BIG EAST Notes - 3.7.17
MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep will crown a champion on Tuesday night, with host and third-seeded Marquette looking to claim its first league title against perennial power and top-seeded DePaul. The regional rivals will tip off at 9 p.m. (ET) on FS1, live from the Golden Eagles’ Al McGuire Center in Milwaukee, Wis.
Marquette improved to 5-0 against top-25 teams this season with its 72-65 Semifinal win over No. 23/23 Creighton on Tuesday evening, stretching its win streak to a league-best seven games. The Golden Eagles advance to the BIG EAST title game for the first time since joining the league prior to the 2005-06 season, and are the first No. 3 seed since 2012 to advance, 14
th overall. Marquette dispatched sixth-seeded Georgetown in Sunday’s quarterfinal round, 80-66.
Top-seeded DePaul avenged last season’s home-court tournament loss to St. John’s by topping the fifth-seeded Red Storm 59-41 in Monday’s second semifinal match. The win was the Blue Demons’ fourth in a row and ninth in its last 10. DePaul advances to the championship game for the third time and will look to remain unbeaten in the title match, claiming crowns in the first two seasons following conference realignment (2014 and 2015) at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. The Blue Demons defeated eighth-seeded Seton Hall in high-scoring fashion in Sunday’s quarterfinals, 92-60.
A limited number of tickets still remain and can be purchased by clicking
HERE, or calling the Marquette Ticket Office at 414-288-GOMU (4668).
Marquette is 9-11 all-time in the BIG EAST Tournament, while DePaul is 17-9. The Blue Demons lead the series with MU in the BIG EAST Tournament, 4-0, most recently meeting in the 2014 Semifinals which DePaul won, 100-90. The Golden Eagles dealt No. 17/17 DePaul its lone BIG EAST regular-season losses this year, 102-101 (OT) on Jan. 21 in Chicago, and 96-81 on Feb. 19 at The Al, as the Blue Demons went 16-2 in league play to claim the No. 1 seed and a share of its fourth consecutive regular-season title.
In its 35
th installment, the BIG EAST Tournament Final features a 1-3 matchup for the 13
th time, with the No. 1 seed winning eight of the previous 12 showdowns, most recently in 2011. A No. 3 seed topped the No. 1 seed most recently in 2012. The No. 1 seed has won the tournament 19 times, most recently in 2014 (DePaul). The No. 3 seed has claimed the crown five times, with that 2012 1-3 matchup (No. 3 Connecticut 63, No. 1 Notre Dame 54) being the last. Higher seeds are 23-11 (.676) all-time in the championship game. Only once has the No. 3 seed advanced to the title game and not faced the No. 1 seed – the 1984 final which saw No. 3 St. John’s top No. 4 Seton Hall 66-46 for its second straight title. Only the 1-2 matchup has been played more than the 1-3 in the final, as the top-two seeds have met 14 times.
In addition to Tuesday night’s national television broadcast on FS1 featuring LaChina Robinson and Lisa Byington, the game will also be radio broadcast by Westwood One and available on Sirius 134/XM 201. Fans can also stream it on westwoodonesports.com/bigeast. Ed Cohen and Lea B. Olsen have the call.
The winner of tonight’s tilt receives the BIG EAST’s automatic berth into the 2017 NCAA Tournament. The Selection Show is scheduled for Monday, March 13 at 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPN.
BIG EAST Tournament Presented by Jeep
Games played at Al McGuire Center on the campus of Marquette University; all times local CT
First Round – March 4
G1: No. 10 Butler 68, No. 7 Xavier 66 (BEDN) –
Recap/Quotes
G2: No. 8 Seton Hall 73, No. 9 Villanova 60 (BEDN) –
Recap/Quotes
Quarterfinals – March 5
G3: No. 2 Creighton 64, No. 10 Butler 55 (FS2) –
Recap/Quotes
G4: No. 3 Marquette 80, No. 6 Georgetown 66 (FS2) –
Recap/Quotes
G5: No. 1 DePaul 92, No. 8 Seton Hall 60 (FS2) –
Recap/Quotes
G6: No. 5 St. John’s 56, No. 4 Villanova 40 (FS2) –
Recap/Quotes
Semifinals – March 6
G7: No. 3 Marquette 72, No. 2 Creighton 65 (FS1) –
Recap/Quotes
G8: No. 1 DePaul vs. No. 5 St. John’s, 5:30 p.m. (FS1) –
Recap/Quotes
Final – March 7
G9: No. 3 Marquette vs. Game 8 winner, 8 p.m. (FS1)
all times local CT