Marquette receives at-large bid, set to face North Carolina

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - The Marquette Golden Eagles are dancing for the 34th time in program history, and will face blue blood North Carolina in the first round on Thursday.

The Golden Eagles received a nine seed in the East Regional and will face the Tar Heels in Fort Worth, Texas. Marquette faced North Carolina last season in Chapel Hill with the Golden Eagles walking away with an 83-70 victory.

This will be the third meeting between the two teams in the Big Dance. The first match-up is significant in Marquette history with Al McGuire and the Golden Eagles knocking off UNC to win the 1977 national title.

In their first year under new head coach Shaka Smart, Marquette finished with a 19-12 record with quality wins over the likes of Illinois, Providence, Seton Hall, and Villanova.