The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
What’s changed, what’s the same
Turns out, you really can go back home.
On Wednesday, UConn officially returns to the Big East.
This isn’t the original Big East, born in 1979 and grew into one of the most powerful NCAA conferences ever assembled. Its structure collapsed under the weight of realignment, big-money football, and TV contracts.
However, its fabric as a basketball-driven league remains intact.
Let’s look at what’s changed, and what hasn’t, for the Big East since UConn last called it home in 2013.
WHAT’S CHANGED
Wildcats roar: The Villanova men had eight 20-win seasons, four Sweet 16 appearances, and one Final Four in its first dozen years under Jay Wright.
Yes, the Wildcats were good, but they weren’t this good.
But Wright elevated them into a national powerhouse in the new Big East, winning NCAA championships in 2016 and 2018. That doesn’t figure to change, either, especially with Collin Gillespie, Justin Moore and Jermaine Samuels back on the perimeter.
Off to the casino: With the exception of Milwaukee in 2017, Chicago has staged the Big East Women’s Tournament for the past seven years. Previously, Hartford was its home from 2004-13.
While a return to the XL Center is unlikely, the event does appear to be headed back to Connecticut. Providence athletic director Bob Driscoll told the Westerly Sun earlier this month that Mohegan Sun will be its new home, though the conference has yet to confirm it.
Given the abundance of
entertainment nearby and its location — Storrs to Uncasville is a 30-mile drive and Providence is just 56 miles from the casino — Mohegan Sun is a no-brainer.
No more Fighting Irish: UConn-Tennessee was the rivalry in women’s basketball before it was discontinued in 2007 amid allegations of recruiting improprieties. The schools finally met again in January, but under much different circumstances.
Over time, Notre Dame emerged as the Huskies’ new chief antagonist, but that, too, could change in the coming years. Not only are the Fighting Irish no longer in the Big East — they bolted for the ACC in 2013, but retained their independence in football — they also are forging ahead with a new coach. Niele Ivey, a starting guard on Notre Dame’s 2001 championship team and former assistant coach, is now at the helm following Muffet McGraw’s surprising retirement.
DePaul took over as the league’s top team while UConn was away, winning five conference tournament titles.
Hello, Hurley: Born in Jersey City, N.J. and educated at Seton Hall, where he
also played point guard, Dan Hurley has a deep appreciation for the history and tradition of the Big East.
It goes to figure that the 47-year-old Hurley, in his third season in Storrs, will be the one to lead the UConn men back home.
“For me, it’s kind of surreal,” he said when the school was formally welcomed back last June. “To have played (in the league), as a guy from Jersey City that gets to coach the UConn Huskies when they come back to the Big East — it’s pretty neat.”