The 2026 Big East Tournament is among us.
The action will begin with three games on Wednesday night before the rest of the conference takes the floor on Thursday. The tournament, which has taken place at Madison Square Garden since 1983, has a chance to have plenty of controversy given the competitive nature of the conference this season.
Villanova enters as the No. 3 seed in the Big East Tournament after a 15-5 slate in the conference. The Wildcats finished behind both UConn and St. John’s, and when
looking at the odds to win the tournament, that is exactly how it plays out.
Villanova currently has the third-best odds to win the Big East Tournament at +700, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. UConn enters as a sizable favorite at -115 while St. John’s sits at +190. UConn and St. John’s are set up on opposite sides of the bracket, setting up an intriguing final barring an upset.
This is where Villanova comes into play.
The Wildcats will take on the winner of DePaul and Georgetown on Thursday night at 9:30pm. If Villanova takes care of business, this sets up a potential rematch with UConn. Villanova has not faired well against the elite of the conference — going 0-4 against the top two seeds in the field. Let’s face it, the Wildcats have played better against UConn this season than they have St. John’s. Villanova let a midseason game in Storrs get away in overtime. In Phildelphia, the Wildcats hung around in the first half against the Huskies before they ran away in the second half. When breaking down five total periods, including the overtime, Villanova has been competitive in four of them.
This is clearly a pick-your-poison spot for Villanova to be in, but if there is a better landing spot, it would be facing UConn given how the matchups have played out. St. John’s has been able to bully Villanova with size in the paint, which has also impacted rebounding.
The Wildcats are comfortably in the NCAA Tournament field after missing out over the last three years. Right now, many believe Villanova will enter as a No. 7 seed, which might move up or down depending on the fate in theBig East Tournament.
Villanova and its fans will have eyes glued to DePaul and Georgetown on Wednesday night while the Wildcats’ action begins on Thursday night from MSG.
