Hidalgo, 19, enters March Madness after her first ACC tournament.
She joins former Duke star Elizabeth Williams as the only 2012 athlete to be named Defensive athlete and Rookie of the Year.
Guard Hidalgo has everything. She leads the Fighting Irish in games played (32, tied with senior backcourt partner Anna De Wolfe), minutes (35.8), points (23.3), assists (5.5), turnovers (3.4), and steals (4.6).
The guard averages 6.4 rebounds, shoots 45% from the field, 35% from 3-point range, and 78% from the free-throw line.
In national scoring, she is third behind Iowa's Caitlin Clark (31.9) and USC freshman JuJu Watkins (23.2), ahead of Villanova's Lucy Olsen (23.2).