1997 Big East men's basketball tournament

The 1997 Big East men's basketball tournament took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Its winner received the Big East Conference's automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA tournament. It is a single-elimination tournament with four rounds and the three highest seeds received byes in the first round. All 13 Big East teams were invited to participate. Boston College and Villanova finished with the best record in the regular season. After tie-breakers, Villanova was awarded the top seed.

1997 Big East men's basketball tournament
ClassificationDivision I
Season1996–97
Teams13
SiteMadison Square Garden
New York City
ChampionsBoston College (1st title)
Winning coachJim O'Brien (1st title)
MVPScoonie Penn (Boston College)
← 1996
1998 →
1996–97 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Big East 6
No. 20 Villanova 12 6   .667 24 10   .706
No. 23 Boston College 12 6   .667 22 9   .710
West Virginia 11 7   .611 21 10   .677
Notre Dame 8 10   .444 16 14   .533
St. John's 8 10   .444 13 15   .464
Connecticut 7 11   .389 18 15   .545
Big East 7
Georgetown 11 7   .611 20 10   .667
Providence 10 8   .556 24 12   .667
Pittsburgh 10 8   .556 18 15   .545
Miami 9 9   .500 16 13   .552
Syracuse 9 9   .500 19 13   .594
Seton Hall 5 13   .278 10 18   .357
Rutgers 5 13   .278 11 16   .407
1997 Big East tournament winner
As of March 31, 1997[1][2][3]
Rankings from AP poll

Boston College defeated Villanova in the final, 70–58 to earn its first Big East tournament championship. Future NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb participated in the tournament as a reserve forward for Syracuse.

Bracket

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First round Second round Semifinals Championship Game
            
1 #21 Villanova 80
8 Syracuse 70
8 Syracuse 84
9 Notre Dame 66
1 #21 Villanova 73
4 Providence 63
4 Providence 77
13 Rutgers 56
4 Providence 76
5 West Virginia 69
5 West Virginia 77
12 Seton Hall 57
1 #21 Villanova 58
3 Boston College 70
3 Boston College 76
6 Pittsburgh 68
6 Pittsburgh 63
11 Connecticut 62
3 Boston College 70
2 Georgetown 58
2 Georgetown 63
7 Miami 59
7 Miami 76OT
10 St. John's 68

Awards

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Dave Gavitt Trophy (Most Outstanding Player): Scoonie Penn, Boston College

All-Tournament Team

References

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General: "2008-09 Big East Media Guide" (PDF). pp. 136–138. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 28, 2009. Retrieved June 3, 2009.