Men's College Basketball

2015 Big East Tournament schedule and bracket: Marquette, Creighton win first round games with ease

The Golden Eagles and the Bluejays beat the Pirates and the Blue Demons in the first round of the Big East Tournament.

Mar 12, 2015, 3:36 PM UTC

Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

The Big East championship’s first round didn’t provide much suspense, as the teams that advanced did so with double-digit wins. Three-point shooting was the difference in both contests and a repeat performance from outside will Marquette and Creighton’s best hope to advance past the second round, as they prepare to face two of the best teams in the nation.

Thursday’s second round action should offer much more excitement, with some very interesting games in the slate.

No. 9 Marquette 78, No. 8 Seton Hall 56

Senior guard Matt Carlino made sure Marquette won their first round matchup by putting on a show from outside the arc, finishing the game with eight three-pointers in 12 attempts. Meanwhile Derrick Wilson orchestrated things beautifully on his way to 14 assists. The Pirates simply lacked the firepower to keep up, as only freshman guard Isaiah Whitehead scored in double digits. The Golden Eagles never trailed on their way to a comfortable win.

In their conference games, Seton Hall won by double digits on the road and only lost by three at home, which makes this blowout surprising. Marquette already had a double-digit lead at the half and went on to build on it, largely thanks to their fantastic three-point shooting. Thirty-nine of the Golden Eagles 78 points came from beyond the arc, while the Pirates only managed 15 on only one fewer attempt. Guard Sterling Gibbs, who averaged over 40 percent from outside all season, went 1-for-7 on three-pointers, which was too much for Seton Hall to overcome.

Marquette will now face one of the best teams in the nation, the fourth-ranked Villanova Wildcats, in the second round. They lost their two conference games by double digits, which makes an upset unlikely unless they can catch fire from outside for the second day in a row.

No. 10 Creighton 78, No. 7 DePaul 63

Junior guard James Miliken simply dominated the Blue Demons with his scoring. He led all players with 22 points on 14 shots and added three rebounds and two assists to round up a fantastic performance. Miliken set the tone early with three consecutive three-pointers, one of the Bluejays' best weapons in this game. Forward Jamee Crockett led the Blue Demons with 15 while Billy Garrett and Myke Henry had 10 each.

Despite Miliken’s performances, the game was close early. Myke Henry led a balanced DePaul offense with eight first half points, helping his team trail only by two at the half, 35-33. The parity that characterized the first half disappeared halfway through the second, when DePaul’s offense went cold and Creighton went on a 12-2 run that would put the game out of reach. The Blue Demons made one final push and got the within single digits, but the Bluejays responded with another run to take the game with authority.

The Bluejays will now face Georgetown next this Thursday. They’ve lost both games against the Hoyas this season by 15 and 27 points, so it would take a perfect performance to have a shot against the 23rd-ranked team in the nation.