’s basketball program this summer was like a bug stuck in retired coaching legend Muffet McGraw’s ear.

With Olivia Miles returning from injury, there were questions about how Miles and Hannah Hidalgo would work together. Rumors swirled about players potentially transferring out. “Negative” was the word McGraw used to describe how people were talking about Notre Dame.

But McGraw knew the outsiders were wrong. Because when she looked on paper at the team fifth-year coach Niele Ivey fielded, McGraw saw the potential that this group would do something special.

“I thought they were going to be really good,” McGraw told The Post when reached by phone Friday. “My thought was, we’re a Final Four team.”