Tip-off in Denver is just about 24 hours away. Here are ten things to know before the big game:

Day/Time

Sunday, April 1. 4:30 pm MT (6:30 ET).

Tale of the Tape

#4 Notre Dame (#1 seed in Raleigh Region) - 34-3 overall, 15-1 BIG EAST
#3 Connecticut (#1 seed in Kingston Region) - 33-4 overall, 13-3 BIG EAST

Broadcast

TV - ESPN/ESPN3. Dave O'Brien (play-by-play), Doris Burke (color), Holly Rowe (sideline) and Rebecca Lobo (sideline).
Radio - Pulse FM (96.9/92.1) and UND.com. Bob Nagle (play-by-play).

Beyond the Broadcast

Twitter: @NotreDameWBB, @ndwbbSID (sports information director Chris Masters)
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NDWBB

Series

UConn leads, 29-7. Irish have won three of the past four. Huskies won the last meeting, 63-54. This will be the teams' fourth head-to-head battle of the season, and eighth in the past two years.

What's at stake?

A spot in Tuesday night's title game against the winner of Stanford and Baylor.

NCAA History

Irish seeking their second straight appearance in the national championship game, and third victory semifinal victory over the Huskies (2001, 2011).

Opposing Players to Watch

Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Fr., F (15.0 PPG), Stefanie Dolson, Soph., C (10.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG), Tiffany Hayes, Sr., G (14.8 PPG)

The Road to Denver

Connecticut: No. 16 seed Prairie View A&M (83-47), No. 8 see Kansas State (72-26), No. 4 seed Penn State (77-59), No. 2 seed Kentucky (80-65).

Notre Dame: No. 16 seed Liberty (74-43), No. 8 seed California (73-62), No. 5 seed St. Bonaventure (79-35), No. 2 seed Maryland (80-49).

For All The Marbles (Well, Almost)

It's the fourth meeting of the season, but it might as well be the first. Notre Dame's two regular season wins and Connecticut's BIG EAST championship game victory mean very little at this point. When people look back on the 2011-12 season, the only game between the Fighting Irish and Huskies that will matter is the one in Denver. Whichever squad steps on the big stage earns all the bragging rights, and more importantly, the chance to play for a national championship on Tuesday evening.

- Josh Flynt ('11)