Philadelphia, PA – If the greatest event in collegiate athletics is the men's NCAA basketball tournament, and it's hard to find a dissenter, a legitimate runner up could very well be the men's Big East Conference basketball tourney.
It has literally been decades since the New York Knicks have thrilled basketball fans at Madison Square Garden to the extent that Big East hoopsters have each and every March. All good things come to an end though, and with the recent announcements by Syracuse and Pittsburgh that they will be jumping ship to the ACC, the Big East, as we know it, is no more.
Big East bylaws require institutions to provide 27 months notice before leaving, so there is a chance that both the Orange and the Panthers will play two more lame duck seasons in both football and basketball before officially becoming ACC members.
Pardon the sentiment, but the Big East deserves better.
This turn of events proves once again that football trumps basketball where it matters most: at the bank. The Big East is to basketball what the SEC is to football. It is a conference without rival. Sure, the ACC has a couple of outstanding basketball programs in Duke and North Carolina, but there is clearly a drop-off after the Blue Devils and Tar Heels.
The Big East goes 11-deep in regard to legitimate annual "Sweet 16" contenders, and the most recent national title was captured by UConn, a team that finished 23-0 versus non-Big East squads but won only half of its regular season conference games.
Yet football brings in bigger bills than basketball, so Syracuse and Pitt made a run for the money.
The most pathetic thing about this situation is the refusal of the Syracuse and Pittsburgh brass to admit that their sole motivation for this move is financial. Panthers' Chancellor Mark Nordenberg "could not envision a better conference home for Pitt", while Syracuse Chancellor Nancy Cantor called the ACC "a perfect fit."
Before this move, nobody outside of the Syracuse campus would recognize the name Nancy Cantor. A far more notable and significant ambassador for the school is mens' head basketball coach Jim Boeheim, who speaks a refreshing dose of truth.
"This audience knows why we are doing this," said Boeheim at a recent speaking engagement. "There's two reasons: Money and football."
Boeheim, who has guided his beloved program to eight Big East regular season championships, five Big East Tournament titles and 28 NCAA Tournament appearances, didn't stop there.
"We're going to end up with mega-conferences and 10 years from now either I'm going to be dead wrong - and I'll be the first to admit it - or everybody is going to be like, why did we do this again? Why is Alabama playing Texas A&M this week and going to Texas Tech next weekend? And why is Syracuse going to Miami in basketball this week and next week they're going to play Florida State?"
The crazy thing about the move for Pitt and Syracuse is that, for both schools, the basketball programs have been far more successful than football. When is the last time the Panthers or Orange were legit national title contenders on the gridiron? Take your time...
Clearly, Pitt and Syracuse will continue to be hardwood powers when this realignment does happen, and the football programs will be part of a mega-conference. The brass at both schools obviously made this decision after careful consideration and research (a.k.a number crunching), and the institutions will benefit financially for years to come. But it is a shame that the greatest hoops conference in the history of collegiate basketball will be a casualty, at its prime nonetheless.
Who will be the next to jump ship? UConn seems like an obvious choice, as the elite basketball program is coupled with a football squad that reached a BCS bowl last season. Notre Dame would certainly be a major score for the ACC as well, although the Irish are historically hesitant to give up their Independent status for football.
Sadly, Madison Square Garden in March will never be the same. The intensity. The rivalries. The defense.
Look on the bright side, NYC basketball fans, you can still get your defensive fix from Amare, Carmelo and company, right?
Good luck with that.
