Initial thoughts: Reaction to Notre Dame’s matchup vs. Rutgers, making the First Four and more

Notre Dame began Selection Sunday began with sweaty palms.

The Irish endured a three-day wait after losing their ACC Tournament opener to learn their March Madness fate. They saw other bubble teams stockpile wins and a bid thief. Bracket projections pushed them further down the seed list — if not out altogether.

The suspense about their inclusion lasted just three minutes. Notre Dame is a No. 11 seed and plays fellow No. 11 Rutgers Wednesday in the First Four (9:10 p.m. ET, TruTV). The winner advances to play West Region No. 6 seed Alabama in San Diego on Friday.

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Here are some initial thoughts on the selection, the assignment and the bracket.

The First Four — too high, too low, just right?

Notre Dame is in the First Four for the first time since it was created in 2011. Going to the round of the tournament often referred to by fans as the play-in games is a disappointing outcome for a team projected as a single-digit seed as recently as two weeks ago.

But that’s what a 1-2 finish, a one-and-done ACC Tournament stay and a résumé lacking high-end wins can bring. With a 2-8 Quadrant 1 record and 4-9 Quadrant 1 and 2 record, it’s hard to say Notre Dame didn’t have one of the worst four at-large résumés, even with its good overall record and win over No. 2 seed Kentucky.

Remember, conference standings and records aren’t a factor in selection, so a 15-5 ACC mark didn’t come into play.

At the same time, Notre Dame was one of several examples of something the committee wants to see above all: A ceiling. Is there proof you can beat good teams? Can you beat tournament teams? The low Quadrant 1 volume hurts, but that defeat of Kentucky is as strong an individual win as any bubble team had. It carried the most weight of anything on the résumé. A top-25 non-conference schedule helped too.

Rutgers is a testament to the same idea. The Scarlet Knights are outside the top 75 of the NET rankings and have three Quadrant 3 and 4 losses. But they have six Quadrant 1 victories, including takedowns of top-four seeds Purdue, Wisconsin and Illinois.

The path for Notre Dame to make a run

Notre Dame’s last three games didn’t exactly foment optimism, but each year, teams that backed into the tournament make extended runs. The tournament is an entirely new slate, and an extended stay in it requires a good bit of luck. Forget recent play. Just get there and see what happens.

It’s worth noting a team from the First Four has reached the round of 32 every tournament but one since the bracket expanded in 2011. Should Notre Dame beat Rutgers, Alabama is a fallible opponent.

The Crimson Tide are a No. 6 seed despite a record typical of a bubble team (19-13, 9-9 SEC) because they’re top-30 in every team sheet metric and have eight Quadrant 1 wins — three of which are against teams from last year’s Final Four. But they also lost to Iona on a neutral floor and took a pair of Quad 3 defeats, including to last-place Georgia in the Bulldogs’ only SEC win of the year.

Alabama is a top-15 offense and takes nearly half its shots from three-point range, but its rank just 305th in three-point percentage (30.8). The Tide turn the ball over on nearly 20 percent of possessions. They were also KenPom’s No. 11-rated defense in SEC play.

The round of 32 opponent could be No. 3 Texas Tech, whose athletic and stingy defense is a difficult on-paper matchup for Notre Dame.

Rutgers — basic facts

I will dive into this more tomorrow, but some general thoughts on Rutgers:

• The Scarlet Knights have an impressive top gear. They didn’t beat both Big Ten regular-season co-champions, the conference tournament champ and the league’s highest-seeded team by accident. They’re a defensive-first group content to play ugly games, but have two scorers who can take over games in Ron Harper Jr. and Geo Baker.

• Rutgers lost four games to teams ranked 100th or worse in the NET, including a 53-51 home defeat against the No. 317 team, Lafayette. Three of those games were consecutive November contests, though. Their worst days are behind them.

• Harper averaged 20.5 points in Rutgers’ wins over Iowa, Illinois, Purdue and Wisconsin. He’s the primary weapon and can carry the offense on his shoulders.

• This is an athletic defensive team, but it does give up a high three-point volume. That caters well to Notre Dame’s offense.

The ACC in the bracket

The ACC’s down year is reflected in the field of 68.

Five teams made it, the league’s fewest since 2013. Only one — No. 2 Duke — is higher than a No. 8 seed. The ACC’s second-place team is in the First Four. The team with the league’s Player and Coach of the Year winners is a No. 2 seed … in the NIT. The tournament champion, Virginia Tech, might not have earned an at-large bid if it lost the title game to Duke.

The Hokies and Irish are a No. 11 seed, Miami is a No. 10 and North Carolina a No. 8. In all, those feel about right. Miami’s metrics (62nd in the NET, sub-60 in three others) and three Quadrant 3 losses capped its seed upside. North Carolina earning that No. 8 seed feels high for a team that went 6-8 in the first two quadrants with a Quadrant 4 loss. I thought Duke would end on the three line and SEC Tournament champ Tennessee would take that final No. 2.