DePaul, Marquette Headed To #BIGEASTwbb Tournament Final Again
CHICAGO – The same two teams will meet in the final of the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep for the fourth consecutive year after top-seeded DePaul defeated fourth-seeded Seton Hall 83-80 and second-seeded Marquette eliminated third-seeded St. John’s 78-55 in Sunday night’s semifinal round at Wintrust Arena. The Blue Demons and Golden Eagles now move on to Monday’s championship game, set for 7 p.m. CT on FS1. Marquette won the first championship game meeting with DePaul back in 2017, while the Blue Demons have won the last two at Wintrust Arena, including last year’s dramatic 74-73 victory. Monday’s winner earns the BIG EAST’s automatic bid into the 2020 NCAA Tournament.
DePaul (27-5) advances to its sixth title game in the last seven years, showing a 4-1 record in the conference final. Marquette (24-7) is responsible for that lone title game loss, an 86-78 decision at the Al McGuire Center in 2017. The Golden Eagles’ four consecutive BIG EAST championship game berths are its lone in league history. DePaul has won eight consecutive BIG EAST Tournament games at Wintrust Arena, dating back to 2018. The fourth consecutive championship final meeting is the longest between the same two teams in BIG EAST history, after Connecticut-Providence (1989-1991) and Connecticut-Notre Dame (2011-13) each met in three straight conference championship matches. The Blue Demons own a 6-1 BIG EAST Tournament series lead against their rival Golden Eagles.
The Blue Demons look to become just the second No. 1 seed to win the BIG EAST Tournament since realignment and first since 2014, as the No. 2 seed has had the most success, winning the crown in 2015, 2018 and 2019.
DePaul held on for a three-point win over Seton Hall (19-12) on Sunday evening as Lexi Held scored 22 points to lead four Blue Demons in double figures. DePaul sank 14 three-pointers on the night, including four apiece for Held and Kelly Campbell. The Hall saw five players finish in double figures, with Desiree Elmore posting game highs of 26 points and 13 rebounds. Marquette got out to a fast start against St. John’s (19-12) as the Golden Eagles never trailed in the contest thanks to a program-record .561 shooting clip in a conference tournament game, with Isabelle Spingola notching a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds. Leilani Correa led the Red Storm with 13 points off 5-of-9 shooting.
DePaul and Marquette split the 2019-20 regular-season series, with the Golden Eagles winning the most recent matchup just a week ago in Milwaukee, 90-83. MU shot .493 to DePaul’s .375 clip, while winning the rebounding battle 55-36 in the most recent meeting. Lauren Van Kleunen had 22 points off 9-of-16 shooting to lead the Golden Eagles, while Lexi Held sparked Marquette with 25 points. In their earlier meeting this season, DePaul won 89-71 thanks to four Blue Demons finishing in double figures, including 22 points for Held. Van Kleunen had a team-high 19 points in that Dec. 29 showdown.
2020 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep
All times local – Central
First Round – March 6
Game 1: #8 Providence 49, #9 Georgetown 46 –
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Game 2: #7 Villanova 64, #10 Xavier 56 OT –
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Quarterfinals – March 7
Game 3: #1 DePaul 97, #8 Providence 59 –
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Game 4: #4 Seton Hall 83, #5 Butler 57 –
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Game 5: #2 Marquette 72, #7 Villanova 59 -
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Game 6: #3 St. John’s 70, #6 Creighton 54
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Semifinals – March 8
Game 7: #1 DePaul 83, #4 Seton Hall 80
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Game 8: #2 Marquette 78, #3 St. John’s 55
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Final – March 9
Game 9: #1 DePaul vs. #2 Marquette, 7 p.m. (FS1)