NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� Sixth-ranked UConn and No. 13 St. John’s are This time, with a Big East championship at stake.
After dominating conference play and splitting their two regular-season matchups, the original league rivals are poised to square off again in a highly anticipated tournament title game.
Neither team has trailed through two rounds in New York City this week.
鈥淭wo of the better teams in college basketball 鈥� Madison Square Garden on Saturday night. You can鈥檛 ask for much more,鈥� Red Storm guard Dylan Darling said.
And with all due respect to the rest of the conference, it felt inevitable all along.
鈥淵ou knew there was going to be a third round, and here we are,” Huskies coach Dan Hurley said.
Defending champion St. John’s was picked atop the preseason coaches’ poll, UConn placed second 鈥� and no other school received a first-place vote.
The first time they met this season, had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as on Feb. 6 before a roaring crowd at The Garden, ending an 18-game winning streak for the Huskies.
Less than three weeks later, a fired-up and determined UConn squad answered at home with that stopped the Red Storm’s 13-game winning streak. St. John’s shot an embarrassing 20% from the floor, missing its last 24 field goal attempts over the final 17:27 as to their most- lopsided victory in series history.
鈥淚 thought we demoralized them a little bit,鈥� Hurley said afterward.
It was by far the largest defeat for the Johnnies in three seasons under Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, and their fewest points in a game since a 66-40 loss at Notre Dame in March 2013.
Tarris Reed Jr. had 20 points, 11 rebounds and six blocks for UConn, outplaying Ejiofor badly in their matchup of All-Big East big men.
After that, the teams remained neck-and-neck for first place until the Huskies last weekend, costing them a share of the regular-season crown that instead went solely to St. John’s by one game at 18-2.
Hurley, ejected in the final second and for unsportsmanlike conduct, said Thursday his team blew that game and
鈥淏oth programs have really pushed each other the whole year. We鈥檙e a 29-win team. They鈥檙e a 27-win team. Two of the best teams in the country,鈥� Hurley said. 鈥淥bviously, it鈥檚 going to be a death match for the Big East championship. But both of us have really delivered for this league. This league needs a game like this that everyone that鈥檚 a basketball fan鈥檚 going to be dialed into.鈥�
Although the Huskies are the perennial national power with six NCAA championships since 1999, it’s the Johnnies who have taken over the neighborhood lately under Pitino with and consecutive outright regular-season titles.
鈥淭hese guys, what they don鈥檛 understand because they鈥檙e young, they鈥檙e very proud of their accomplishments, but what they don鈥檛 realize is that St. John鈥檚 in the 鈥�60s, 鈥�70s and 鈥�80s dominated the East Coast. It was a dominant basketball team,” the 73-year-old Pitino said. 鈥淎nd then they went into hibernation like a bear for a while, and then these guys got 鈥檈m out of hibernation.鈥�
St. John’s has taken the Big East Tournament four times, never in back-to-back seasons. Ejiofor and the Johnnies have won all five of their games in this event by double digits the past two years 鈥� but none of those games were against the Huskies.
鈥淲e understand what we鈥檙e chasing,鈥� Ejiofor said.
UConn won in 2024 on the way to its second straight national championship and is looking for its ninth Big East Tournament title, which would break a tie with Georgetown for the most of any program.
And after going 1-3 against St. John’s the past two seasons, the proud Huskies undoubtedly want this one badly Saturday night.
鈥淚t鈥檒l be World War III on the backboards,鈥� Hurley said. 鈥淪omebody鈥檚 walking out the tunnel with nothing. Somebody鈥檚 having confetti dropped on them.鈥�
Top-seeded St. John’s (27-6) advanced with an Thursday over No. 9 seed Providence and a in the first semifinal against fourth-seeded Seton Hall.
UConn (29-4) and
It’s the first time the championship game features two of the conference’s seven charter members since St. John’s beat UConn 80-70 in 2000.
The top seed has won the Big East Tournament three years in a row.
鈥淔or us new guys who weren鈥檛 part of the team last year, we want it just as bad,” Red Storm forward Dillon Mitchell said. “We have the same type of chip on our shoulder like we鈥檙e defending it.鈥�
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