After last week’s games wrapped up, the BIG East Tournament Championship is now seeded.
Denver comes in at No. 1, Georgetown No. 2 (win over St. John’s), Marquette No. 3 (loss to DU) and Villanova at No. 4.
The real matchup to watch is Marquette against Georgetown. Both teams are similar in caliber and playing style.
Marquette was on track to be a second-half cinderella team by out-shooting and out-scoring Denver in their meeting last week. However, DU was able to hang on for the 18-11 road victory.
Golden Eagles offense is performing above opponents on average with a .301 shot percentage. and their defense causes more turnovers on average than opponents. Face-offs are at .441, comparable to the efforts on the Hoyas. Jordan Greenfield leads offense with 52 points this season.
The interesting factor here is that Georgetown beat their season finale opponent, St. John’s 13-10 in a similar fashion as DU. They pressured the late run by St. John’s in the second half and were able to come out on top.
Hoyas offense is barely better than opponents on average. Hoyas are .298 compared to .266. Their defense has caused over 100 turnovers this season, and face-offs are .447. The turnovers are the most out of any teams in the BIG East Semifinals.
Marquette has a chance at being in a similar situation two games in a row.
In the other semifinal game set for Thursday, Denver will play the host school Villanova.
On the one hand, the Pioneers have beaten Villanova in their past few meetings, the most recent one a 15-4 decision in Denver.
All the polls had Denver ranked at No. 1 since the preseason, and so far despite some mid-season movement, they’ve held that leading position in their conference and stayed in the Top 10 of the NCAA rankings throughout the season.
Pioneer offense is performing at a .354 shot percentage and a .664 SOG; their defense has caused 67 turnovers. Face-offs are in beast mode at .705 thanks to Trevor Bapitste. Connor Cannizzaro highlights offense with 64 points this season.
Heading into this tournament, DU is on an eight game win streak. That bothers followers because the team is therefore due for a loss soon, and an early tournament one could bring the hammer crashing down on any hopes of avenging their 2014 semifinals loss.
At the other end, Villanova can summon quite a following and a big game like this is more than likely to create a heavy home-field advantage. Wildcat offense is under-par compared with opponents at .240. Defense has only caused 70 turnovers in 2015. Face-offs highlight this season at .495. Sean Cerrone leads the squad with 34 points this season.
Hypotheticals:
If Denver and Marquette win their matches, then the championship is a rematch of their season finales creating an ever-epic tale of two titan western programs. If Georgetown beats the Golden Eagles, then the championship will be another west versus east lacrosse battle.
Villanova pulling an ever-astounding upset on DU is unlikely, but sports have seen crazier things happen. If they do, Marquette and Georgetown would both make quality opponents for a championship game at home. Georgetown may get some supporters driving up for a title game. Marquette would mainly be limited to family followers.
Eyeing the Title:
Realistically, formulated from statistics, regular season play from 2014 and 2015, and taking into account the postseason appearances for these teams, the championship could very well be a Denver versus Marquette rematch. The scariest of games for Denver.
