Big East Tourney Preview

At Madison Square Garden (New York City)
FIRST ROUND
Tuesday, March 10
Game 1: No. 9 Cincinnati vs. No. 16 DePaul, noon
Game 2: No. 12 Georgetown vs. No. 13 St. John's, 2 p.m.
Game 3: No. 10 Notre Dame vs. No. 15 Rutgers, 7 p.m.
Game 4: No. 11 Seton Hall vs. No. 14 South Florida, 9 p.m.

SECOND ROUND
Wednesday, March 11
Game 5: No. 8 Providence vs. Game 1 winner, ESPN, noon
Game 6: No. 5 Marquette vs. Game 2 winner, ESPN, 2 p.m.
Game 7: No. 7 West Virginia vs. Game 3 winner, ESPN, 7 p.m.
Game 8: No. 6 Syracuse vs. Game 4 winner, ESPN, 9 p.m.

QUARTERFINALS
Thursday, March 12
Game 9: No. 1 Louisville vs. Game 5 winner, ESPN, noon
Game 10: No. 4 Villanova vs. Game 6 winner, ESPN, 2 p.m.
Game 11: No. 2 Pittsburgh vs. Game 7 winner, ESPN, 7 p.m.
Game 12: No. 3 Connecticut vs. Game 8 winner, ESPN, 9 p.m.

SEMIFINALS
Friday, March 13
Game 13: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, ESPN, 7 p.m.
Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, ESPN, 9 p.m.

CHAMPIONSHIP
Saturday, March 14
Game 13 winner vs. Game 14 winner, ESPN, 9 p.m.


Team to watch: Pittsburgh. Louisville may have won the conference regular season, but they didn't have to go into Pitt or UConn to do so. The Panthers are a very talented team and have a chance to be the number one overall seed in the NCAA tournament. Led by DeJuan Blair, Sam Young and Levance Fields, look for the Panthers to make a deep run in the dance.

Player to watch: Dominic James. Okay, you really can't watch him anymore. Unfortunately, James suffered a broken foot against UConn on February 25th and has been ruled out for the year. The senior was a big part of the success that Marquette has had and sadly he won't be able to play another college game.

Upset watch: Georgetown. The Hoyas finished 7-11 in the conference and failed to meet lofty expectations. However, they have a talented team and are capable of making a run in New York. To do so, they must get consistent play out of Dajuan Summers and the big freshman Greg Monroe. Add along Jessie Sapp and Austin Freeman and this team could win the tournament.

Tourney watch: Teams that are in for sure: Pittsburgh, UConn, Louisville, Villanova, Marquette, Syracuse, West Virginia. Providence is the main team on the bubble, but Georgetown, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame could all make big impressions this week. This tournament will be a great one to watch, and in the end I think Louisville will beat the winner of Pitt/UConn take three and earn a number one seed.