Providence's Isaiah Jackson
Providence let a late lead get away at the end of regulation, but recovered to win 73-67 in overtime at Butler on Tuesday. Isaiah Jackson hit two critical 3-pointers in final two minutes of the extra period to propel the Friars (16-13, 6-10) to the win. Nate Watson added a team-high 21 points. Kamar Baldwin scored a game-high 27 points for the Bulldogs (15-13, 6-9).
A two-game Wednesday schedule shows the much-anticipated rematch of No. 10 Marquette and Villanova. If Marquette wins, it will clinch the No. 1 seed at the BIG EAST Tournament and at least a share of the regular-season crown.
The Golden Eagles (23-4, 12-2) started their current four-game winning streak with a 66-65 victory over the Wildcats on Feb. 9 at Fiserv Forum. Marquette’s 6-1 road record in league games is the best in the BIG EAST while Villanova (20-8, 11-4) is the only league squad unbeaten at home in conference play (7-0). FS1 will televise the contest from Finneran Pavilion at 9 p.m. ET.
DePaul travels to Georgetown for a 7 p.m. tipoff at Capital One Arena on CBS Sports Network. The Blue Demons (13-12, 5-9) have dropped their last three games while the Hoyas (16-11, 6-8) are coming off an 82-69 loss at Creighton. Both teams have already won more BIG EAST games than they did last season. Tonight’s meeting with be the 40th in the series. The road team has taken the last four matchups. DePaul’s Max Strus leads the league in minutes played with a 36.2 average. Georgetown freshman James Akinjo ranks first in assists at 5.3.
The BIG EAST remains the only D-I conference that does not have a team with a losing record.
Home teams are only 42-32 (.568) in league games. Thirty-one of the 74 conference contests (.419) have been decided by six points or less or gone into overtime.