Mar 8, 2012; New York, NY, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard/forward Pat Connaughton (24) shoots the game winning free throw during overtime in third round at the Big East Tournament against the USF Bulls at Madison Square Garden. Notre Dame won 57-53 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

The Irish hope to continue their remarkable run in the Big East as they face the Louisville Cardinals tonight at 9 eastern time in Madison Square Garden.  Notre Dame Guards, Eric Atkins and Jerian Grant, will have to contain Peyton Siva tonight if the Irish want to advance to the Big East Championship Game.  Siva is coming off an 18 point, 8 rebound, and 6 assist performance against Marquette.  The Irish are coming off a squeaker against South Florida as they won in overtime 57-53.  Notre Dame will have to keep shooting well from beyond the arc if they want to beat Louisville.  Look for the Irish to slow down the tempo of the game in order to keep the transition points by the Cardinals to a minimum.

The two keys to the game for Louisville will be if they can score off turnovers and whether or not they can slow down Jack Cooley (scored 18 points in last meeting).  On the other side of the court the Irish will have to slow down Peyton Siva, but they will also have to limit Kyle Kuric’s three point attempts to a minimum.  Expect another jaw dropper in the Garden do not be surprised if this game goes into overtime as it did earlier in the season when Louisville was defeated by the Irish at home in overtime.  The game will be televised at 9 eastern on ESPN after the Connecticut Cincinnati Game.  Follow us on Twitter @Slap The Sign and on Facebook  at Slap The Sign.

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With the Irish coming off a huge win against the West Virginia Mountaineers, they now look to face an unranked team in Saint John’s (12-16).  Although Notre Dame is currently on its longest winning streak since joining the Big East (10 games) do not let this game fool you; Saint John’s has got the best of the Irish in previous seasons.  The Irish do not play well against the Red Storm at Madison Square Garden when they are ranked, losing the past three times.  Even Coach Brey is aware of the situation, ”Last time we played at noon in the Garden against St. John’s, we didn’t play very well,” Brey said. “Matter of fact, they beat us pretty easily.”  This Notre Dame Team needs to go in the game with a sense of urgency knowing that they still have something to prove.

Saint John’s is a young team with three different freshmen leading the team in points, rebounds, and assists.  Expect Saint John’s to try and push the tempo against the Irish, since Coach Brey will have the team running their half court offense while taking plenty of time off the clock.  Do not be surprised if Jack Cooley does not get a double double once again today, his time will probably be limited especially if the Irish get off to a fast start.  Jerian Grant and Eric Atkins will have to stop Saint John’s guard play if the Irish want to continue their winning streak.  I expect this Irish Team to reverse the curse of previous years at the Garden and win this game pulling away in the second half.  The game  will be televised at noon eastern time on ESPN2 from Madison Square Garden.  Follow us on Twitter @Slap The Sign and on Facebook.

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It did not seem like the Irish came to play last night against Villanova, at least not until the second half. The first half was all Villanova, leading for fourteen out of the twenty minutes.  Notre Dame was even down by twenty with less than two minutes left in the first half!  Lead by JayVaughn Pinkston the Wildcats kept up the lead throughout the second half, it was until 1:45 left in the game when Eric Atkins made a free throw to put the Irish ahead 57-56.   In overtime the Irish finally took advantage of the game leading the entire five minutes.  Notre Dame ended up winning the game 74-70, giving the Irish their eighth straight victory.  Pat Connaughton lead the Irish with 21 points and Cooley was once again had a double double with 18 points and 13 rebounds.  The Irish are still third in the Big East Standings with an 11-3 conference record and 19-8 overall record, with four conference games left the Irish hope to secure their double bye for the conference tournament

Notre Dame could have easily thrown in the towel at any point of this game, but that was not the case not for this Irish Basketball Team.  This was not unfamiliar territory for the Irish, they had been down before against West Virginia earlier this season, both times they proved what they were capable of.  As the season comes winding down to an end, Irish fans can only hope that this “never give up” mentality sticks with this team going into the Big East Tournament as well as March.