Big East Championship Game 2022: Creighton vs. Villanova Schedule, Preview

The Villanova Wildcats will try to reclaim the Big East tournament throne that has been theirs for a good chunk of the last decade on Saturday night. 

Villanova has four Big East tournament titles dating back to 2015, and it will play in its first final in three seasons against the Creighton Bluejays at Madison Square Garden. 

Creighton is a repeat finalist in New York. The Bluejays are hoping for a much different fate than 12 months ago when they were blown out by the Georgetown Hoyas. 

Greg McDermott's team reached the Big East tournament final on three occasions since 2014, but it has not been able to complete the task in New York.

Creighton advanced to the final by upsetting the top-seeded Providence Friars in commanding fashion. Villanova won a tight battle with the Connecticut Huskies. 

The Bluejays are in the best position possible to knock off the top program in the conference since they had two low-stress games over the last 48 hours, while Villanova played in a pair of tight clashes. 

      

Big East Championship Game Info

Date: Saturday, March 12

Start Time: 6:30 p.m. ET 

TV: Fox

Live Stream: FoxSports.com and Fox Sports app

   

Preview

Villanova worked through two challenges inside Madison Square Garden to advance to its 11th Big East tournament final. 

The Wildcats qualified for the championship game in five straight seasons from 2015-19. It won four of those finals over four different opponents, one of which was Creighton in 2017. 

Villanova recovered from a double-digit deficit in the quarterfinals to beat the St. John's Red Storm by one and then fended off a challenge from UConn on Friday night. 

Collin Gillespie and Justin Moore get most of the national praise from the Villanova roster, but the role players in the squad have been crucial in New York.

Jermaine Samuels and Brandon Slater combined for 36 points in Friday's win. Gillespie and Moore only had 11 points between them. 

The Wildcats need Samuels, Slater and Eric Dixon to provide in both the scoring and rebounding categories to put pressure on Creighton from all angles. 

Creighton has to slow down Villanova's offense for the second time this season to earn the program's first Big East crown.

The Bluejays beat the Wildcats by 20 points on December 17 at the start of Big East play. Villanova returned the favor with a 75-41 victory on January 5. 

Creighton held Villanova to 33.3 percent from the field in its December victory. The Bluejays held Providence to 30.8 percent from the field in Friday's semifinal victory. Only one Friars player reached double figures. 

Creighton needs a similar defensive performance to be in contention with the Wildcats, who played great basketball over the last few weeks. 

Jay Wright's team has a single loss, a two-point defeat to UConn, since January 22. 

Villanova has a ton of experience in Gillespie and Moore, and it may be extra motivated to win on Saturday after falling in the first round of the 2021 Big East tournament. 

Creighton can test Villanova with its duo of Arthur Kaluma and Ryan Kalkbrenner. The one weakness for the Wildcats is their lack of size in the paint. 

The Bluejays may also be fresher going into Saturday because of their two easier wins compared to Villanova. 

However, the Wildcats have been able to deal with most of the challenges thrown in its way lately, and it will take a perfect game from Creighton to dethrone them.