Big East Basketball: 2022 Conference Tournament preview and predictions

First Round Predictions

No. 9 Butler vs No. 8 Xavier – 3/9, 4:30 p.m. on FS1

Xavier is going to be playing for its season Wednesday afternoon against Butler and can’t afford a loss to Butler if they want to be an at-large team in the NCAA Tournament. I think with the veteran leadership the Musketeers have with Paul Scruggs and Zach Freemantle, they should have no problem defeating the Bulldogs in the First Round.

Prediction: Xavier 76, Butler 62

No. 10 DePaul vs No. 7 St. John’s – 3/9, 7 p.m. on FS1

In the most intriguing matchup of the First Round, St. John’s and DePaul split the season series with each team winning their home game by five points. This matchup features the two top scorers in the conference in Julian Champagnie and Javon Freeman-Liberty. Despite it practically being a home game for the Red Storm, I believe the Blue Demons pull off the upset.

Prediction: DePaul 80, St. John’s 73

No. 11 Georgetown vs No. 6 Seton Hall – 3/9, 9:30 p.m. on FS1

After having a historic regular season in the worst way possible, Georgetown is coming off of an 0-19 record in conference play and will take on a Seton Hall team that is winners of five straight games headed into Wednesday.  I believe the Hoyas will turn that 0-19 to 0-20 and the Pirates will win comfortably to move on to the quarterfinals.

Prediction: Seton Hall 82, Georgetown 68