Big East Tournament 2020: Predicting Full Bracket and Championship Game

Nine games over four days at the 2020 Big East tournament are expected to carry over the excitement from a dramatic regular season in which three teams split the title. 

The Creighton Bluejays earned the No. 1 seed for the event at Madison Square Garden, but they may not be the top candidate to cut down the nets in New York City after Marcus Zegarowski suffered a meniscus injury.

The Villanova Wildcats, who have won the last three Big East tournaments, and the Seton Hall Pirates sit in the bottom half of the bracket and are poised for a potential semifinal showdown. 

While the top three programs will be looked at with the best chances to win, a case could be made for the top seven seeds to leave the Big Apple with hardware because of how deep the league is. 

Big East Tournament Bracket

Predictions

1st Round

No. 7 Xavier over No. 10 DePaul

No. 8 Georgetown over No. 9 St. John's

Quarterfinals

No. 1 Creighton over No. 8 Georgetown

No. 5 Butler over No. 4 Providence

No. 2 Villanova over No. 7 Xavier

No. 3 Seton Hall over No. 6 Marquette

Semifinals

Butler over Creighton

Villanova over Seton Hall

Championship

Villanova over Butler

Jay Wright's Wildcats may be the best bet to win the Big East tournament now that Creighton has injury concerns. 

Zegarowski, who averages 16.1 points and five assists per game, is listed as doubtful for the Bluejays' opener Thursday against either the Georgetown Hoyas or St. John's Red Storm. 

Given how inconsistent Georgetown and St. John's have been all season, the Bluejays likely will not have any issues getting past its quarterfinal foe.

The trouble lies in the semifinal round against either the Butler Bulldogs or Providence Friars, who could have the most competitive quarterfinal matchup.

Butler comes into New York City off a win over the Xavier Musketeers in which senior guard Kamar Baldwin knocked down a game-winning three-pointer.

The 22-year-old has all the characteristics of a player that can take over multiple contests in a tournament format. He racked up 36 points Saturday and has six double-digit outings in conference action. 

With Zegarowski injured, Baldwin could take advantage of his backcourt matchup in the semifinals and propel Butler into the championship game. 

The Bulldogs split the regular-season series with Creighton and have enough scoring depth, with six players who average over seven points per game, to hit the top seed from a few angles. 

The question then becomes: Will Butler have enough offensive firepower to match Villanova in the final?

The No. 2 seed has to get past Seton Hall first, but it proved last Wednesday it could defeat Kevin Willard's side in a hostile environment at the Prudential Center. 

In the 79-77 win, the Wildcats contained Myles Powell to 14 points on 5-for-18 shooting, and if they limit him to similar numbers Friday, they have a good chance of making it back to the final.

However, Villanova's X-factor is on the bench in Wright, who has four Big East tournament titles and a pair of NCAA men's basketball tournament triumphs. His coaching acumen combined with the offensive depth the squad has built could be too much for any Big East opponent to handle. 

Saddiq Bey, Collin Gillespie, Justin Moore, Jermaine Samuels and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl all average over 10 points per game. If that group continues to play at a high level, the Wildcats could be unstoppable, even if Baldwin records a high total in this projected final. 

If the Wildcats can combat Baldwin's strengths with either tight defense or an abundance of scoring, they could walk away as the king of the Big East for yet another year.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ESPN.com.