The 2007 BIG EAST Tournament

For the 25th consecutive year the Big East Men’s Basketball Championship was held at Madison Square Garden—the longest run at one site of any Division I conference. Over the course of the conferences’ illustrious history, the tournament has featured many great names in college basketball such as Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning, Chris Mullin, Carmelo Anthony, Allen Iverson and Ray Allen. This year's tournament was full of outstanding players such as center Aaron Gray (Pitt), forward Jeff Green (Georgetown) and guard Dominic James (Marquette). The winner of the Big East Men’s Basketball Championship received an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Since the Big East was formed in 1979-80, the league has experienced a steady evolution into one of the nation's leading athletic and academic conferences. Formerly a seven-member league with just seven championship sports in its inaugural season, the Big East is now the largest Division I-A conference in the nation. The newly remodeled Big East Conference entered the 2005-06 season with more than 5,500 athletes, 23 championship sports and a new 16 member roster, including five new schools: Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and University of South Florida.

2007 BIG EAST Tournament Recap

Finals

The Georgetown Hoyas proved their elite status in college basketball with a dominant performance in the final of the 2007 Big East Tournament by defeating Pittsburgh 65-42. Roy Hibbert, Georgetown’s dominating center, scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half to compliment his 11 rebounds as Georgetown captured a conference-record seventh Big East title. Jeff Green, the tournament MVP, contributed 21 points as he led his Hoyas on a 15-2 run mid through the first half that helped Georgetown cruise to the title. Pittsburgh, in their sixth title game in the last seven years, came up short yet again, shooting an abysmal 26.2 percent from the field, with star Aaron Gray going 1-of-13 and ending the night with just three points. Just like the days of old in which a John Thompson-led Hoyas dominated the Big East with a star center leading the way, John Thompson III and his 2007 Big East champion Hoyas look to continue that tradition for many years to come.

Semifinals

On March 9, semifinal play pitted Georgetown against Notre Dame in the early game and Pittsburgh against Louisville in the nightcap. Jeff Green put his skills on display, scoring 30 points and nailing the game-winning jumper with 13 seconds left in the game to lift Georgetown to an 84-82 victory over the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Dajuan Summers chipped in with 18 points and Patrick Ewing Jr. tied a career high with 15 points to help lead Georgetown back to the finals for the first time since 1996. After Green’s jumper, Notre Dame had a chance to win the game, but Russell Carter’s three-pointer just missed and Georgetown’s John Wallace grabbed the rebound to secure the victory. Carter led Notre Dame with 21 points.

In the nightcap, Pittsburgh overcame an 11-point halftime deficit to beat Louisville 65-59 and advance to their sixth Big East Championship in the past seven years. Antonio Graves led Pittsburgh on a 20-2 run to start the second half, finishing the game with a team-high 23 points. Graves’ two free-throws made the lead 46-39 to end the big run with the lead, one in which Pittsburgh would never surrender. Louisville, in search of their first Big East final appearance since joining the Big East two years ago, was led by Terrence Williams’ 18 points and seven rebounds.

For more information, please visit www.bigeast.org.