Stanford”s players had a chance to breathe this week after barely escaping 12th-seeded South Dakota State in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

But not for long.

Now Stanford has a repeat engagement against top-seeded Notre Dame (33-1) in a Sweet 16 showdown Friday night in Lexington, Kentucky. Bluegrass Country features two of basketball”s bluest bloods with a 6 p.m. tipoff at Rupp Arena in a game televised on ESPN.

The winner advances to the regional final Sunday against either No. 3 Kentucky or No. 7 Washington, which upset second-seeded Maryland.

The Cardinal needed every ounce of resolve in a last-gasp 66-65 thriller Monday night to survive March Madness.

“We”re very fortunate to be playing today — we all know that,” Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer said.

If No. 4 seed Stanford (26-7) thought South Dakota State was tough, wait until it gets a load of the Fighting Irish, winners of 26 consecutive games that included a perfect run through the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Notre Dame swamped Stanford in the second half in last year”s Sweet 16 contest to pull away with an 81-60 victory en route to reaching the national title game won by Connecticut.

Some of the key players from last season have graduated. Notre Dame, for example, no longer has All-American Jewell Lloyd, who was the WNBA rookie of the year. Stanford lost Amber Orrange, Bonnie Samuelson and Taylor Greenfield.

But both teams might be deeper and more talented for the rematch. Irish coach Muffet McGraw has five regulars averaging at least nine points per game, making Notre Dame difficult to guard.

“Jewell could get 25 to 30,” McGraw said. “Now anybody in the top seven could get 20.”

Such reserve helped the Irish finish the season ranked second to undefeated UConn in the final AP poll. The 13th-ranked Cardinal got bounced in its first game in the Pac-12 tournament after finishing tied for third during the regular season.

But VanDerveer never dwells on the past.

“Talk to Maryland about seeds,” VanDerveer said. “Talk to No. 2 Arizona State about seeds. There is more parity in women”s basketball. We”re going in with an optimistic, enthusiastic mindset and wanting to win two games.”

VanDerveer and her players say the records won”t matter Friday because of Stanford”s experience under duress.

“This isn”t maybe our best shooting team or best execution team, but maybe it”s the hungriest team,” the Hall of Fame coach said.

Stanford”s comeback victory in the final 4 minutes Monday night highlights the Cardinal”s grind-to-the-end attitude.

It came back from nine down in the third quarter in January at Oregon to win in the final 30 seconds. Last month, Stanford rallied from 17 points down in the second half before losing in overtime to then-No. 9 Arizona State.

Then came the magical final sequences Monday, fueled by key steals, Brianna Roberson”s 3-point shot, Lili Thompson”s 3-point play and Erica McCall”s game-ending blocked shot.

“During the game we all knew: We didn”t want to go back in that locker room and cry,” sophomore forward Kaylee Johnson said.

It will take another all-out effort or the season will come to a thudding halt.

Notre Dame is led by 6-foot-3 sophomore forward Brianna Turner, the ACC player of the year who averaged 14.5 points and 7.2 rebounds a game.

If the inside game isn”t working, the Irish have deadly accurate 3-point shooting. Guards Madison Cable (45.7 percent) and Marina Mabrey (44.8 percent) helped Notre Dame post the second best 3-point shooting percentage in the country.

Stanford”s Roberson knows only one way to play it: “Making sure every shot they take is the hardest one they can take,” the point guard said.

McGraw understands why most basketball analysts make her team a solid favorite. But she expects a major challenge because “they”ve got the whole package,” McGraw said.

No doubt, Notre Dame defenders will focus on stopping McCall inside as well as her ever-improving jump shot. The Irish also will key on leading scorer Thompson and 3-point maestro Karlie Samuelson.

Many have suggested Stanford is a season away from restoring its glory days with a strong recruiting class uniting with virtually everyone returning from this campaign.

“But you never know about next year,” VanDerveer said. “So, let”s enjoy this year.”

Contact Elliott Almond at 408-920-5865. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/elliottalmond.