The Big East tournament should end with Connecticut and St. John’s meeting for the third time this season.
That’s if the Huskies can avoid another misstep after losing to Marquette in the regular-season finale to drop into second place in the final conference standings. That loss could cost UConn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Thanks in part to dismal seasons by Creighton and the Golden Eagles, the Big East is expected to send only three teams into this year’s tournament. Sending just three into the bracket in 2024 didn’t stop the league from making a statement; all three teams made the Sweet 16 and UConn won it all.
To make another March Madness splash, the Big East first needs UConn to shake off a lousy finish to the regular season. When it comes to St. John’s, the onus is still on the Red Storm to prove they can defeat elite competition after going 4-5 in Quad 1 games.
Big East tournament schedule, bracket, scores
First round
Wednesday, March 11
Game 1: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed, 4 p.m., Peacock
Game 2: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 seed, 6:30 p.m., Peacock
Game 3: No. 6 seed vs. No. 11 seed, 9 p.m., Peacock
Quarterfinals
Thursday, March 12
Game 4: No. 1 seed vs. Game 1 winner, noon, Peacock
Game 5: No. 4 seed vs. No. 5 seed, 2:30 p.m., Peacock
Game 6: No. 2 seed vs. Game 2 winner, 7 p.m., FS1
Game 7: No. 3 seed vs. Game 3 winner, 9:30 p.m., FS1
Semifinals
Friday, March 13
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 5:30 p.m., Fox
Game 9: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 8 p.m., FS1
Championship game
Saturday, March 14
Game 10: Semifinal winners, 6:30 p.m., Fox
How to watch Big East tournament
TV: NBCSN, Fox Sports 1 and Fox
Streaming: Peacock and Fubo
The entire first round will air on NBCSN and simultaneously stream on Peacock. Likewise for the first two games of the quarterfinals, before the second pair of quarterfinal games shifts to Fox Sports 1 and streams on Fubo.
Fubo will also stream the semifinals and final, which will have a traditional broadcast on FOX.
Big East tournament favorite
The favorite is still UConn despite the late slide into second place behind the Red Storm.
St. John’s took the first meeting this season, topping the Huskies 81-72 at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 6. UConn avenged that loss with a dominant 72-40 win on Feb. 25.
The Red Storm are a difficult group to pin down because of the average mark against top-level competition. But St. John’s has often looked the part of a potential Final Four team.
Overall, UConn is the Big East’s most complete team and most dangerous NCAA tournament team after losing in the second round last March.
Big East tournament top players
Zuby Ejiofor, F, St. John’s — Ejiofor will deserve All-America consideration for his impact as a scorer (16.0 ppg), interior presence (2 bpg) and impactful post passer (career-best 3.5 apg).
Duke Brennan, F, Villanova — Brennan is hard to stop near the basket, making 66% of his attempts, and his 4 offensive rebounds per game leads the Big East and ranks eighth nationally.
Alex Karaban, F, UConn — The Huskies’ veteran forward has made 47.9% of his attempts from the field and an even 40% from deep to score in double figures (12.9 ppg) for the third year in a row.
Adam Clark, G, Seton Hall — A former Merrimack transfer, Clark is a pesky defender (2 spg) and capable distributor (4.7 apg) but has to limit his turnovers to help Seton Hall land the wins it needs to book a tournament bid.
Solomon Ball, G, UConn — Ball (13.9 ppg) hit a cold spell down the stretch of Big East play and was held below double figures in five of his past nine games. How far UConn goes this month might depend on whether he can flip the switch.
March Madness bubble storylines for Big East
The Big East has just three NCAA tournament locks in UConn, St. John’s and Villanova. The Huskies could rally back into position to secure a No. 1 seed by winning the conference tournament, depending on how things unfold with Florida in the SEC and Houston in the Big 12.
The Red Storm are currently hovering around the No. 5 line in large part. Villanova is solidly in the No. 7 range.
Seton Hall stormed out of the gate with a 10-1 mark in non-conference play but has dropped all six matchups against the Big East’s top three. That’s left the Pirates out of the NCAA mix and needing to win the conference tournament to punch their ticket to March Madness.
After placing five teams in last year’s bracket, the odds are the Big East has just three tournament teams unless an underdog wins the conference and steals a bid, which would complicate the at-large picture.