Tag: First Four

How ACC teams have fared in First Four games

What has the conference done in Dayton, Ohio?

While it isn’t a specific goal for NCAA Tournament-bound teams to play in the First Four in Dayton, Ohio, eight of them must do so. Ever since the tournament competition in Dayton expanded to four games from one in 2011, teams from power conferences have had to earn the right to play in the Round of 64. After all, it would be completely unfair if only mid-majors and No. 16 seeds, which are pretty much the same thing anyway, were assigned to these games.

Notre Dame is about to make its first appearance in the First Four against Rutgers. but it will be the fifth time an ACC program has traveled to Dayton to determine its tournament fate. Historically, these games have worked out very well for the conference, and the Irish will hope to expand on that reputation. Here are the four other times the ACC has been represented in the initial round of tournament games:

NCAA Tournament: Notre Dame-Rutgers game predictions

Do the Irish move on to the round of 64?

After Tuesday night’s First Four in Dayton the NCAA Tournament is down to 66 teams as its just hours away from dwindling down to 64.  Will it be Notre Dame or Rutgers that moves on to take on Alabama in the first round?

Notre Dame enters tonight’s game 22-10 overall after a 15-5 showing in the ACC this regular season which was good enough to tie the Irish with North Carolina for second in the conference standings.  Rutgers brings an 18-13 mark after going 12-8 in the Big Ten which tied them for fourth in the conference.

What happens tonight?  Here is what the staffs at Fighting Irish Wire and Rutgers Wire see going down:

Watch: Notre Dame watches selection show, heads to First Four game

The Irish are happy to be in the tournament.

Notre Dame’s NCAA Tournament journey could begin and end with the First Four in Dayton, Ohio. However, that didn’t stop a video about the Irish on the official March Madness YouTube channel from being uploaded. After all, when you have a chance to be selected for your first tournament in five years, you want to be on hand for it. If you’ve been curious as to what the team has been up to for the past couple of days, wonder no more:

Mike Brey seems to be very easygoing about the whole thing, especially after he learns that his team made the field. In fact, he said during his first news conference of the tournament that an NIT bid would have made his job a lot harder:

Apparently, being named the District 2 Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) wouldn’t have been enough to motivate his team had the NCAA Tournament slipped away. Fortunately, that’s all a moot point, and the important thing is getting ready for Rutgers.

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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

NCAA Tournament Expert Picks, Predictions: First Four, Final Four

NCAA Tournament predictions, college basketball expert picks for the First Four games along with their Final Four picks

NCAA Tournament predictions, college basketball expert picks for the First Four games along with their Final Four picks

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* next to the pick means the team will win, but not cover.
Click on each game for the game preview and CFN Prediction

NCAA Tournament First Four, Final Four
TA&MCC vs Texas Southern | Indiana vs Wyoming
Bryant vs Wright State | Notre Dame vs Rutgers
Final Four Picks | NCAA Tournament Schedule

NCAA Tournament First Four
Texas Southern vs Texas A&M-Corpus Cristi

6:40, truTV
Line: Texas Southern -3.5, o/u: 136

Eric Bolin, RazorbacksWire.com: Texas Southern
Jeff Feyerer, CFN: Texas Southern
Pete Fiutak, CFN: Texas A&M-CC
Dan Harralson, VolsWire.com: Texas Southern
Jeremy Mauss, MWwire.com: Texas A&M-CC
Big Game Ben Niewoehner, CFN Texas Southern
Johnny Rosenstein, SportsBookWire.com: Texas Southern
Nick Shepkowski, FightingIrishWire.com: Teas A&M-CC
Scott Steehn, WinnersandWhiners.com: Texas Southern
Clucko the Chicken, CFN: Texas A&M-CC
CONSENSUS PICK: Texas Southern

NCAA Tournament First Four, Final Four
Indiana vs Wyoming | Bryant vs Wright State
Notre Dame vs Rutgers | Final Four Picks

NEXT: Indiana vs Wyoming Expert Picks, Predictions

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

Tale of the Tape: Individual Leaders – Notre Dame vs. Rutgers

Should any of this be a concern?

The beauty of a First Four game in the NCAA Tournament is that it can go in either direction. Both teams were seeded the same, and they’re playing for the right to play an arguably superior team in the Round of 64. However, that doesn’t always mean they’re even on paper, and if you look below, you’ll see that Notre Dame’s statistical leaders mostly aren’t quite as good as Rutgers’:

One has to wonder what the heck the Irish are going to do to win this game? This matchup has the feeling of being very even and not very even at the same time. You even could make the argument that the Irish’s leaders are somewhat slanted because of Mike Brey’s short rotation. Plus, the Scarlet Knights playing in the better conference this year has to do wonders for them.

Maybe numbers won’t matter in this game after all. Sometimes, you just gotta pass the eye test.

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Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Tale of the Tape: Team Stats – Notre Dame vs. Rutgers

What do you think when you see these numbers?

Notre Dame has quite the close statistical matchup against Rutgers ahead of the teams playing in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament. The Irish mostly have the offensive advantage here, and that’s becoming more and more important in college basketball. Most notably, they are one of the best in the country at shooting the 3-pointer, and they are tough to beat when that shot is falling. They also have a high assist-to-turnover ratio, a trademark of Mike Brey teams.

The Scarlet Knights are all about defense, at least as pertaining to this matchup, and that could cause problems for the Irish. If this game is low-scoring, it could go the Knights’ way. Maybe the similar assist-to-turnover ratio will determine whether this game is about scoring or keeping points off the scoreboard. You could flip a coin to decide how this game will go because it most likely depends on the frequency of the points.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

How to bet on the 2022 NCAA Men’s Tournament First Four games

Which of these eight teams will move on in the tournament?

The NCAA men’s tournament bracket has been revealed and the Big Ten landed a tourney-best nine teams in the field of 68, including two in the first four games.

Rutgers and Indiana were among the last four in and will be among the first eight to tip things off for a chance to advance out of Dayton, Ohio and into their respective regions.

Fighting for the 11th seed in the West region, Rutgers will take on Notre Dame. Indiana faces Wyoming for the 12th seed in the East. And for the 16 seeds in the Midwest and South regions, Texas Southern will play Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Wright State will play Bryant.

Here’s how to bet these all too important matchups.

All odds provided via Tipico

Notre Dame makes NCAA Tournament, will play Rutgers in First Four

The Irish are dancing!

After a championship week that went anything but smoothly for Notre Dame, all of South Bend can take a collective exhale. For the first time since 2017, the Irish have qualified for the NCAA Tournament after being placed in the West Regional. They will take on Rutgers in a battle of No. 11 seeds as part of the First Four in Dayton, Ohio. The winner of this game will play sixth-seeded Alabama in the first round.

The Irish have an all-time record of 20-13 against the Scarlet Knights. The former Big East rivals last faced each other in the second round of the 2013 conference tournament. The Irish won that game, 69-61. In fact, nine of the past 11 meetings have gone their way.

It was fitting that these programs met in the 2013 Big East Tournament because both programs left that conference after that season. Now, they get to face each other in an unofficial ACC-Big Ten Challenge with much bigger stakes than conference pride. Getting into the Round of 64 by playing an extra game may not have been a goal either program wanted to achieve, but that’s just how it goes sometimes. Still, they likely will be thinking less about that than being one of 68 teams who still can win it all.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

When is Selection Sunday and other March Madness dates to know

So many games, so many locations, so many dates. We’ve got them all here for you.

The days are getting longer, the weather is getting warmer and buzzer-beaters are increasing in frequency.

All the typical signs that March Madness is here have arrived in earnest, and it’s time to prepare your loved ones for the fact you’ll be unable to leave your couch for large stretches of time over the next few weeks.

But just when will you need to block off your calendars? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered with all the dates you need to know on both the men’s and women’s side from Selection Sunday to the Final Four.

All odds via Tipico

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Notre Dame in 2022 NCAA Tournament per Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology

Think the Irish can make the next NCAA Tournament?

Yes, it’s way too early to be thinking about the 2022 NCAA Tournament, but that hasn’t stopped college basketball fans from doing so. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi is one of them, and he’s released his latest Bracketology. Notre Dame fans undoubtedly want to forget about the 11-15 season they just experienced, but they’ll be pleased to know that Lunardi has the next iteration of the Irish as one of the last teams to make the tournament without having to play in the First Four. Specifically, he lists the Irish as a No. 10 seed against Indiana, so maybe the Crossroads Classic will serve as a preview for March?

Lunardi has good reason to be bullish about Notre Dame, which will receive a boost from Yale transfer Paul Atkinson and South Bend natives J.R. Konieczny and Blake Wesley. The Irish also will return their top three scorers from the past season as seniors: Prentiss Hubb, Nate Laszewski and Dane Goodwin. This is a program desperate for good things as it hasn’t made the Big Dance since 2017. Fortunately, there’s reason to think that those good things are close ahead.