College basketball's purest league: the Big East's death-defying renaissance
Gutted beyond recognition and left for dead four years ago, the Big East is, improbably, back among college basketball’s best conferences The Big East’s fade to mediocrity was all but a foregone conclusion when realignment left the once-powerful conference gutted beyond recognition four years ago.Name-brand programs like Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, Louisville and West Virginia had bolted to chase the football dollars of the power conferences, leaving Villanova, Georgetown, St John’s, Seton Hall, Marquette, DePaul and Providence to pick up the pieces. Related: Villanova celebrates NCAA championship with downtown Philadelphia parade – in pictures Continue reading...