The magic of the Big East Tournament has seemed endless over the years, but its future is not. After three more tournament games in Madison Square Garden, the tournament as we know it will dissolve on account of the poaching and self-inflicted implosion known as conference realignment.
2013 Big East Tournament schedule and bracket: Last Big East semifinals tip off Friday
The institution college hoops fans know and love as the Big East Tournament has been reduced to its final three games. Two of those games are Friday.
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But until then, Friday’s semifinals have a lot of promise to deliver that magic for which the tournament is known.
The first game tips off in prime time at 7 p.m. ET with the top-seeded Georgetown Hoyas against the No. 5 Syracuse Orange. Georgetown, which advanced to the semifinals with a 62-43 win over the Cincinnati Bearcats, swept the season series against the Orange — a 57-46 win at Syracuse on Feb. 23, and a dominating 61-39 win at home Saturday to close the regular season.
Syracuse won its quarterfinal match-up against the Pittsburgh Panthers 62-59.
The second semifinal is between the No. 2 Louisville Cardinals and No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. It was in the second semifinal in 2009 when Syracuse and the Connecticut Huskies played its legendary six-overtime game, and Notre Dame and Louisville played a five-overtime thriller earlier this season (the Irish won 104-101 at home). The Cardinals won the second regular-season game between the two 73-57.
Louisville advanced to the semifinals with a 74-55 win over the No. 7 Villanova Wildcats, and Notre Dame topped the No. 3 Marquette Golden Eagles 73-65 to move on.
Click here to view the full bracket.
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