This Big East Tournament setup is awfully unwieldy, isn't it?  This is day three and some teams have just spent their time touring NYC and sight-seeing.  I don't care if they go back to the old way and the bottom teams don't make it or simply make it a straight up tournament with no byes, but I'd prefer that.  There's no reason not to have byes, when you think about it.  Sure, that's your reward for a good regular season, but it's not like the Big East is a mid-major where the top seeds have to be protected from a conference tourney upset to maintain their NCAA bid.  If you're a top four seed in the Big East Tournament, you're just playing for seeding at that point.

Anyway, onto yet another four games today, as Syracuse, Villanova, Pittsburgh and West Virginia dust off their sneakers and take the MSG floor for the first time.  With the exception of what must be a weary Cincinnati squad, all of these teams are already locks for dancing, but I have no doubt that we'll be seeing three intense games before Born Ready and the Bearcats continue fighting for their tournament lives.

12:00pm: 8) Georgetown vs. 1) Syracuse- In one of the best rivalries in the conference, the Orange went 2-0 against the Hoyas this season, but they made both wins interesting. In the first game, Georgetown jumped out to a 14-0 lead at the Carrier Dome, only to see things quickly slip away, trailing by halftime and ultimately losing 73-56.  In the rematch in DC last month, the Orange were cruising with a 21-point lead with 12 minutes remaining, but the home team rallied hard, cutting the lead to one a couple times before eventually falling.  Georgetown looked really good against South Florida, although it always helps to be defending against a team that can't shoot.  If Austin Freeman is healthy, Greg Monroe is aggressive and Good Chris Wright shows up, the Hoyas can beat anyone, so having them go against one of the top three teams in the country is quite the way to start the quarterfinals.

2:30pm: 5) Marquette vs. 4) Villanova- These two teams already played twice this season, with the Wildcats winning both games by a scant two points each.  This is a fun match-up because it's one of the few times either of these teams goes against an opponent who doesn't have a considerable advantage inside.  If Marquette loses control of the game like they did with St. John's, Nova is going to run away with it.  On the other hand, Villanova really struggled down the stretch and needs to right the ship before the NCAA's start.  Expect this to come down to Scottie Reynolds trading big shots with Lazar Hayward and Jimmy Butler.

7:00pm: 7) Notre Dame vs. 2) Pittsburgh - The Irish and Panthers only played once this season, and it was an Irish beatdown in South Bend that started the current winning streak.  To put things into perspective, Notre Dame had a week off while Pittsburgh was playing its third game in that same span, on the road and against a desperate team, but the Irish still led by as many as 24 in the second half.  Mike Brey's team has been playing with its back against the wall for the last three weeks, so how will they respond now that they could technically relax?  And will Jamie Dixon's club continue to do one of the things they do best and advance deep into the Big East's bracket?

9:30pm: 11) Cincinnati vs. 3) West Virginia - These two teams played just two weeks ago in Morgantown, when the Mountaineers overcame a second half deficit to overwhelm the Bearcats.  It doesn't bode well for Cincinnati that WVU won without a good game from Da'Sean Butler, who was 3 for 12 from the floor.  At this point you have to think the Bearcats' legs are just completely shot after two tough wins, but remember, Syracuse won the next game after their six overtime affair last year.  Plus, it's Bob Huggins against his old team and the only remaining Big East team that actually has to win.  Desperation + March = crazier things than an 11 over 3 upset between a pair of familiar squads.