Oh, woe to those who fell below the top eight and face a five game climb to a Big East Championship?  Impossible.  Maybe, but they used to say that about winning four games in a row before Pitt did it.  Fun slate today, but let's be honest: When there's Big East basketball on a weekday afternoon, how can it not be fun?

12:00pm: 16) DePaul vs. 9) South Florida - Some projections have South Florida as one of the last few teams in.  Do you know how you lose that position?  Drop a game to a team that went 1-17 in Big East play.  The Bulls have to make it to tomorrow if they even want a prayer at a NCAA bid.  I can't imagine Dominique Jones is going to let his dancing hoops die so early on.

2:30pm: 13) St. John's vs. 12) UConn - The Huskies played a tough non-conference schedule (Texas, Duke, Kentucky) and were holding their own in the Big East for a few weeks, but they stumbled all the way to 7-11 in conference.  The Red Storm actually ended the season playing better ball than their opening round opponent, finishing 4-4 in their last eight.  It's the Johnnies home floor, and considering how badly both of these teams can be at offense, expect an ugly one.

Dinner break!

7:00pm: 15) Providence vs. 10) Seton Hall: Notre Dame will play the winner of this game tomorrow evening.  A few bracket projections even have the Pirates in the tournament, but they'll have to at least make it to tomorrow to face the Irish.  Providence is a prolific offensive team, but their defense is so bad they lost their final ten games of the season, including the finale against this very same Seton Hall team.  Bobby Gonzalez is probably still upset about that New York Times profile, so expect some extra fun sideline theatrics as Jeremy Hazell and Jamine Peterson trade shots.

9:30pm: 14) Rutgers vs. 11) Cincinnati: The nightcap for the right to play Louisville late Wednesday, the Scarlet Knights will attempt to officially end the Bearcats' at-large chances.  (Those chances are very small to begin with, but hope does spring eternal.)  Cincy stumbled down the stretch, losing eight of their last eleven, but Lance Stephenson, who won four city league championships in the Garden, is coming home.

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Tomorrow's schedule:

12:00pm: 8) Georgetown vs. South Florida/DePaul

2:30pm: 5) Marquette vs. St. John's/UConn

7:00pm: 7)Notre Dame vs. Seton Hall/Providence

9:30pm: 6) Louisville vs. Cincinnati/Rutgers