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2008–09 Big East Conference men's basketball season

March 04, 2023


The 2008–09 Big East Conference men's basketball season was the 30th in conference history, and involved its 16 full-time member schools. Leading up to, during, and following the season, it has been widely regarded as one of the most successful seasons in Big East Conference history, fielding multiple teams that received national recognition and achieved high levels of success.

2008–09 Big East Conference Men's Basketball Season
LeagueNCAA Division I
SportBasketball
DurationNovember 14, 2008
through March 7, 2009
Number of teams16
TV partner(s)Big East Network, ESPN
Regular Season
ChampionLouisville (16–2)
  Runners-upConnecticut, Pittsburgh (15–3)
Season MVPHasheem Thabeet – Connecticut
DeJuan Blair – Pittsburgh
Tournament
ChampionsLouisville
Finals MVPJonny Flynn – Syracuse
Basketball seasons
← 2007–08
2008–09 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 1 Louisville† 16 – 2   .889 31 – 6   .838
No. 4 Pittsburgh 15 – 3   .833 31 – 5   .861
No. 5 Connecticut 15 – 3   .833 31 – 5   .861
No. 11 Villanova 13 – 5   .722 30 – 8   .789
No. 23 Marquette 12 – 6   .667 25 – 10   .714
No. 13 Syracuse 11 – 7   .611 28 – 10   .737
West Virginia 10 – 8   .556 23 – 12   .657
Providence 10 – 8   .556 19 – 14   .576
Notre Dame 8 – 10   .444 21 – 15   .583
Cincinnati 8 – 10   .444 18 – 14   .563
Seton Hall 7 – 11   .389 17 – 15   .531
Georgetown 7 – 11   .389 16 – 15   .516
St. John's 6 – 12   .333 16 – 18   .471
South Florida 4 – 14   .222 9 – 22   .290
Rutgers 2 – 16   .111 11 – 21   .344
DePaul 0 – 18   .000 9 – 24   .273
† 2009 Big East tournament winner
As of April 4, 2009[1]
Rankings from AP Poll

Louisville won the outright championship with a 16-2 record (1st). They were also champions of the Big East tournament (1st).

Regular season

Season summary & highlights

  • Louisville won both the regular season outright and the tournament championship.
  • Louisville finished the season ranked first in both AP and Coach's polls.
  • Louisville received the overall #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.
  • Connecticut won the 2008 Paradise Jam Tournament in the Virgin Islands.
  • Pittsburgh won the 2008 Legends Classic Tournament.
  • Syracuse won the 2008 College Basketball Experience (CBE) Classic tournament.
  • Connecticut led the nation in blocked shots for the 8th consecutive year.
  • Connecticut Head Coach, Jim Calhoun, won his 800th career game in Division I basketball, against Marquette.
  • Syracuse Head Coach, Jim Boeheim, finished the season with 799 career wins (2009 tournament games included).
  • Pittsburgh defeated #1 UConn twice, marking the first and second times the Panthers defeated a #1 ranked team.
  • Connecticut center, Hasheem Thabeet, recorded a triple-double against Providence on January 31, 2009, with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots.
  • Villanova tied a school record for regular season wins (25).
  • Pittsburgh tied a school record for wins in a season (31), and set a school record for regular season conference wins (15).
  • Connecticut tied a school record for best start to a season, at 24–1.
  • Pittsburgh went undefeated at home.
  • Connecticut, Pittsburgh, and Louisville all reached #1 in the AP poll.

Rankings

The Big East set a record when it placed seven teams in the preseason Associated Press poll. It set another record by placing eight teams in the December 1st ranking, and broke that record when the ninth team entered the AP Top 25 on January 5.[2] Connecticut and North Carolina were the only two teams that did not vacate the top 5 in the AP poll all season.

2008–09 Big East Conference Weekly Rankings
Key: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. RV = Received Votes
AP Poll[3] Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Wk 18
Cincinnati
Connecticut 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 5 4 3 2 1 1 1 2 1 3 5
DePaul
Georgetown 22 22 21 20 19 15 12 11 9 13 12 25
Louisville 3 3 3 11 9 9 19 18 23 20 9 7 5 5 7 6 6 5 1
Marquette 16 15 15 25 24 24 RV RV 18 14 11 8 8 10 10 8 13 21 23
Notre Dame 9 8 8 7 12 12 8 7 13 12 19 RV RV
Pittsburgh 5 6 4 3 3 3 3 3 1 1 4 3 6 4 4 1 3 2 4
Providence RV RV
Rutgers
St. John's
Seton Hall RV
South Florida
Syracuse RV RV RV 16 13 11 17 13 11 8 8 15 20 23 24 RV 25 18 13
Villanova 23 23 20 17 15 18 18 15 18 23 20 21 17 13 12 10 11 10 11
West Virginia RV RV RV RV RV RV 25 RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV

Statistical leaders


Postseason

Big East tournament

Main article: 2009 Big East men's basketball tournament

For the first time ever, all 16 teams in the conference would have the chance to participate in the Big East tournament. Under this new format, the teams finishing 9 through 16 in the regular season standings played first round games, while teams 5 through 8 received a bye to the second round. The top 4 teams during the regular season received a bye to the quarterfinals. The five-round tournament spanned five consecutive days, from Tuesday, March 10, 2009, through Saturday, March 14, 2009. A low-seeded team could have theoretically played all five days if it won its games in the first four rounds, but this did not turn out to be the case.

1–4 Seeding:
(1) Louisville, (2) Pittsburgh, (3) Connecticut, (4) Villanova
5–8 Seeding:
(5) Marquette, (6) Syracuse, (7) West Virginia, (8) Providence
9–16 Seeding and First Round Matchups:
(16) DePaul def. (9) Cincinnati
(10) Notre Dame def. (15) Rutgers
(11) Seton Hall def. (14) South Florida
(13) St. John's def. (12) Georgetown

Second Round Matchups:
(5) Marquette def. (13) St. John's
(6) Syracuse def. (11) Seton Hall
(7) West Virginia def. (10) Notre Dame
(8) Providence def. (16) DePaul

Quarterfinals Matchups:
(1) Louisville def. (8) Providence
(7) West Virginia def. (2) Pittsburgh
(6) Syracuse def. (3) Connecticut (6 OT)
(4) Villanova def. (5) Marquette

Semifinals Matchups:
(1) Louisville def. (4) Villanova
(6) Syracuse def. (7) West Virginia (OT)

Championship Game:
(1) Louisville def. (6) Syracuse, 76–66

The most notable game of the tournament was the third round matchup between Connecticut and Syracuse. A back-and-forth thriller between two rivals, this game lasted nearly four hours and finally ended after six overtimes, at 1:22 a.m. the following day.[4] The game was tied at 71–71 with a second left in regulation, when Syracuse inbounded a pass the full length of the court. Guard, Eric Devendorf, sunk a 3-point shot as the clock appeared to run out, seemingly giving Syracuse the game. After a thorough review by officials using frame-by-frame slow motion, it became apparent that the ball was not completely off of Devendorf's fingertips as the clock changed from 0.1 to 0.0 seconds. The game headed to overtime. During overtime, UConn took a lead and maintained it, until Syracuse finally tied the score to force another overtime. This pattern continued for five overtimes, where in each one, UConn took and maintained a lead, only to have Syracuse tie the score before time ran out. In the sixth and final overtime, Syracuse came out and took a large lead (their first since regulation) that eventually proved insurmountable for UConn, and won the game, 127–117. The game produced a few records when it came to duration, including longest Big East game in history. A.J. Price of Connecticut, and Jonny Flynn and Eric Devendorf of Syracuse, each played over 60 minutes, with another three Connecticut players and one Syracuse player playing over 50 minutes. Between the two teams, nine players had double-figure point totals, and five UConn players had double-figure rebound totals. With over 100 points scored in the overtime periods alone, this game was dubbed an "Instant Classic" and was given the title "The Game That Wouldn't End."

In the following round, Syracuse again found itself in overtime, this time against West Virginia. Syracuse came out the winner, but would lose the following night to Louisville. This was Louisville's first Big East tournament championship. Jonny Flynn was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, becoming only the 4th player in the 30 year history of the tournament to win the award while playing on the losing team.[5]

NCAA tournament

Main article: 2009 NCAA men's basketball tournament

The Big East posted a very strong showing in the NCAA tournament. Though Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Providence were unable to secure at-large bids, seven conference teams were undisputedly deserving and were selected. The Big Ten and the Atlantic Coast Conference also sent seven teams each, which was one short of the record of eight that the Big East sent in 2006 and 2008. The conference set a record by earning three #1 seeds among the four available. Connecticut, Louisville, and Pittsburgh were all the top seeds in their regions, with North Carolina being the fourth. The conference set another record by having five teams make it to the Sweet-16, and then an additional record by having four teams make it to the Elite Eight. Connecticut and Villanova each advanced to the Final Four. This was Villanova's fourth Final Four appearance (though one was vacated for violations) and first since 1985. This was UConn's third Final Four appearance, with all coming since 1999, and all happening to come from the West region. The conference finished with a combined record of 17–7.

School Region Seed Round 1 Round 2 Sweet 16 Elite Eight Final Four
Connecticut West 1 16 Chattanooga, W 103–47 9 Texas A&M, W 92–66 5 Purdue, W 72–60 3 Missouri, W 82–75 2 Michigan St., L 82–73
Villanova East 3 14 American, W 80–67 6 UCLA, W 89–69 2 Duke, W 77–54 1 Pittsburgh, W 78–76 1 UNC, L 83–69
Louisville Midwest 1 16 Morehead St., W 74–54 9 Siena, W 79–72 12 Arizona, W 103–64 2 Michigan St., L 64–52
Pittsburgh East 1 16 E. Tenn. St., W 72–62 8 Oklahoma St., W 84–76 4 Xavier, W 60–55 3 Villanova, L 78–76
Syracuse South 3 14 S.F. Austin, W 59–44 6 Arizona St., W 78–67 2 Oklahoma, L 84–71
Marquette West 6 11 Utah St., W 58–57 3 Missouri, L 83–79
West Virginia Midwest 6 11 Dayton, L 68–60

National Invitation Tournament

Main article: 2009 National Invitation Tournament

In the 72nd annual National Invitation Tournament, there were three Big East teams among the field of 32: Georgetown, Notre Dame, and Providence.

  • Notre Dame received a 2-seed in its region. They won their first round game against 7-seed UAB, 70–64. They beat 3-seed New Mexico in the second round, 70–68. They beat Kentucky in the quarterfinals, 77–67, and lost to 2-seed Penn State in the semifinals, 67–59.
  • Providence received a 5-seed in a different region. They lost their first round game to 4-seed Miami (FL), 78–66.
  • Georgetown received a 6-seed in a third region. They lost their first round game to 3-seed Baylor, 74–72.

College Basketball Invitational

Main article: 2009 College Basketball Invitational

In the 16-team College Basketball Invitational, the lone Big East representative was St. John's. The team earned a 4-seed in the East region, and lost their opening round game to top-seeded Richmond 75–69.

Awards and honors

The following players were honored with postseason awards after having been voted for by Big East Conference coaches.[6]

Co-Players of the Year:

Defensive Player of the Year:

  • Hasheem Thabeet, Connecticut, C, Jr.

Rookie of the Year:

Most Improved Player:

Sixth Man Award:

Sportsmanship Award:

Scholar-Athlete of the Year:

  • Alex Ruoff, West Virginia, G, Sr.

Coach of the Year:

All-Big East First Team:

All-Big East Second Team:

  • A.J. Price, Connecticut, G, Sr., 6–2, 181, Amityville, N.Y.
  • Wesley Matthews, Marquette, G, Sr., 6–5, 215, Madison, Wis.
  • Jonny Flynn, Syracuse, G, So., 6–0, 185, Niagara Falls, N.Y.
  • Dante Cunningham, Villanova, F, Sr., 6–8, 230, Silver Spring, Md.
  • Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia, F, Jr., 6–7, 225, Newark, N.J.

All-Big East Third Team:

  • Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati, G, Jr., 6–1, 195, Indianapolis, Ind.
  • Jeff Adrien, Connecticut, F, Sr., 6–7, 243, Brookline, Mass.
  • Earl Clark, Louisville, G/F, Jr., 6–8, 220, Rahway, N.J.
  • Levance Fields, Pittsburgh, G, Sr., 5–10, 190, Brooklyn, N.Y.
  • Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall, G, So., 6–5, 185, Bronx, N.Y.

Big East Honorable Mention:

  • Weyinmi Efejuku, Providence, G, Sr., 6–5, 210, Fresh Meadows, N.Y.
  • Dominique Jones, USF, G, So., 6–4, 205, Lake Wales, Fla.
  • Scottie Reynolds, Villanova, G, Jr., 6–2, 195, Herndon, Va.
  • Alex Ruoff, West Virginia, G, Sr., 6–6, 220, Spring Hill, Fla.

Big East All-Rookie Team:

  • Yancy Gates, Cincinnati, F, Fr., 6–9, 255, Cincinnati, Ohio
  • Kemba Walker, Connecticut, G, Fr., 6–0, 175, Bronx, N.Y.
  • Greg Monroe, Georgetown, C, Fr., 6–10, 240, Gretna, La.
  • Samardo Samuels, Louisville, F, Fr., 6–8, 240, Trelawny Parish, Jamaica
  • Mike Rosario, Rutgers, G, Fr., 6–3, 180, Jersey City, N.J.
  • Devin Ebanks, West Virginia, F, Fr., 6–9, 205, Long Island City, N.Y.

The following players were selected to the 2009 Associated Press All-America teams.[7]

Main article: 2009 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans

First Team All-America:

  • DeJuan Blair, Pittsburgh, Key Stats: 15.6 ppg, 12.2 rpg, 59.9 FG%, 1.5 steals (49 1st place votes, 294 points)

Second Team All-America:

  • Hasheem Thabeet, Connecticut, Key Stats: 13.7 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 4.6 blocks, 64.3 FG% (19, 238)
  • Luke Harangody, Notre Dame, Key Stats: 23.2 ppg, 12.0 rpg, 2.1 apg (6, 135)
  • Jerel McNeal, Marquette, Key Stats: 19.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.8 apg, 40.6 3-pt FG% (7, 114)

Third Team All-America:

  • Terrence Williams, Louisville, Key Stats: 12.3 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 5.1 apg, 2.5 steals (4, 103)
  • Sam Young, Pittsburgh, Key Stats: 18.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg (1, 79)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Big East Conference Standings - 2008-09." ESPN.com. Retrieved 03-23-10.
  2. ^ . BigEast.org. Big East Conference. 2009-01-05. Archived from the original on 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
  3. ^ . ESPN.com. 2009-02-02. Archived from the original on 17 April 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-30.
  4. ^ "College Basketball – Syracuse Orange/Connecticut Huskies Box Score". March 12, 2009. from the original on 6 April 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  5. ^ Gagne, Matt (March 15, 2009). "Jonny Flynn gets Big East MVP nod". Daily News. New York. from the original on 19 March 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  6. ^ Harangody, Young Repeat On All-BIG EAST First Team 2009-03-12 at the Wayback Machine March 8, 2009
  7. ^ 2009 AP All-America Teams 2012-10-10 at the Wayback Machine March 30, 2009

March 04, 2023
2008, east, conference, basketball, season, 30th, conference, history, involved, full, time, member, schools, leading, during, following, season, been, widely, regarded, most, successful, seasons, east, conference, history, fielding, multiple, teams, that, rec. The 2008 09 Big East Conference men s basketball season was the 30th in conference history and involved its 16 full time member schools Leading up to during and following the season it has been widely regarded as one of the most successful seasons in Big East Conference history fielding multiple teams that received national recognition and achieved high levels of success 2008 09 Big East Conference Men s Basketball SeasonLeagueNCAA Division ISportBasketballDurationNovember 14 2008through March 7 2009Number of teams16TV partner s Big East Network ESPNRegular SeasonChampionLouisville 16 2 Runners upConnecticut Pittsburgh 15 3 Season MVPHasheem Thabeet ConnecticutDeJuan Blair PittsburghTournamentChampionsLouisvilleFinals MVPJonny Flynn SyracuseBasketball seasons 2007 082009 10 2008 09 Big East men s basketball standingsvte Conf OverallTeam W L PCT W L PCTNo 1 Louisville 16 2 889 31 6 838No 4 Pittsburgh 15 3 833 31 5 861No 5 Connecticut 15 3 833 31 5 861No 11 Villanova 13 5 722 30 8 789No 23 Marquette 12 6 667 25 10 714No 13 Syracuse 11 7 611 28 10 737West Virginia 10 8 556 23 12 657Providence 10 8 556 19 14 576Notre Dame 8 10 444 21 15 583Cincinnati 8 10 444 18 14 563Seton Hall 7 11 389 17 15 531Georgetown 7 11 389 16 15 516St John s 6 12 333 16 18 471South Florida 4 14 222 9 22 290Rutgers 2 16 111 11 21 344DePaul 0 18 000 9 24 273 2009 Big East tournament winnerAs of April 4 2009 1 Rankings from AP PollLouisville won the outright championship with a 16 2 record 1st They were also champions of the Big East tournament 1st Contents 1 Regular season 1 1 Season summary amp highlights 1 2 Rankings 1 3 Statistical leaders 2 Postseason 2 1 Big East tournament 2 2 NCAA tournament 2 3 National Invitation Tournament 2 4 College Basketball Invitational 3 Awards and honors 4 See also 5 ReferencesRegular season EditSeason summary amp highlights Edit Louisville won both the regular season outright and the tournament championship Louisville finished the season ranked first in both AP and Coach s polls Louisville received the overall 1 seed in the NCAA tournament Connecticut won the 2008 Paradise Jam Tournament in the Virgin Islands Pittsburgh won the 2008 Legends Classic Tournament Syracuse won the 2008 College Basketball Experience CBE Classic tournament Connecticut led the nation in blocked shots for the 8th consecutive year Connecticut Head Coach Jim Calhoun won his 800th career game in Division I basketball against Marquette Syracuse Head Coach Jim Boeheim finished the season with 799 career wins 2009 tournament games included Pittsburgh defeated 1 UConn twice marking the first and second times the Panthers defeated a 1 ranked team Connecticut center Hasheem Thabeet recorded a triple double against Providence on January 31 2009 with 15 points 11 rebounds and 10 blocked shots Villanova tied a school record for regular season wins 25 Pittsburgh tied a school record for wins in a season 31 and set a school record for regular season conference wins 15 Connecticut tied a school record for best start to a season at 24 1 Pittsburgh went undefeated at home Connecticut Pittsburgh and Louisville all reached 1 in the AP poll Rankings Edit The Big East set a record when it placed seven teams in the preseason Associated Press poll It set another record by placing eight teams in the December 1st ranking and broke that record when the ninth team entered the AP Top 25 on January 5 2 Connecticut and North Carolina were the only two teams that did not vacate the top 5 in the AP poll all season 2008 09 Big East Conference Weekly RankingsKey Increase in ranking Decrease in ranking RV Received Votes AP Poll 3 Pre Wk 1 Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Wk 18CincinnatiConnecticut 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 5 4 3 2 1 1 1 2 1 3 5DePaulGeorgetown 22 22 21 20 19 15 12 11 9 13 12 25Louisville 3 3 3 11 9 9 19 18 23 20 9 7 5 5 7 6 6 5 1Marquette 16 15 15 25 24 24 RV RV 18 14 11 8 8 10 10 8 13 21 23Notre Dame 9 8 8 7 12 12 8 7 13 12 19 RV RVPittsburgh 5 6 4 3 3 3 3 3 1 1 4 3 6 4 4 1 3 2 4Providence RV RVRutgersSt John sSeton Hall RVSouth FloridaSyracuse RV RV RV 16 13 11 17 13 11 8 8 15 20 23 24 RV 25 18 13Villanova 23 23 20 17 15 18 18 15 18 23 20 21 17 13 12 10 11 10 11West Virginia RV RV RV RV RV RV 25 RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RVStatistical leaders Edit ScoringName School PPGLuke Harangody ND 23 5Jeremy Hazell SHU 22 7Jerel McNeal Marq 19 8Sam Young Pitt 19 2Dar Tucker DPU 18 5 ReboundingName School RPGDeJuan Blair Pitt 12 3Luke Harangody ND 11 8Hasheem Thabeet Conn 10 9Jeff Adrien Conn 10 0Mac Koshwal DPU 9 6 AssistsName School APGLevance Fields Pitt 7 5Jonny Flynn Syr 6 7Terrence Williams UL 5 0Dominic James Marq 5 0Tory Jackson ND 4 9 StealsName School SPGPaul Gause SHU 2 7Terrence Williams UL 2 3Dominic James Marq 2 1Jerel McNeal Marq 2 0Greg Monroe GU 1 9 BlocksName School BPGHasheem Thabeet Conn 4 3Gregory Echinique RU 2 4Hamady Ndiaye RU 2 2John Garcia SHU 1 8Terrence Jennings UL 1 6 Field GoalsName School FG Arinze Onuaku Syr 667Randall Hanke PC 653Hasheem Thabeet Conn 649Rick Jackson Syr 623John Garcia SHU 606 3 Pt Field GoalsName School 3FG Ashton Gibbs Pitt 439Ryan Ayers ND 439Preston Knowles UL 432Kyle McAlarney ND 426Corey Stokes VU 425 Free ThrowsName School FT Sharaud Curry PC 845Mike Rosario RU 839Wesley Matthews Marq 829Lazar Hayward Marq 820Scottie Reynolds VU 817Postseason EditBig East tournament Edit Main article 2009 Big East men s basketball tournament For the first time ever all 16 teams in the conference would have the chance to participate in the Big East tournament Under this new format the teams finishing 9 through 16 in the regular season standings played first round games while teams 5 through 8 received a bye to the second round The top 4 teams during the regular season received a bye to the quarterfinals The five round tournament spanned five consecutive days from Tuesday March 10 2009 through Saturday March 14 2009 A low seeded team could have theoretically played all five days if it won its games in the first four rounds but this did not turn out to be the case 1 4 Seeding 1 Louisville 2 Pittsburgh 3 Connecticut 4 Villanova5 8 Seeding 5 Marquette 6 Syracuse 7 West Virginia 8 Providence9 16 Seeding and First Round Matchups 16 DePaul def 9 Cincinnati 10 Notre Dame def 15 Rutgers 11 Seton Hall def 14 South Florida 13 St John s def 12 GeorgetownSecond Round Matchups 5 Marquette def 13 St John s 6 Syracuse def 11 Seton Hall 7 West Virginia def 10 Notre Dame 8 Providence def 16 DePaulQuarterfinals Matchups 1 Louisville def 8 Providence 7 West Virginia def 2 Pittsburgh 6 Syracuse def 3 Connecticut 6 OT 4 Villanova def 5 MarquetteSemifinals Matchups 1 Louisville def 4 Villanova 6 Syracuse def 7 West Virginia OT Championship Game 1 Louisville def 6 Syracuse 76 66The most notable game of the tournament was the third round matchup between Connecticut and Syracuse A back and forth thriller between two rivals this game lasted nearly four hours and finally ended after six overtimes at 1 22 a m the following day 4 The game was tied at 71 71 with a second left in regulation when Syracuse inbounded a pass the full length of the court Guard Eric Devendorf sunk a 3 point shot as the clock appeared to run out seemingly giving Syracuse the game After a thorough review by officials using frame by frame slow motion it became apparent that the ball was not completely off of Devendorf s fingertips as the clock changed from 0 1 to 0 0 seconds The game headed to overtime During overtime UConn took a lead and maintained it until Syracuse finally tied the score to force another overtime This pattern continued for five overtimes where in each one UConn took and maintained a lead only to have Syracuse tie the score before time ran out In the sixth and final overtime Syracuse came out and took a large lead their first since regulation that eventually proved insurmountable for UConn and won the game 127 117 The game produced a few records when it came to duration including longest Big East game in history A J Price of Connecticut and Jonny Flynn and Eric Devendorf of Syracuse each played over 60 minutes with another three Connecticut players and one Syracuse player playing over 50 minutes Between the two teams nine players had double figure point totals and five UConn players had double figure rebound totals With over 100 points scored in the overtime periods alone this game was dubbed an Instant Classic and was given the title The Game That Wouldn t End In the following round Syracuse again found itself in overtime this time against West Virginia Syracuse came out the winner but would lose the following night to Louisville This was Louisville s first Big East tournament championship Jonny Flynn was named the tournament s Most Outstanding Player becoming only the 4th player in the 30 year history of the tournament to win the award while playing on the losing team 5 NCAA tournament Edit Main article 2009 NCAA men s basketball tournament The Big East posted a very strong showing in the NCAA tournament Though Notre Dame Georgetown and Providence were unable to secure at large bids seven conference teams were undisputedly deserving and were selected The Big Ten and the Atlantic Coast Conference also sent seven teams each which was one short of the record of eight that the Big East sent in 2006 and 2008 The conference set a record by earning three 1 seeds among the four available Connecticut Louisville and Pittsburgh were all the top seeds in their regions with North Carolina being the fourth The conference set another record by having five teams make it to the Sweet 16 and then an additional record by having four teams make it to the Elite Eight Connecticut and Villanova each advanced to the Final Four This was Villanova s fourth Final Four appearance though one was vacated for violations and first since 1985 This was UConn s third Final Four appearance with all coming since 1999 and all happening to come from the West region The conference finished with a combined record of 17 7 School Region Seed Round 1 Round 2 Sweet 16 Elite Eight Final FourConnecticut West 1 16 Chattanooga W 103 47 9 Texas A amp M W 92 66 5 Purdue W 72 60 3 Missouri W 82 75 2 Michigan St L 82 73Villanova East 3 14 American W 80 67 6 UCLA W 89 69 2 Duke W 77 54 1 Pittsburgh W 78 76 1 UNC L 83 69Louisville Midwest 1 16 Morehead St W 74 54 9 Siena W 79 72 12 Arizona W 103 64 2 Michigan St L 64 52Pittsburgh East 1 16 E Tenn St W 72 62 8 Oklahoma St W 84 76 4 Xavier W 60 55 3 Villanova L 78 76Syracuse South 3 14 S F Austin W 59 44 6 Arizona St W 78 67 2 Oklahoma L 84 71Marquette West 6 11 Utah St W 58 57 3 Missouri L 83 79West Virginia Midwest 6 11 Dayton L 68 60National Invitation Tournament Edit Main article 2009 National Invitation Tournament In the 72nd annual National Invitation Tournament there were three Big East teams among the field of 32 Georgetown Notre Dame and Providence Notre Dame received a 2 seed in its region They won their first round game against 7 seed UAB 70 64 They beat 3 seed New Mexico in the second round 70 68 They beat Kentucky in the quarterfinals 77 67 and lost to 2 seed Penn State in the semifinals 67 59 Providence received a 5 seed in a different region They lost their first round game to 4 seed Miami FL 78 66 Georgetown received a 6 seed in a third region They lost their first round game to 3 seed Baylor 74 72 College Basketball Invitational Edit Main article 2009 College Basketball Invitational In the 16 team College Basketball Invitational the lone Big East representative was St John s The team earned a 4 seed in the East region and lost their opening round game to top seeded Richmond 75 69 Awards and honors EditThe following players were honored with postseason awards after having been voted for by Big East Conference coaches 6 Co Players of the Year Hasheem Thabeet Connecticut C Jr DeJuan Blair Pittsburgh C So Defensive Player of the Year Hasheem Thabeet Connecticut C Jr Rookie of the Year Greg Monroe Georgetown C Fr Most Improved Player Dante Cunningham Villanova F Sr Sixth Man Award Corey Fisher Villanova G So Sportsmanship Award Alex Ruoff West Virginia G Sr Scholar Athlete of the Year Alex Ruoff West Virginia G Sr Coach of the Year Jay Wright Villanova 8th season All Big East First Team Hasheem Thabeet Connecticut C Jr 7 3 263 Dar es Salaam Tanzania Terrence Williams Louisville F Sr 6 6 210 Seattle Wash Jerel McNeal Marquette G Sr 6 3 200 Chicago Ill Luke Harangody Notre Dame F Jr 6 8 251 Schererville Ind DeJuan Blair Pittsburgh C So 6 7 265 Pittsburgh Pa Sam Young Pittsburgh F Sr 6 6 215 Clinton Md All Big East Second Team A J Price Connecticut G Sr 6 2 181 Amityville N Y Wesley Matthews Marquette G Sr 6 5 215 Madison Wis Jonny Flynn Syracuse G So 6 0 185 Niagara Falls N Y Dante Cunningham Villanova F Sr 6 8 230 Silver Spring Md Da Sean Butler West Virginia F Jr 6 7 225 Newark N J All Big East Third Team Deonta Vaughn Cincinnati G Jr 6 1 195 Indianapolis Ind Jeff Adrien Connecticut F Sr 6 7 243 Brookline Mass Earl Clark Louisville G F Jr 6 8 220 Rahway N J Levance Fields Pittsburgh G Sr 5 10 190 Brooklyn N Y Jeremy Hazell Seton Hall G So 6 5 185 Bronx N Y Big East Honorable Mention Weyinmi Efejuku Providence G Sr 6 5 210 Fresh Meadows N Y Dominique Jones USF G So 6 4 205 Lake Wales Fla Scottie Reynolds Villanova G Jr 6 2 195 Herndon Va Alex Ruoff West Virginia G Sr 6 6 220 Spring Hill Fla Big East All Rookie Team Yancy Gates Cincinnati F Fr 6 9 255 Cincinnati Ohio Kemba Walker Connecticut G Fr 6 0 175 Bronx N Y Greg Monroe Georgetown C Fr 6 10 240 Gretna La Samardo Samuels Louisville F Fr 6 8 240 Trelawny Parish Jamaica Mike Rosario Rutgers G Fr 6 3 180 Jersey City N J Devin Ebanks West Virginia F Fr 6 9 205 Long Island City N Y The following players were selected to the 2009 Associated Press All America teams 7 Main article 2009 NCAA Men s Basketball All Americans First Team All America DeJuan Blair Pittsburgh Key Stats 15 6 ppg 12 2 rpg 59 9 FG 1 5 steals 49 1st place votes 294 points Second Team All America Hasheem Thabeet Connecticut Key Stats 13 7 ppg 10 9 rpg 4 6 blocks 64 3 FG 19 238 Luke Harangody Notre Dame Key Stats 23 2 ppg 12 0 rpg 2 1 apg 6 135 Jerel McNeal Marquette Key Stats 19 3 ppg 4 5 rpg 3 8 apg 40 6 3 pt FG 7 114 Third Team All America Terrence Williams Louisville Key Stats 12 3 ppg 8 5 rpg 5 1 apg 2 5 steals 4 103 Sam Young Pittsburgh Key Stats 18 7 ppg 6 1 rpg 1 79 See also Edit2008 09 NCAA Division I men s basketball season 2008 09 Connecticut Huskies men s basketball team 2008 09 Georgetown Hoyas men s basketball team 2008 09 Louisville Cardinals men s basketball team 2008 09 Marquette Golden Eagles men s basketball team 2008 09 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men s basketball team 2008 09 Pittsburgh Panthers men s basketball team 2008 09 Providence Friars men s basketball team 2008 09 Syracuse Orange men s basketball team 2008 09 Villanova Wildcats men s basketball team 2008 09 West Virginia Mountaineers men s basketball teamReferences Edit Big East Conference Standings 2008 09 ESPN com Retrieved 03 23 10 BIG EAST Places Nine In This Week s National Polls BigEast org Big East Conference 2009 01 05 Archived from the original on 2009 06 22 Retrieved 2009 03 30 2009 NCAA Men s Basketball Rankings ESPN com 2009 02 02 Archived from the original on 17 April 2009 Retrieved 2009 03 30 College Basketball Syracuse Orange Connecticut Huskies Box Score March 12 2009 Archived from the original on 6 April 2009 Retrieved March 30 2009 Gagne Matt March 15 2009 Jonny Flynn gets Big East MVP nod Daily News New York Archived from the original on 19 March 2009 Retrieved March 30 2009 Harangody Young Repeat On All BIG EAST First Team Archived 2009 03 12 at the Wayback Machine March 8 2009 2009 AP All America Teams Archived 2012 10 10 at the Wayback Machine March 30 2009 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 2008 09 Big East Conference men 27s basketball season amp oldid 1115550254, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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