(UHND.com) – When the NCAA Tournament selections were announced on Sunday, Notre Dame earned itself a 5th seed in the East Bracket and a date on Thursday with everyone’s favorite Cinderella, the 12th seeded George Mason Patriots.
After last week’s loss to Marquette in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament, a dreaded 5th seed seemed the most likely outcome for the Irish. A win or two would likely given the Irish a 4th seed. Instead, the Irish must now face one a George Mason squad two years removed from one of the greatest underdog stories in sports history.
Mason, as everyone remembers, went on a remarkable run through the 2006 Tournament with wins over Michigan State, North Carolina, and UConn before losing to eventual champ Florida in the Final 4. The Patriots were only the second 11th seeded team to ever make it to the final four.
Fortunately for the Irish, this year’s George Mason squad is not the same team that nearly became the lowest seeded team to ever reach the championship game.
The Patriots will bring a 23-10 record with them to Denver to face the Irish Thursday night, but this year’s team is quite a bit different than the 2006 version. Seniors Will Thomas (C) and Folarin Campbell (G) are the only remaining starters from the Final Four squad, but both will pose a formidable challenge. Campbell leads the team with a 15.9 points per game scoring average and Thomas is second at 15.8 to go along with his 10.5 boards a content.
This year’s Mason team does not shoot particularly well from three point range though. Dre Smith shot a NCAA record 10 for 10 from three point range earlier in the season against James Madison, but has been ice cold from downtown ever since. After that January 18th meeting with JMU, Smith has connected on just 23.5 percent from long distance. As a team, the Patriots are making only 35.2% of their three point shots.
The only common opponent for the Irish and Patriots this season is Villanova. Notre Dame beat ‘Nova 90-80 in Philadelphia while Mason lost to the Cats 84-76 back in November.
Because of their great run in 2006, Mason will be a popular upset pick among the 5 vs. 12 games especially considering none of the 12 seeds won a game in last year’s tourney. This is a game, however, that Notre Dame should be able to win.
The Irish have struggled with teams who can light it up from the outside and can break apart their 2-3 zone. Unless Smith rediscovers his touch from long range before Thursday, George Mason won’t have anyone who can hurt Notre Dame from outside the way Marquette did on Thursday night.
Luke Harangody will have to be much more of a factor if the Irish are to advance. Against Marquette last week, he was rendered most ineffective due to early foul trouble. Against an athletic big man like Thomas, Harangody will have to play disciplined early on to avoid the same fate. He will also have to use size advantage on the offensive end to get to the foul line early and often.
The Irish will also have to be much more effective from behind the arc in order to send Mason home early from the dance. Kyle McAlarney hit a couple late 3’s against the Golden Eagles Thursday night, but he was held in check most of the night and saw very few open looks.
Aside from getting an unlucky 5 seed and facing the mystique George Mason brings into the Tournament thanks to ’06, this was not a very bad draw for the Irish. The Patriots are not a particularly big team and have not shot the ball well from outside.
Notre Dame will be at a decided disadvantage in Tournament experience though. Thomas and Campbell were both starters for Mason’s ’06 run while no one on the current Notre Dame roster has seen the second round of the NCAA Tournament after last year’s 74-64 loss to Winthrop.
The last time Notre Dame advanced out of the first round, however, they were also a 5 seed and took out the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee coached by Bruce Pearl in the 2003 Tournament. Notre Dame advanced to the Sweet 16 in ’03 where they fell to the #1 seeded Arizona.
Lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice and when the clock strikes midnight early Friday morning, Notre Dame should be preparing for a second round matchup with either Washington State or Winthrop.
