South Region No. 7 seed Notre Dame plays its first 2012 NCAA Tournament game against No. 10 seed Xavier on Friday night, and the Irish will be looking to continue what was a strong finish to the regular season.
Related: NCAA Tournament 2012: Watch Games Online For Free
Xavier's finish was a little more inconsistent, but the Musketeers made a run to the Atlantic 10 Tournament finals last weekend to seal an at-large bid.
With neither team likely to commit many turnovers, defensive rebounding could be a crucial factor in the outcome of this game.
Game Date & Time: Friday, March 16, approx. 9:45 ET
TV: CBS
Announcers: Jim Nantz, Clark Kellogg, Tracy Wolfson
For more coverage of this matchup, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down and Xavier blog Banners On The Parkway.
For more on the 2012 NCAA Tournament bracket, stay with SB Nation's Selection Sunday StoryStream, and stick around SB Nation's NCAA Tournament hub for a complete printable NCAA Tournament bracket and tons of analysis on who was snubbed, who got the best bracket, and who will make it all the way to New Orleans and the Final Four.
