Football
Associated Press 16y

Notre Dame puts early end to George Mason's hope of another magic run

DENVER -- Looking for the next George Mason?

Sad to say, but it won't be George Mason.

America's NCAA darling two years ago was just another
first-round underdog this time around -- overmatched and never
really in it Thursday night in a 68-50 loss to Notre Dame in the
East Regional.

Luke Harangody had 18 points and 14 rebounds to lead the
fifth-seeded Irish (25-7) to their first tournament victory in five
years and a meeting Saturday against Washington State, an earlier
71-40 winner over Winthrop.

The 12th-seeded Patriots (23-11) had two starters left from
their magical run to the Final Four in 2006, a string of games that
showed little guys still can break through and turn March Madness
into a true free-for-all for more than just a game or two.

One of those players, Will Thomas, had a great game -- 10-for-14
for 25 points and seven rebounds. But he had his head buried in a
towel as the clock ran down. Because really, this George Mason was
nothing like that George Mason, and the first day of the tournament
ended with its big-name underdog on the way home.

"I guess I didn't really appreciate it, until today," the
other 2006 starter, Folarin Campbell, said of the Final Four trip.
"Every team in the NCAA tournament is going to be a great team. We
played against a great team today. Just to know what we did two
years ago, playing Michigan State, North Carolina, Wichita State
and Connecticut. I mean, I look back at that and I just see how
remarkable that run was."

The Patriots fought hard, but this game really wasn't close.

It got out of hand early, during a 14-minute stretch of the
first half in which the Patriots shot 2-for-18 and watched an early
7-6 lead turn into a 29-12 deficit.

They got only one shot on pretty much every trip down. And
though they were pesky -- swatting and slapping the ball away from
Notre Dame's post players and rebounders -- they couldn't come up
with loose balls, and wound up giving away too many open 3-pointers
and easy layups after ceding their position on defense.

Meanwhile, Campbell shot 1-for-12 and finished with four points.
The whole team looked winded at times, maybe from the altitude,
maybe from trying to go toe-to-toe with a bigger, better team for
40 exhausting minutes.

"If I would get past or have one (defender) on my hip, there
was another big guy right beside him," Campbell said. "I mean,
Notre Dame just played great defense. All my shots were contested.
I tip my hat off to their defense."

Rob Kurz hit two 3s in a row during Notre Dame's first-half
surge. He finished with those six points. Kyle McAlarney, suspended
from school last season after getting arrested for marijuana
possession, had a solid game -- 15 points, four assists.

The star, of course, was Harangody, the all-everything Big East
player of the year who notched his 18th double-double of the
season.

Coach Mike Brey thought Harangody was pressing during a loss to
Marquette in a quarterfinal exit from the Big East tournament that
left the Irish a bit queasy coming to Denver.

Brey told Harangody to play like himself -- not the way he
thought the player of the year was supposed to play -- and the
results spoke for themselves. The Fighting Irish kept alive their
string of not losing two in a row all season -- a string now assured
of lasting all year whether they win it all or not.

Notre Dame also proved it could win in the tournament. The Irish
rededicated themselves after a disappointing first-round loss to
Winthrop in 2007, the program's first trip to the show since 2003.

They made it a point to ignore the fact that they were playing
America's favorite underdog.

"We certainly respected the nucleus of guys," Brey said. "But
that was that run. This is a whole new basketball team. We didn't
spend a whole lot of time on it. Of course, if they watched any TV,
they got to hear about it all week."

Indeed, the whole notion of George Mason has taken on a
different life in the last two years. Even with the game out of
hand, the band kept playing "Don't Stop Believing" -- the old
Journey classic.

Two years ago, they took America by storm, making every game
look easy and fun on their road to the Final Four. Not to be this
time around, though it's still hard to discount what that program --
and especially this year's seniors -- accomplished.

"George Mason, three years ago, nobody ever heard of us. Two
years ago at the start of the tournament, nobody ever heard of
us," coach Jim Larranaga said. "Now the cliche has become: 'Who's
the next George Mason?' I think Will Thomas, Folarin Campbell,
Jordan Carter, this class, is very responsible for that."

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