Picture of UConn vs St. Johns in the 2024 Big East Tournament Semifinals. (Photo Courtesy Justin Hill)
On Friday, the Big East Tournament continued at Madison Square Garden with two semifinal games. The Garden was again sold out and filled with excitement.
During a press conference held before the games, the Big East and Madison Square Garden announced they extended their partnership. The Big East Tournament will continue to be held at Madison Square Garden at least until 2032.
In the first semifinal game, the UConn Huskies prevailed against St. John’s Red Storm 95-90. This was the first time since 2000 that St. Johns made the Big East Tournament semifinal. UConn’s Tristen Newton led his team with 25 points, nine assists, and six rebounds, and Cam Spencer had 20 points, four rebounds, and nine assists. There were intense emotions throughout the game which saw both coaches called for technical fouls. Rick Pitino’s technical came because of him arguing a foul call against St. Johns. Dan Hurley’s technical was the result of his arguing because he wanted a fan removed. The win for UConn advanced them to the Big East Championship for the first time since 2011.
Following the game, I asked Coach Pitino what encouragement he gave his team after the loss and as they move on to March Madness. Pitino said, “We just have to keep getting better defensively” and “Conversely, scoring 90 points against the defending National Champions is damn good.”
In the second game of the evening, Kam Jones and Oso Ighodaro led the Marquette Golden Eagles to a 79-68 victory over the Providence Friars. Jones had 23 points, and Ighodaro had 20 points. Marquette advanced to the championship game. After the game, I spoke to Marquette head coach Shaka Smart about their upcoming championship game against UConn. Smart said, “I think again, it’s about being the best us. There’s a lot of things UConn does really really well. The best way we can counteract that is by focusing on playing Marquette basketball which means our culture, our defense, our offense, and with it being our third game in three days, that’s a heck of a challenge, but it’s exciting.”
The Big East Championship between UConn and Marquette will take place on Saturday. As Marquette hopes to repeat their title, they will be playing against the UConn team that has played remarkable basketball all season. It will be interesting to see who wins.