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Big East

Big East: Butler Cruises to “W”

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INDIANAPOLIS – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – All four BIG EAST teams in action Friday cruised to home victories and improved their records to 2-0. The closest margin of victory was 23 points.

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Butler scored 55 points in the first half in its 91-56 win over Southeast Missouri State. Guard Posh Alexander led five players in double figures with 15 points and went over the 1,000-point plateau for his career. The Bulldogs held SEMO to 29 percent shooting from the field.

No. 5 Marquette did not trail in its 95-65 victory against Rider. Kam Jones netted a team-high 23 points and added six rebounds, four assists, and four steals in 24 minutes of playing time. The Golden Eagles made 13 3-pointers.

No. 22 Villanova used a 13-0 run midway in the first half to gain control of its 83-57 victory against LeMoyne. Justin Moore led the Wildcats with 21 points. Brendan Hausen came off the bench to connect on 6-of-8 from 3-point range and finish with a career-high 18 points.

Xavier handled Jacksonville 79-56 with grad transfer guard Quincy Olivari scoring a team-high 17 points. The Musketeers had six players score between nine and 17 points. An early 13-2 run gave Xavier control of the contest. Guard Desmond Claude, who had 12 points, was the only starter who was on the team last season.

Big East: Weekend Round-Up

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HARTFORD – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Connecticut, Creighton, Seton Hall and Providence notched double-digit wins while Georgetown and DePaul suffered close losses on a 4-2 Saturday for BIG EAST teams.

No. 6 Connecticut got out of the gate quickly and rolled over Stonehill 107-67 at XL Center. All five starters reached double figures led by Tristen Newton’s 22 points. He also had seven rebounds, four assists and five steals. Freshman Stephon Castle added 17 points, eight rebounds and five assists.

No. 8 Creighton opened the second half with a 26-5 run and knocked off North Dakota State 89-60. Ryan Kalkbrenner scored 11 of the Bluejays’ first 16 points in the second half. Trey Alexander scored a game-high 21 points and posted seven rebounds, five steals and four assists.

Seton Hall rolled over Fairleigh Dickinson 85-55 at Walsh Gymnasium. Kadary Richmond had his second straight quality stat line. He contributed 14 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Grad transfer Jaden Bediako registered his fifth career double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Providence was challenged by Milwaukee, picked second in the Horizon League, but nailed down a 79-69 victory. The Friars led 39-26 at intermission and were able to maintain a double-figure edge the rest of the way. Jayden Pierre scored a game-high 16 points. Transfer Josh Oduro added 13 points and 12 boards.

Georgetown led the entire second half but got caught in the final minute in its 68-67 loss to Holy Cross. The Hoyas led 57-46 with 8:35 remaining. Newcomer guards Jayden Epps and Rowan Brumbaugh led GU with 22 and 17 points, respectively.

DePaul fell behind 33-11 in the first half against Long Beach State, before a big second-half rally fell short in a 77-73 defeat. Transfer guard Elijah Fisher scored 20 of his team-high 25 points after the break.

The BIG EAST schedule continues tomorrow with the start of the Gavitt Tipoff Games. St. John’s hosts Michigan at Madison Square Garden at 6:30 p.m. ET followed by Xavier at Purdue at 8:30 p.m. Both games will be televised on FS1. Also, Villanova visits Penn on ESPN+ and Butler hosts East Tennessee State on CBS Sports Network. Both games tip at 7 p.m.

Big East: Johnnies Open Up

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JAMAICA ESTATES – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Three of the four league teams in action on Tuesday enjoyed season-opening wins at home. Creighton, St. John’s and Georgetown tasted victory. DePaul let a late lead get away and absorbed a loss.

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Creighton, ranked eighth in both national polls, used an early 19-2 run en route to a 105-54 win over Florida A&M. Guard Trey Alexander scored a game-high 20 points, which included 7-of-8 shooting from the field. Newcomer guard Steven Ashworth scored 17 points in 18 minutes. Center Ryan Kalkbrenner blocked his 200th career shot in his 100th career game.

The new coaches at St. John’s and Georgetown enjoyed their debuts. St. John’s beat Stony Brook 90-74 in Rick Pitino’s first game as the Johnnies’ headmaster. Familiar face Joel Soriano led the way with 22 points, 11 rebounds and three blocked shots. He made 9-of-12 from the floor, including both 3-point attempts. Newcomer forward Chris Ledlum added 16 points, 14 boards and four assists.

Georgetown coach Ed Cooley liked what he saw in the Hoyas’ 94-57 victory over LeMoyne. Frontcourt newcomers helped pave the way. Supreme Cook paced five Hoyas in double figures with 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting. He also pulled down 13 rebounds. Dontrez Styles added 15 points and 10 boards.

Hosting Purdue Fort Wayne, DePaul recovered from a 41-33 halftime deficit to take a 68-62 lead with under four minutes remaining before losing 82-74. Guard Chico Carter Jr. shined in his DePaul debut with 18 points and eight rebounds.

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | March 12th

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NEW YORK – There’s no better way to describe a basketball tournament at The World’s Most Famous Arena than to take you step-by-step from Wednesday through Saturday with an old-fashioned, popular time-line.

Come along on the amazing journey:

Wednesday, March 8:

7:29am – Amtrak Acela pulled out from RTE-128 station in the western suburbs of Boston, heading south to Providence where we picked up some Friars fans and went on to Penn Station in New York, arriving at the brand new Moynihan Train Hall at 10:50am.

7:31am – This reporter started missing his dog (and family, too).

11:00am – First activity? Walked from 8th Ave and 33rd Street to 7th Avenue to enter The Garden and pass security only to walk back to 8th Avenue to pick-up BIG EAST media passes and entrance tickets. The “new” MSG actually has incredibly friendly security people and the place is spotless.

It was the first of about 25 trips from the 8th Avenue end of The Garden to the 7th Avenue entrance hub only to return to the 8th Avenue “Expo/Rotunda” end of the building.

11:05am – The well-oiled BIG EAST media relations and sports info staff had everything perfectly organized, allowing check-in to be done in :45 seconds. Two escalator rides up and into the “Expo,” as the finishing touches were being made to the media area, and we’re online. Nice job MSG!

12 Noon – All were summoned to The Theatre at MSG where Commissioner Val Ackerman was going to present the key awards for the BIG EAST regular season. It’s absolutely GREAT to see colleagues like Ackerman and head basketball man, Stu Jackson. In prelim to her presentations, Ackerman noted it’s 10 years since The BIG EAST broke away from the pack and formed the “basketball centric” conference.

12:05pm – Time well spent and congratulations offered to Jackson, who flew westward to headline a press conference as the new WCC Commissioner. As fyi, Gonzaga defeated St. Mary’s on March 7th to take the WCC title. At the conclusion of this tournament, Jackson will assume his duties as conference commish. He will be missed by all involved with BIG EAST basketball. His new opportunity, probably basing in the SF-Bay area will be tremendous.

At the same time, it was more congratulations to Bill Raftery, tv commentator extraordinaire, who was awarded the Jim “Ock” O’Connell media award for his work and his contributions to college basketball. “Ock,” longtime college and Olympic basketball writer for the Associated Press, was a terrific colleague who lost his battle vs. a series of ailments. He was only 64 at the time of his death in 2018. The press area at MSG is dedicated to O’Connell’s memory each year at the tourney. A fitting tribute.

12:30pm – Villanova first year forward Cam Whitmore has been selected BIG EAST Freshman of the Year. The conference’s head coaches make the selections and are not permitted to vote for their own players.

12:40pm – Marquette’s head coach Shaka Smart was named Conference Coach of the Year and point guard Tyler Kolek was named BIG EAST Player of the Year. Smart’s squad made the biggest leap in conference history, jumping from a No. 9 prediction in the preseason coaches’ poll to outright regular-season champion.

Kolek is the “maestro-style” point guard, averaging 12.7 points with a league-leading 7.9 assists per game, second nationally. The 6-3 junior from Cumberland, Rhode Island (how’d he get away from those Friars), ranks first in assist/turnover ratio at 3.3., which places him sixth amongst all NCAA Div. I players. He’s fifth in the BIG EAST in steals at 1.8pg and ninth in free throw shooting, making .814 percent. Kolek is one of five finalists for the Hall of Fame’s Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard.

2:30pm – As Butler and St. John’s warm-up, there’s a little more time with Raftery and his longtime chronicler of the BIG EAST and we lament of the loss of Gantry’s and The Sly Fox in Queens. He knew they’d closed down, while others present did not.

Madison Square Garden in New York City

3:00pm – A wonderful rendition of the United States’ National Anthem and we’re tipping off the 41st rendition of the BIG EAST at The Garden, starting after three years when the conference finale was played in Providence, RI, Syracuse, NY and Hartford, CT consecutively.

In the opener, St. John’s handled Butler 76-63, advancing to the tough Thursday match-up vs. No. 1 Marquette. The victory spared Coach Anderson 24 more hours in the eye of the Red Storm (whatever a Red Storm is)?

DePaul vs Seton Hall was the first incredibly hard-fought, close, get-The-Garden-rockin’ game of the tournament and DePaul upset the Hall, plopping them into the group of NIT hopefuls, 66-65. The finish was about as entertaining as three free throws can be as DePaul’s guard Umoja Gibson stepped to the line with his team trailing, 65-63, and drained three consecutive FTs after being fouled with :04 remaining in the 2nd Half. Gibson gets “the Doug Collins Award” for calmly stepping to line in a very loud MSG and hitting nothing but net. DePaul was (3-17) in Conference while Seton Hall was (10-10). (Collins did just that but with two FTs in the 1972 Olympics under incredible pressure after being tackled by the USSR in the controversial gold medal game, stolen from the USA by incompetent table officials, the FIBA President, Renato William Jones of Great Britian and the game officials who followed their instructions blindly). … If you’re young and didn’t see it or don’t remember the game, DO NOT watch. It will haunt you for the rest of your life). … Trust me, too. It wasn’t a “Stop the Steal” thing. The FIBA President came out of the stands to add three seconds to the clock after a series of debacles in the waning moments of the game, including an errant pass by the USSR that should’ve been the official end of the gold medal game. … But, I digress!

In the Villanova vs Georgetown nightcap, everyone was thinking that the ticket stub would be a saver, as it was possibly Patrick Ewing’s last game as the head coach of the Hoyas after a (2-18) BIG EAST record. After a 6-6 start, ‘Nova went on a leisurely 14-2 run and that was it. The halftime score of 41-20 – Villanova – was indicative of the season-long effort from PAT-TRICK Ewwwwwing’s team.

Final score? 80-48 in favor of Villanova and by Thursday morning, yes, Ewing was fired.

Thursday, March 9th

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Now, don’t plan on reading a recap of each and every game, but instead, a brief commentary on the incredibly interesting and entertaining basketball tournament.

12 Noon – The “morning” game when the lightly-tested, Butler-besting Johnnies did the quick turn-around to face No. 1 seeded Marquette was another WILD and CRAZY BIG EAST game. A good crowd filled the building from the get-go. Non-St. John’s fans who flocked to New York to support their own schools jumped on the Johnnies’ band wagon to root against the favored Golden Eagles.

That Garden magic propelled a highly inconsistent St. John’s team to play one of their better games of the 2022-23 season. You must note that St. John’s and Marquette closed out their respective regular seasons with one of the crazier finishes as the Golden Eagles led by 10 with 30 seconds remaining but found themselves needing game ending free throws to earn a 96-94 victory.

In the tournament, it was the opposite. Marquette found themselves trailing by 10 at the half, 36-26, but when the second half began, you truly believed the Johnnies’ scoreboard was stuck on 36 as Marquette held the Red Storm scoreless for the first 4:14 and the first TV timeout showed a one point, 36-35, St. J lead after the momentum and confidence factor did a 180-degree turn.

Fast-forward to the ending and St. John’s A.J. Storr hit three consecutive FTs with 23 seconds remaining to cut a four-point lead to one. Two turnovers (from two steals) later, a Marquette FT by Olivier-Maxence Prosper and then a Dylan Addae-Wusu lay-up tied the game with 10 seconds left. A final scramble resulted in a missed three pointer at 61-all and the morning game went into OT, sending the Garden into another frenzy.

Overtime was physical and the majority of scoring was done from the FT line as the only field goal was Cam Jones’ bucket 30 seconds into OT. In the end, a beautifully designed play with the Storm down by two, saw St. John’s guard, Posh Alexander, launch a three-point FG that looked like all net from one angle of The Garden but it fell short for a 72-70 survive and advance for No. 1 ranked Marquette.

3:00pm – As you might expect, the entire State of Connecticut jammed their way past the turnstiles to fill The Garden with a partisan Huskies crowd and the team delivered against neighboring Providence of Rhode Island. UConn was up by 16 at the half as led by as many as 26 with 12:06 remaining in the 2nd half.

Then it was Rhode Island’s turn to cheer as Providence head coach, Ed Cooley – showing his coaching abilities, his faith in the players and a whole lotta love for the program he’s built – as he “kept his cooling and wasn’t fooling” as the Friars made their way back and trailed by only five points with 48 seconds to go.

UConn prevailed, 73-66, when Tristen Newton drilled a pair of FTs for two of his 16 points off the bench.

7:00pm – In the night session, the best teams prevailed but it took quite an effort for No. 15 (national ranking) Xavier to knock-off the pesky DePaul Blue Demons. DePaul sustained their high-energy in a big way and led 49-40 at the half.

BIG EAST men’s basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year in 6-10 center Jack Nunge had 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Colby Jones scored 22 and the Musketeers pulled off a late comeback to beat DePaul, 89-84.

Coach Sean Miller, all mic’d up for the evening, noted to his team post game that he kept calling Jones’ number and the player delivered time-and-time again, allowing his Xavier team to experience one of the “greatest things,” in sports – “playing on Friday night at the BIG EAST tournament at The Garden.”

It’s magical.

9:50pm – Late night at The Garden provided for Creighton’s 87-74 dismissal of the former lock for BIG EAST champions in Villanova. The ‘Cats aren’t as tough as they were under retired coach Jay Wright, as they ended the season with a 17-16 record and will end a 10-year streak of NCAA appearances in exchange for an NIT bid.

Friday, March 10th

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With an afternoon off to “recover” from the Wednesday/Thursday marathon sessions, the BIG EAST semi-finals, a.k.a. “Friday Night at the Garden” tips-off at 6:30pm and can be described as “magical,” as in The Magical World of Madison Square Garden Center – the tagline coined by the late John Condon on the MSG public address in the late ‘60s.

The four teams that make their way to Friday night are pretty much locks for bids to the NCAA tournament, so they play for the pride and glory of being BIG EAST champions. It never disappoints.

Never.

The Garden is packed. Everyone in the building (usually with friends, college buddies, family) is happy to be right here, rather than anywhere else on earth. It’s a bit like sitting in your seat a few minutes before the curtain rises at Hamilton the Musical. There’s no place else you’d rather be.

6:30pm – Marquette vs. UConn is the first semifinal, but there’s no BIG EAST basketball fan who wouldn’t prefer to see those two teams meeting Saturday night in the BIG EAST Final. Conference Coach of the Year, Shaka Smart is matching basketball minds and chops vs. UConn’s Dan Hurley, one-time Seton Hall guard, Wagner and Rhode Island head coach. His brother, Bobby, is head coach out at Arizona State and has a chance of an NCAA berth. Their father, Bobby Hurley, Sr., is a Hall of Fame high school basketball – as in THE Basketball Hall of Fame.

You probably have read the game stories by now, but Marquette vs UConn was what we attendees of the 1983 BIG EAST tourney, the first here at MSG after three nomadic efforts in Providence, Syracuse and Hartford, might call “an Old-Fashioned” BIG EAST game.

IT’s WILD.

Smart’s Golden Eagles somehow turned back a better UConn squad in another survive and advance mode.

In the Semifinals, Marquette won 70-68 to send at least 12,000+ UConn crazies home disappointed. Without the pre-electronic ticket ability to scalp tickets from the losing schools right on the premises, UConn fans work the Stub Hubs and the Vivid Seats and the Ticket Geeks and even the Box Office and TicketMaster to gobble up every available seat in The Garden.

9:10pm – In the nightcap, No. 15 Xavier rolled on No. 24 Creighton, 80-62.

After all of the pressure-packed, exciting games, the late night semi was one of the few games not to deliver the juice as The Garden gradually emptied out.

By day’s end, St. John’s head coach. Mike Anderson, had a faded red slip and all the rumors had Iona’s disgraced coach, Rick Pitino, as signed sealed and delivered to yet another Catholic School, as he was still coaching his Iona Gaels towards the MAAC championship. (They defeated Marist, 76-55, to advance to the Big Dance with Pitino apparently holding a contract offer from one NYC school as he coached their rival Westchester County foes). Go figure, as St. John’s Anderson and Georgetown’s Patrick Ewing walked into The Garden and the tournament with a pair of the most prestigious coaching jobs in all of sport, and they walked out on the unemployment line.

Saturday, March 11th

6:30pm – No. 1 seeded Marquette, ranked No. 6 nationally, marched off to to 12-2 start and never looked back in the BIG EAST Championship game. They led 33-10 when Conference Player of the Year Tyler Kolek made a lay-up with 7:04 left in the opening half.

Kolek led the Golden Eagles with 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists and Marquette won its first-ever BIG EAST men’s basketball championship in a 65-51, one-sided rout.

In the end, the tough, physical Marquette defense – coach Shaka Smart called it violent – was the reason the championship trophy took a ride to Milwaukee after the all Midwest/Rustbelt BIG EAST final.

Hello? Amtrak?

 

WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: With apologies to Billy Joel – who is now on tour with Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks – “It’s 5 AM on a Saturday and Ohtani gives me a smile, because the World Baseball Classic can be, one of the most entertaining events you can see, when the fans at the Big Egg cheer for a while.”

Saturday morning, Japan defeated the Czech Republic, 10-2, at Tokyo Dome (a.k.a. The Big Egg) and are now 3-0 in their pool.

The USA has yet to play but will open Saturday evening with a game against Great Britain at Chase Field in Arizona. For you early morning readers on Sunday, FS1 will be televising Japan vs Australia at 6:00AM (ET).

Much like the FIBA World Cup, this event struggles to get traction in the USA, but the fans around the world seem to love it, especially in Japan. You can count Puerto Rico, The Dominican Republic, Mexico and Venezuela amongst the national teams with the most support.

You must credit Major League Baseball with their efforts to fund and keepin’ on, keepin’ on with the event. If they continue to pound the drum, the event will thrive. It’s halfway there in the USA and Canada.

The time zone challenge is a lot like what the USA TV viewers face when World Cup level events are in Australia, Asia and the Middle East.

BIG EAST 2022-23 Award Winners

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BIG EAST Names Regular Season Award Winners as Conference Tourney Tips-Off at The Garden

NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Marquette guard Tyler Kolek was named BIG EAST Player of the Year. Kolek’s coach, Shaka Smart, was voted unanimously as BIG EAST Coach of the Year and Villanova forward Cam Whitmore was selected BIG EAST Freshman of the Year.

The conference’s head coaches make the selections and are not permitted to vote for their own players. The awards will be presented at Madison Square Garden prior to the start of the 2023 BIG EAST Tournament Presented by JEEP. It is the 41st consecutive year the BIG EAST is playing its postseason tournament at the World’s Most Famous Arena.

Smart’s honor is the first for Marquette in 18 years as a member of the BIG EAST. Both were instrumental in leading the Golden Eagles to their first BIG EAST outright regular-season title. Marquette enters the BIG EAST Tournament as the No. 1 seed after compiling a 17-3 conference record. The Golden Eagles were picked ninth in the preseason coaches’ poll.

Kolek is MU’s maestro point guard, averaging 12.7 points and a league-leading 7.9 assists, which ranks second nationally.  The 6-3 junior from Cumberland, R.I., ranks first in assist/turnover ratio at 3.3., which places him sixth in the nation. He is fifth in the BIG EAST in steals at 1.8 and ninth in free throw shooting, making 81.4 percent. Kolek is one of five finalists for the Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard.

Smart’s squad made the biggest leap in league history, jumping from ninth in the preseason coaches’ poll to outright regular-season champion. The Golden Eagles are expected to receive a high seed in the NCAA Tournament. In his second season at Marquette, Smart has directed the Golden Eagles to a 44-19 overall record and a 28-11 BIG EAST mark. He owns a career record of 316-161 (.662) in 14 seasons as a head coach.

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Shaka Smart

Whitmore leads all BIG EAST freshmen with a 12.7 scoring average. The 6-7 native of Odenton, Md., is also averaging 5.1 rebounds. He missed the first seven games of the season with a thumb injury on his shooting hand. Whitmore was a unanimous choice for the BIG EAST All-Freshman Team and was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week four times. His season scoring high was 29 points against Xavier on Jan. 7. Whitmore is the third Villanova player to earn Freshman of the Year honors in the last six seasons. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl won in 2019-20 and Omari Spellman won in 2017-18.

BIG EAST Player of the Year
Tyler Kolek, MarquetteBIG EAST Coach of the Year
Shaka Smart, MarquetteBIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Cam Whitmore, Villanova

Xavier forward Jack Nunge was named BIG EAST Men’s Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The selection was made by the Conference’s Academic Affairs Committee. Nunge will receive a $2,000 scholarship, which may be applied to graduate or professional studies.

Nunge, a graduate student, has compiled a 3.97 graduate GPA in the Xavier MBA program after a 3.35 GPA as an undergraduate in Accounting. In addition to his academic work, Nunge has participated in Xavier Special Olympics. He is a member of the Xavier Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

On the court, Nunge has played a critical role in helping the Musketeers to a 23-8 overall record and a 15-5 BIG EAST mark. The native of Newburgh, Ind., is averaging 14.0 points and ranks fourth in the BIG EAST in rebounding with a 7.7 mark. He is shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from 3-point range. Xavier will be the No. 2 seed at this week’s BIG EAST Tournament.

The BIG EAST Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year award is one of a number of scholarships presented by the BIG EAST Conference during the 2022-23 academic year. In addition, 22 student-athletes (one male and one female from each of the BIG EAST’s 11 member institutions) will receive postgraduate scholarships as the winners of their respective institutions’ Scholar-Athlete Award. The winners of the institutional and basketball awards are then eligible for the BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, which provides an additional postgraduate scholarship to one male and one female student-athlete.

The Conference previously announced winners of four individual awards for its 2022-23 men’s basketball season.

For the second year in a row, Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner has been named BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. Joel Soriano of St. John’s has been selected BIG EAST Most Improved Player. David Joplin of Marquette has won the BIG EAST Sixth Man Award. Villanova’s Caleb Daniels has been tabbed the winner of the BIG EAST Sportsmanship Award.

The league’s head coaches make the selections and they are not permitted to vote for their own players. The BIG EAST will announce the remaining individual awards: BIG EAST Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Men’s Basketball Scholar-Athlete on Wednesday, March 8, at 12:30 p.m. ET at Madison Square Garden.

Kalkbrenner, a 7-1 junior center from Florissant, Mo., has been the leader of a Creighton squad that has excelled on the defensive end of the floor for the last two seasons. This year, he leads the BIG EAST in blocked shots with a 2.2 average which ranks 18th nationally. His defensive presence has contributed to the Bluejays leading the league in scoring defense in league games, yielding only 67.2 points per game. Kalkbrenner is an All-BIG EAST First Team selection. The last time a player repeated as Defensive Player was 2016-17 and ’17-18 when former Creighton standout guard Khyri Thomas earned the award.

Soriano, a 6-11 senior from Yonkers, N.Y., has made significant leaps across the board for St. John’s. The veteran center is averaging 15.3 points and a league-leading 11.8 rebounds. Soriano also is tied for first nationally in double-doubles with 23. Last year, Soriano had only one double-double. His double-double total is second only to former great Walter Berry’s 28 in 1985-86. He is the first St. John’s player to be the BIG EAST rebounding champion in league games with an 11.5 mark. In his first three seasons combined, Soriano scored 481 points. This year, he has 472.

Marquette’s Joplin has come off the bench in each of the team’s 31 games, averaging 19.1 minutes per game. The 6-7 sophomore from Milwaukee, Wis., has made important contributions to MU’s regular-season title run. He is fifth on the team in scoring with a 9.2 average and grabs 3.4 rebounds per contest. Joplin ranks second on the team in free throw shooting, making 80.5 percent. He notched his career scoring high with 28 points in only 24 minutes in an 89-69 victory at DePaul on Jan. 28. He made five steals in the title-clinching 72-56 victory at Butler on Feb. 28.

Villanova’s Daniels has been the steady and classy leader for the Wildcats. He is second on the team in scoring with a 14.6 average and is first on the team with 71 made 3-pointers. A native of New Orleans, La., Daniels is also a reliable free throw shooter. He has connected on 85.3 percent, which ranks fifth in the BIG EAST. Daniels leads the Wildcats in minutes played, averaging 33.6 per game.

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton

BIG EAST Most Improved Player
Joel Soriano, St. John’s

BIG EAST Sixth Man Award
David Joplin, Marquette

BIG EAST Sportsmanship Award
Caleb Daniels, Villanova

Big East: The Grand Finale Awaits

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PROVIDENCE – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – In the final night of action before the regular season ends on Saturday, Xavier handed Providence its first home loss of the season to grab the No. 2 seed in next week’s BIG EAST Tournament while Connecticut and Creighton built huge early leads en route to victories.

The 19th-ranked Musketeers (22-8, 14-5 BIG EAST) cruised to a 22-point lead in the first half before the 20th-ranked Friars (21-9, 13-6 BE) stormed back to cut the advantage to two points with 15:18 to play. But Xavier never lost the lead and won 94-89. Musketeer guards Souley Boum and Colby Jones combined for 62 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists. All five PC starters reached double figures led by Ed Croswell and Bryce Hopkins, who had 17 points each.

UConn raced to a 29-2 lead and beat DePaul 88-59 in Hartford. The 14th-ranked Huskies (23-7, 12-7 BE) were led by Adama Sanogo’s 26 points in only 22:33 of playing time. Andre Jackson Jr. finished with 11 points, nine assists and eight rebounds. Nick Ongenda, in only his fifth game since returning from a wrist injury, led the Blue Demons (9-21, 3-16 BE) with 17 points, six boards and two blocked shots.

Creighton got out early against Georgetown in its 99-59 victory at the CHI Health Center. The Bluejays (19-11, 13-6 BE) scored the first 19 points of the game and were not threatened. Trey Alexander led the Jays with 25 points. Baylor Scheierman added 13 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. The Hoyas (7-24, 2-18 BE) got 21 points from Primo Spears.

Five games on Saturday will complete the regular season. The following seeds have been determined for The BIG EAST Tournament: No. 1 Marquette, No. 2 Xavier, No. 6 Villanova, No. 7 Seton Hall, No. 10 DePaul and No. 11 Georgetown. St. John’s and Butler will be in the 8/9 game with exact seeds to be determined.

Big East: Marquette Takes Title

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INDIANAPOLIS – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – In Tuesday action, Marquette won its first BIG EAST regular-season crown when it defeated Butler 72-56 at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Villanova continued its hot play with a 76-72 victory at Seton Hall, which assured the Wildcats of the No. 6 seed at next week’s BIG EAST Tournament at Madison Square Garden.

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The sixth-ranked Golden Eagles (24-6, 16-4 BIG EAST) put together a strong first half that ended with a 36-22 lead at the break. MU was able to maintain a comfortable edge the rest of the way. Tyler Kolek posted game highs of 21 points and 10 assists. He shot 9-of-13 from the field. Jayden Taylor led the Bulldogs (14-16, 6-13 BE).

Villanova, the nation’s leader in free throw shooting, made 21-of-22 from the stripe in the second half of its 76-72 victory. Justin Moore was 9-of-9 from the line and finished with a game-high 23 points. The Wildcats (16-14, 10-9 BE) have won six of their last seven games. The Pirates (16-14, 9-10 BE) were led by Femi Odukale, who compiled his first double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

The teams ranked second through fifth in the standings are in action on Wednesday. At 6:30 p.m. ET on FS1, No. 19 Xavier plays at No. 20 Providence. Both teams are 21-8 overall and 13-5 in BIG EAST play and are tied for second place.

DePaul (9-20, 3-15 BE) plays at No. 14 Connecticut (22-7, 11-7 BE) at 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network. Creighton (18-11, 12-6 BE) hosts Georgetown (7-23, 2-17 BE) at 8:30 p.m. on FS1.

The following seeds have been determined for The BIG EAST Tournament: No. 1 Marquette, No. 6 Villanova, No. 7 Seton Hall, No. 10 DePaul and No. 11 Georgetown. St. John’s and Butler will be in the 8/9 game with exact seeds to be determined.

Final Week of Big East Season

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Going into the final week of the regular season, tremendous fan support has increased once again across the BIG EAST Conference in men’s basketball.

Led nationally by Creighton (17,172, 6th) and Marquette (14,098, 16th), seven BIG EAST schools rank among top-50 in overall attendance in 2022-23. Overall, nine of 11 BIG EAST schools’ attendance number have increased this season, with BIG EAST teams combining for 53 sellout home games.

Powered by the boisterous crowds, BIG EAST programs are 123-45 on their home courts, collectively winning 73.2 percent of games. In addition, the top five seeds in the 2023 BIG EAST Men’s Basketball Tournament, presented by JEEP boast an astounding 70-7 home mark, winning 90.9 percent of contests in front of their respective fan bases.

As a league, average attendance has risen to 10,322 fans per game, up 6.87 percent from a season ago. The attendance across the league currently ranks second since realignment, with an average of 10,371 fans per game set in 2018.

For schools playing in their primary arenas, percentage capacities are at or near 100 percent for multiple programs, led by Xavier and Villanova. Playing all 16 games in front of the fans at Cintas Center, the Musketeers are averaging 10,279 fans and hitting 100.54 percent capacity. In addition, Villanova has sold out at each of its nine home game played at Finneran Pavilion (6,501 seat capacity).

Just shy of reaching full capacity, Creighton has sold 98.96 percent of tickets to its 14 home games, while Marquette has filled 76.21 percent of Fiserv Forum (18,500 seat capacity) seats across 16 games to stay in the top-20 in overall NCAA attendance.

Four Big East Teams in Top 25

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – For the eighth straight week, at least four BIG EAST teams are ranked among the nation’s top-25 teams in both the AP and USA Today polls.

Extending its win streak to four games after a 2-0 week, Marquette (23-6, 15-3 BIG EAST) jumped to No. 6 in both polls on Monday. The ranking marks the highest for the Golden Eagles since 1978.

Also making a four-position leap in the AP poll, Connecticut (22-7, 11-7 BE) ranks No. 14, followed closely by No. 19 Xavier (21-8, 13-5 BE) and No. 20 Providence (21-8, 13-5 BE).

Heading into the final week of regular season action, the rankings once again set up a top-20 midweek matchup. Looking to remain perfect at home, the Friars will welcome the Musketeers to Amica Mutual Pavilion Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. ET on FS1.

Providence earned a road win on Sunday, moving past Georgetown 88-68 at Capital One Arena. The Friars held firm control at halftime, 46-27, spearheaded by a 13-0 run midway through the opening 20 minutes. Ed Croswell led the visitors with a career-high 25 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while Jared Bynum pitched in 18 points and drilled six three-pointers. Primo Spears led Georgetown with a game-high 26 points.

Providence Unbeaten at Home

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – The “down the stretch” portion of the regular season is here. Tuesday night was a great example with two of the four games going into double overtime.

No. 24 Providence stayed unbeaten at home (14-0) this season with a 94-86 double-overtime decision over No. 18 Creighton at the AMP. The Friars got 65 points from the trio of Devin Carter (25), Bryce Hopkins (20) and Noah Locke (20). Creighton point guard Ryan Nembhard was the game’s top rebounder with 10 boards and scored a team-high 21 points. The Friars and Bluejays are tied for third place in the standings with 11-4 records. PC is 19-7 overall. Creighton is 17-9.

The other double-overtime contest had St. John’s (16-11, 6-10 BE) rallying from a 13-point deficit with less than seven minutes in regulation and outlasting DePaul 92-83. Dylan Addae-Wusu scored a career-high 24 points, including a 3-pointer with 0.5 seconds left to force overtime. Joel Soriano posted his 21st double-double with 21 points and 16 boards. For DePaul (9-17, 3-12 BE), Javon Johnson had six 3-pointers and 26 points.

Seton Hall held Georgetown to 36.5 percent shooting from the field and helped force 16 turnovers in a 76-68 victory. Al-Amir Dawes scored a game-high 20 points for the Pirates (16-11, 9-7 BE). Tyrese Samuel added 15 points and 10 rebounds. The Hoyas (6-21, 1-15) cut a 15-point deficit to four in the final minutes but could not complete the comeback. Primo Spears netted a team-high 16 points.

Villanova put the defensive clamps on visiting Butler in a 62-50 win. The Wildcats (13-13, 7-8 BE) held the Bulldogs (13-14, 5-11 BE) to a .377 percentage from the floor. VU’s Justin Moore had a team-high 15 points and Caleb Daniels added 13. Butler’s Jayden Taylor continued his strong play with a game-high 20 points.

The lone game on Wednesday figures to be a must-see matchup with No. 11 Marquette hosting No. 16 Xavier on CBS Sports Network at 7 p.m. ET. The Golden Eagles (20-6, 12-3 BE) have a half-game lead over the Musketeers (19-6, 11-3 BE). Xavier won the first meeting 80-76 on Jan. 15 at Cintas Center.