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Big East Men's Basketball Tournament
Each March, basketball fans descend upon New York City and "The World's Most Famous Arena" to get a taste of the madness to come. Since 1983, the Big East Men's Basketball Tournament has been held at Madison Square Garden, which, in addition to being the home of the New York Rangers and Knicks, is the part-time home of the St. John's Red Storm. The fourth and current version of MSG opened in 1968, has been fully renovated twice, and currently seats 19,812 for basketball. The tournament typically takes place over four days in March.
BIG EAST Men's Basketball Tournament History
The foundation of the BIG EAST Conference in 1979 changed the landscape of college sports forever, bringing seven of the East Coast's best college basketball programs together under the umbrella of a single entity, before expanding and adding additional sports. The modern iteration of the BIG EAST began in 2012, with the football-focused programs morphing into the American Athletic Conference, and the "Catholic Seven" that left adding Butler, Creighton and Xavier to create a "new" Big East with the shared history of the American. A total of 25 BIG EAST teams have gone on to appear in the NCAA Men's Division I Final Four, with 11 titles coming from UConn, Georgetown and Villanova, as well as former members Syracuse and Louisville.
The BIG EAST Conference has solidified its legacy as a powerhouse in college basketball, capturing four of the last eight national championships, including consecutive titles in 2023 and 2024 by the UConn Huskies. The upcoming 2026 BIG EAST Tournament will mark its 44th year at Madison Square Garden -- the longest-running college basketball conference tournament at a single venue. Over the decades, MSG has been the stage for unforgettable BIG EAST moments: iconic coaches, legendary players, and heart-stopping buzzer-beaters. For fans and media alike, it's a spectacle unmatched in the sport. Quite simply, there's nothing like it!
Great atmosphere for college basketball. 2 great games played against 4 phenomenal teams. The place was jumping. The crowd was into every minute of each game. The best part of the night was Seton hall pirates beating the Xavier musketeers.
Though the Garden is not as packed as it use to be back in the hey day of the Big East it is still an exciting tournament.
It was a great time and a good game - they really should do something about the security lines, it takes too long to get into the event. It was close to 30 minutes, someone offered me a ticket for the final last minute the next day, but I passed because with the security line I would have missed most of the first half.
Seats were great and the Madison Square Garden staff rocked...Go Big East !!!!
The Garden is still a special place to visit and being nearly full for the semi-finals made it even better
Usher gave us a history of MSG and encouraged us to tour. We were able to go all the way up to the bridge and look around, even though the seats there were not being used. Consuelo at food stand was awesome - friendly and helpful. Scoreboard was awesome. Cannot wait to come again!
First I was impressed with the renovations of the garden. It's a really nice arena. One of the cons, is if your not on the main level and be able to walk up and down. They also don't start the escalators until after the game.
Both games were down to the wire. Great college bball.
Great night with the family enjoying the Wildcats win the Big East Conference Basketball Tournament
I went with one of my friends to see the Big East in Madison Square Garden on Thursday and it was incredible. I was afraid that our $50 dollar tickets would leave us with less than desirable seats but that wasn't that case at all. I love basketball and the experience only added to my passion for the sport. I would recommend the event to anyone, even if they can only afford the cheap seats. My only advice is skip the concession, or plan on spending a good amount of money, it's not a deal breaker but something to be aware of.
Good seats. Great atmosphere. Good game. the Friars won
We had a great time at the garden watching the big east as always never disappointed.
My first time in NYC and was dying to see how a basketball game at the MSQ would be. I wasn't disappointed, it was amazing!