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Notre Dame looks to slow down surging Withrop

Mar 16, 2007 - 1:50 PM Winthrop (28-4) at Notre Dame (24-7) 2:35 pm EDT

SPOKANE, Washington (Ticker) -- Coach Mike Brey and Notre Dame cannot afford to overlook red-hot Winthrop.

Following a three-year absence from the NCAA Tournament, the sixth-seeded Fighting Irish will try and slow down the 11th-seeded Eagles in the opening round of the Midwest Region on Friday.

Notre Dame returns to the tournament for the first time since 2003 and fourth under Brey, who guided his team to a regional semifinal in the their last appearance. The Irish finished fourth in the Big East Conference with an 11-5 record and the 24 wins match their most since 1974.

Notre Dame's resurgence is due in large to its impressive play against ranked opponents - going 4-1 compared to a lowly 1-7 showing a year ago - and its high-powered offense which averaged 81.5 points - eighth in the nation.

Russell Carter and Colin Falls lead the Fighting Irish. Carter is coming off an impressive conference tourney, averaging 22.5 points and 7.5 rebounds, while Falls is the Big East's career 3-point leader.

With its seventh trip in nine years under coach Gregg Marshall, Winthrop enters the NCAA Tournament riding an 18-game winning streak to claim the highest seeding in the history of the Big Sky Conference. Marshall needs just one win to become the league's all-time leader.

The Eagles are searching for their first-ever win in the NCAAs, coming close to advancing before falling to Tennessee, 63-61, in the final seconds of the opening round last season.

"This week we will put our chin straps on as we return to combat," Marshall said.

Craig Bradshaw, Michael Jenkins and Torrell Martin will headline the attack for Winthrop, which lost close non-conference games at national powers North Carolina, Wisconsin and Maryland.

The winner will face either Oregon or Miami-Ohio in Sunday's second round.