big east

from 2023 Women's Tournament Program

On behalf of the BIG EAST Conference, welcome to the 2023 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by JEEP. We have been excited to see the continued progress our women’s basketball teams have made on the court, challenging themselves in the non-conference portions of their schedules in preparation for their BIG EAST slates and for postseason runs in March. We look forward to bringing some of the best teams in college basketball back to Connecticut for the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament and showcasing them at Mohegan Sun Arena.

FOX Sports has been an outstanding partner to BIG EAST women’s basketball this season, providing national exposure to all of our programs during the regular season and complete coverage of the BIG EAST Tournament Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Final. For the second straight year, FloSports has been the home of women’s basketball on the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi. BEDN on FloSports has been an incredible platform for wall-to-wall coverage of all BIG EAST games not designated for television. BEDN on FloSports has not only been fantastic for BIG EAST women’s basketball, but for all 22 of our sports, with nearly 600 live events scheduled to stream this year.

We would like to extend a special thanks to Mohegan Sun Arena, FOX Sports, JEEP, our marketing partners, our schools’ athletics leadership, and the many people who have helped make this year’s tournament a reality.

Most of all, we want to thank you the fans for your loyal and passionate support of our players, coaches and schools. Women’s basketball fans are second to none in the state of Connecticut, and we’re eager to bring you our marquee event.

Enjoy the games!

March 3-6

Mohegan Sun Arena

Uncasville, Connecticut

The BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Tournament presented by Jeep was held at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., for the second straight year. The No. 1 seed Connecticut Huskies won their second straight and 20th overall Big EAST Tournament title, defeating No. 2 seed Villanova. The first round began with No. 9 seed Georgetown defeating No. 8 Providence 68-55 powered by Milan Bolden-Morris’ 18 points and Brianna Scott’s 12 points. The Hoyas used an eight-point comeback in the second quarter to propel themselves to a halftime lead and score the first 22 points of the third quarter. The Friars cut the lead to eight points late in the fourth but Georgetown’s 33-2 run was too much for Providence to overcome. The day’s second game came down to the wire as No. 7 seed St. John’s defeated No. 10 Xavier 76-69. Kadaja Bailey led the Red Storm with 18 points and Rayven Peeples added 16 along with 11 rebounds. The Musketeers trailed by only three points with 25 seconds left, but St. John’s made 13 of their final 14 free throws to secure the first round victory. In the final game of the day, sixth-seeded Seton Hall took down No. 11 seed Butler behind strong defense and stellar shooting. The Pirates limited the Bulldogs to 39 points in the game, with Butler being held in single digits in both the first and third quarters.

Day 2 of the BIG EAST Tournament kicked off with top-seeded UConn defeating Georgetown 84-38. Four Huskies scored in double digits, led by Paige Bueckers’ 16 points. Game 2 was one for the record books as fifth-seeded Marquette had an impressive offensive performance in its win against No. 4 seed and rival DePaul. The Golden Eagles shot a tournament record 66% from the field and set a tournament standard for made field goals with 44 in the 105-85 victory. No. 2 seed Villanova started out the night session with a 76-52 victory over St. John’s. BIG EAST Player of the Year Maddy Siegrist scored 16 of her 24 points in the first half to give the Wildcats a 14-point halftime lead and propel them to a win. In the final game of the night, Seton Hall upset No. 3 seed Creighton 66-65 on a Mya Bembry jump shot with 2.1 seconds left. A back-and-forth final four minutes saw seven lead changes and two ties with a final chance from Creighton’s Tatum Rembao missing long on a jump shot, sending the Pirates into the semifinals.

UConn opened the semifinal round with a convincing 71-51 win over Marquette earning its 25th BIG EAST Tournament final appearance. The Huskies had three players reach double figures with Evina Westbrook leading the way with 14. In the second semifinal, Villanova fought off Seton Hall to advance to its first BIG EAST Tournament final since 2003. Maddy Siegrist led Villanova with a double-double with 24 points and 14 rebounds. The Pirates cut the lead to four late in the fourth, but Lior Garzon’s back-to-back baskets clinched the Wildcats’ nine-point victory.

In the Championship Game, No. 1 seed UConn shot 55% from the field on its way to a 70-40 win over second-seeded Villanova. Evina Westbrook (13), Aaliyah Edwards (12) and Olivia NelsonOdoda (11) all led the Huskies in scoring. Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist led all scorers with 16 points. Christyn Williams was named BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding

Player.

On Selection Sunday, it was announced that four BIG EAST teams received bids to the 68-team NCAA Tournament. The BIG EAST last received four bids in 2018, which is the most for the conference since realignment. Conference champion UConn received an automatic bid while at-large bids were awarded to tournament runnerup Villanova, Creighton and DePaul. The Huskies received the second seed in the Bridgeport region, Villanova was named the 11 seed in the Wichita Region, Creighton earned a 10 seed in the Greensboro Region, while DePaul received the 11 seed and Four spot in the same region as the Bluejays. It was the 30th consecutive year in which the BIG EAST had multiple teams earn NCAA bids. For UConn, it was its 33rd straight appearance in the tournament, while Villanova made its 12th overall and first since 2018. For Creighton, it was its 8th overall appearance and first since 2018, while DePaul made its 25th overall and first since 2019.

DePaul fell in its First Four matchup with No. 11 Dayton by a score of 88-57. Villanova took down No. 6 BYU in its opening round by a score of 61-57, but lost in the second round to No. 3 Michigan, 64-49. Creighton made a historic run advancing to the Elite Eight for the first time in school history. On their way to the Greensboro Regional Final, the Bluejays defeated No. 7 Colorado (84-74), No. 2 Iowa (64-62) and No. 3 Iowa State (76-68) before falling to eventual national champion No. 1 South Carolina (80-50). UConn defeated No. 15 Mercer (83-38), No. 7 UCF (75-58) and No. 3 Indiana (75-58) on its way to the Bridgeport Regional Final, which set up a match up with No. 1 North Carolina State. The Huskies prevailed over the Wolfpack in double overtime to advance to their 14th consecutive Final Four. UConn defeated No. 1 Stanford in the national semifinal by a score of 6358 with Bueckers leading the Huskies with 14 points to advance to their 12th National Championship game all-time. UConn’s run came to an end in the National Championship, as No. 1 South Carolina took the title with a 64-49 win over the Huskies.

Two BIG EAST teams accepted bids to the 2022 WNIT –Marquette and Seton Hall. Marquette advanced to the third round before falling to Toledo, 92-82. Seton Hall made a historic run in the tournament advancing all the way to the title game where they fell to South Dakota State but had thrilling wins over Columbia and Middle Tennessee in the quarterfinals and semifinals.