Big East teams perfect on first day of 2008 NCAA Tournament

The Big East sent half their conference into the tournament, and half of the eight advanced to the second round of the tournament on Saturday. Pittsburgh, Marquette, Notre Dame, and West Virginia.

Notre Dame defeated George Mason 68-50 in the 5-12 matchup in the East Regional. The Irish sent the Patriots packing behind Luke Harangody’s 19 points and 14 rebounds, along with Kyle McAlarney adding 15 points, and Ryan Ayers finishing with 12 off the bench. Notre Dame held George Mason to 33 percent shooting, despite a game high 25 points from Patriots forward Will Thomas. This year’s George Mason won’t be George Mason. The Irish advance to the second round where they will face No.4 seeded Washington St. on Saturday.

Jerel McNeal dropped in 20 points, and Marquette used the free throw line down the stretch to fend off Kentucky, 74-66 in the opening round of the South Regional. Wesley Matthews drained eight free throws in the last 30 seconds, and the Golden Eagles survived and advanced, despite a dominating effort from Joe Crawford, who scored 35 for Kentucky. Marquette had balanced scoring, finishing with four players in double figures, while Crawford and Ramel Bradley were a two-man team, combining for 54 of Kentucky’s 66 points. No.6 Marquette moves on to Round 2 to square off against third-seeded Stanford on Saturday.

Five players scored in double figures for Pitt, as the fourth-seeded Panthers thumped 13 th-seeded Oral Roberts 82-63 in Thursday’s South Regional opener. Levance Fields led Pitt with 23 points, seven assists and four rebounds. DeJuan Blair led Pitt with 10 rebounds, helping the Panthers pound Oral Roberts on the glass, 48-32. The Panthers move on to day two, when Pitt faces Michigan St. on Saturday in the second round.

> Find Georgetown clothing, Pitt Panthers shirts & clothing and more online along with Big East basketball merchandise from Big East Fans partner sites.

West Virginia bombed Arizona from the 3-point line, as the Mountaineers used 11 3-pointers to defeat the Wildcats, 75-65 on Thursday night in the West Regional opening round. Arizona suffered a one-and-done thanks to Alex Ruoff and Da’Sean Bulter of West Virginia. Ruoff finished with 21 points and Butler added 19. WVU advances to the second round to face second-seeded Duke Blue Devils on Saturday.

by Frank Minniti
BigEast-fans.com Director of Content

> More Big East basketball news & headlines

> Follow the 2008 NCAA Basketball Tournament online and find NIT scores and CBI scores at College Sports Fans!