March 1, 2010

Championship Bracket

PROVIDENCE, R.I.--Following the end of regular season play on Monday evening, the BIG EAST Conference announced the bracket and seeding for the BIG EAST Championship, which begins later this week at the XL Center in Hartford, Conn. Villanova is the #15 seed in the conference tournament and will take on #10 seed Marquette in a first-round game on Friday evening at 6 p.m.

The Wildcats defeated Providence by a score of 51-45 on Monday night to finish the regular season with a 14-15 overall record and a 3-13 mark in league games. Villanova defeated Syracuse, Cincinnati and the Friars in conference play. Of the team's losses to BIG EAST teams, four came by five or fewer points.

Each of the league's 16 teams qualify for the conference tournament. The top eight teams receive a first round bye and the top four teams from that group earn a double bye to the quarterfinal round. The winner of Friday's game between Villanova and Marquette will face #7 seed DePaul on Saturday at 6 p.m.

During regular season play, the Wildcats and Marquette played each other at the Pavilion on January 16. Villanova was dealt a 71-54 loss in that game but has defeated the Golden Eagles in conference tournament action before, having posted a 68-46 win in 2006.

All first round games in the BIG EAST Championship can be accessed live online through a fee-based service available at www.bigeast.tv.