Little Teams Open Festivities in 11th Big East Tournament

The Big East Conference tournament begins tonight at New York’s Madison Square Garden with the elimination game between eighth-seeded Pittsburgh (11-16) and ninth-seeded Boston College (8-19), which scored only one conference victory this season.

The winner advances to Friday’s quarterfinal round and an appointment with No. 1-seeded Syracuse (22-5), the nation’s fourth-ranked team.

Also scheduled for Friday: Connecticut (25-5), ranked eighth, vs. Seton Hall (12-15), which nearly won a national championship last season; Georgetown (22-5), ranked fifth, vs. Providence (17-10), and St. John’s (23-8) vs. Villanova (17-13).

The championship game will be played Sunday.

This tournament is usually a plaything for Syracuse and Georgetown. The Orangemen or Hoyas have won eight of the 10 postseason titles (Syracuse two, Georgetown six) and only one championship game was played without either team involved.

Asked to pick a favorite, Connecticut Coach Jim Calhoun chose Georgetown.

“I would think right now, the team that has been most devastating to us is Georgetown,” he said. “Syracuse, when they crank it up, is strong. We’re third.”

Just to be safe, Calhoun also didn’t rule out Providence, because of a lineup that includes five seniors who played on a Final Four team, and St. John’s, because of guard Boo Harvey.

The point, he said, is that the Big East lends itself to upsets. Underrated Seton Hall was a last-second shot away from winning a national championship last year. This season, who knows?

“The elevator in our league works very nicely,” Calhoun said.