Big East Tournament 2023: Men's Bracket, TV Schedule, Dates and Predictions

A highly competitive season of Big East men's basketball will come to a head in Madison Square Garden with a tournament that could have plenty of surprises.

The Big East has been a roller coaster ride this season. Marquette wrapped up the No. 1 seed, but even the Golden Eagles have losses to two of the teams who will be direct competitors for the tournament title.

They'll be seeking their first Big East tournament championship in program history or at least their first appearance in the finals.

Villanova has dominated this tournament in recent history. The Wildcats have won five of the last seven but they will be a big underdog this year. They'll be the No. 6 seed and will likely need a miraculous run to qualify for the NCAA tournament.

UConn is in a position to claim its first title since re-joining the conference in 2021. The Huskies are the highest-ranked team in KenPom's metrics. A 2-6 stretch in the middle of the season has their overall resume looking shaky, but they have proven to be a force when playing well.

Creighton, Providence and Xavier have also been at the top of the conference throughout the season. The result should be a tournament full of interesting games and a little sampling of madness.

Here's a look at the bracket, schedule and a few predictions.

Big East Men's Tournament Bracket and TV Schedule

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Bryce Hopkins of Providence guarded by Nahiem Alleyne.

First round, March 8

Game 1: No. 8 St. John's vs. No. 9 Butler, 3 p.m. (FS1)

Game 2: No. 7 Seton Hall vs. No. 10 DePaul, 5:30 p.m. (FS1)

Game 3: No. 6 Villanova vs. No. 11 Georgetown, 8 p.m. (FS1)

Quarterfinals, March 9

Game 4: No. 1 Marquette vs. Game 1 winner, Noon (FS1)

Game 5: No. 4 UConn vs. No. 5 Providence, 2:30 p.m. (FS1)

Game 6: No. 2 Xavier vs. Game 2 winner, 7 p.m. (FS1)

Game 7: No. 3 Creighton vs. Game 3 winner, 9:30 p.m. (FS1)

Semifinals, March 10

Game 8: Game 4/5 winners, 6:30 p.m. (FS1)

Game 9: Game 6/7 winners, 9 p.m. (FS1)

Final, March 11

Game 10: semifinal winners, 6:30 p.m. (Fox)

Marquette Will Face Early Exit

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Marquette's Tyler Kolek.

The Golden Eagles earned the No. 1 seed, but that hasn't been a guarantee of tournament success recently.

Last year, Providence was the top seed but was beaten soundly by Creighton in the semifinals before the Blue Jays lost to Villanova in the final. In 2021, Villanova had top honors in the conference, but was stunned by eighth-seeded Georgetown in their first tournament game. The Hoyas went on to lock up an NCAA tournament berth by winning the whole tourney.

So while Marquette deserves credit for posting the best regular season, it isn't an automatic ticket to the finals.

Unfortunately, the draw isn't really in their favor. They'll play the winner of the St. John's and Butler Round 1 game, but they are likely to see UConn in the semifinals. The Huskies get a spiraling Providence team in the quarterfinals.

The Huskies are the scariest team entering the tournament. After the rough patch that nearly derailed their season, they won nine of their last 11 to finish the season. The two losses have come by three points. An 87-72 win over Marquette is one of the wins.

That doesn't bode well for the Golden Eagles' chances to advance to the final.

Xavier Will Meet UConn in the Final

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Souley Boum could embrace the spotlight in Madison Square Garden.

On the other side of the bracket, Xavier should be viewed as the favorite to advance to the final. The Musketeers come into the tournament with the highest-scoring guard in the conference in Souley Boum.

If there's someone who can take over in Madison Square Garden and carry his team to a title, it's Boum. He's entering his final season of eligibility after a five-year career which included stops at San Francisco, UTEP and now Xavier.

The Boum effect was fully on display in Xavier's recent win over Providence. Boum led the way for Xavier's offense with 33 points on 11-of-19 shooting. He paces an offense that is the best three-point shooting group in the Big East at 39.8 percent.

Another matchup with Providence would have been nice, but they'll have to beat Creighton to get to the finals which might be one of the best matchups of the tournament. They haven't seen each other since January 28.

Boum could be the difference-maker as the Blue Jays don't have a scorer quite as electric. He should get them to a matchup against a UConn team that will have just beaten the top seed in the tournament.

UConn Will Win Big East Championship

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WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 04: Adama Sanogo #21 of the Connecticut Huskies drives to the basket against the Georgetown Hoyas at Capital One Arena on February 04, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)

The Big East has enough parity this season you could really make an argument for any of the top five seeds winning the conference tournament. But it's hard not to like the way UConn has played recently.

Adama Sanogo was the Preseason Conference Player of the Year and he's been playing up to that status, especially as the regular season comes to a close. He leads the conference in scoring and is a mismatch issue for most teams on the interior.

The thing that separates UConn from its counterparts is they are the only team in the conference with elite metrics on both sides of the court. Dan Hurley's group is the only team that is ranked in the top 25 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.

The Huskies don't quite shoot the three-ball quite as well as Xavier. They shoot 35.9 percent from beyond the arc, however, they are great at defending the three-point line, ranking 12th in three-point defense.

Defense could be the x-factor that has the Huskies cutting down the nets for the first time since rejoining the Big East in 2020.