A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| 2011–12 Big East Conference men's basketball season | |
|---|---|
| League | NCAA Division I |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | December 27, 2011 through March 3, 2012 |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Total attendance | 2,943,956 [1] |
| Average attendance | 10,823 [1] |
| TV partner(s) | Big East Network, ESPN |
| Regular Season | |
| Champion | Marquette (14–4) |
| Season MVP | Jae Crowder (MARQ) |
| Tournament | |
| Champions | Louisville |
| Runners-up | Cincinnati |
| Finals MVP | Peyton Siva (LOU) |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 Marquette | 14 | – | 4 | .778 | 27 | – | 8 | .771 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Notre Dame | 13 | – | 5 | .722 | 22 | – | 12 | .647 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cincinnati | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 26 | – | 11 | .703 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 Georgetown | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 24 | – | 9 | .727 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Florida | 12 | – | 6 | .667 | 22 | – | 14 | .611 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| West Virginia | 9 | – | 9 | .500 | 19 | – | 14 | .576 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Connecticut | 8 | – | 10 | .444 | 20 | – | 14 | .588 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Seton Hall | 8 | – | 10 | .444 | 21 | – | 13 | .618 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rutgers | 6 | – | 12 | .333 | 14 | – | 18 | .438 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| St. John's | 6 | – | 12 | .333 | 13 | – | 19 | .406 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pittsburgh | 5 | – | 13 | .278 | 22 | – | 17 | .564 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Villanova | 5 | – | 13 | .278 | 13 | – | 19 | .406 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Providence | 4 | – | 14 | .222 | 15 | – | 17 | .469 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DePaul | 3 | – | 15 | .167 | 12 | – | 19 | .387 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| *No. 2 Syracuse | 0 | – | 1 | .000 | 0 | – | 3 | .000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| **No. 17 Louisville† | 0 | – | 8 | .000 | 0 | – | 10 | .000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| † 2012 Big East tournament winner As of March 31, 2012[2] *Syracuse: 30 reg. season games, 4 postseason games vacated due to sanctions against the program; Disputed record: Syracuse–(34–3)(17–1) **Louisville: 25 reg. season games, 5 postseason games vacated due to sanctions against the program; Disputed record: Louisville–(30-10)(10-8) Rankings from AP Poll | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2011–12 Big East Conference men's basketball season was the 33rd season of competitive basketball played by the Big East Conference, since its inception in 1979, and involved its 16 full-time member schools. The season officially opened on December 27, 2011, when Notre Dame defeated Pittsburgh, 72–59, and St. John's defeated Providence, 91–67, and ended on March 3, 2012, with a 61–58 victory for Rutgers over St. John's.
Marquette captured the first of two consecutive regular season titles after Syracuse was forced to vacate 9 wins from the 2011-2012 season,[3] and third outright, with a conference win–loss record of 17–1, which tied Connecticut in 1995–96 for most regular season conference wins in conference history.[4] The Orange also received the no. 1 seed in the Big East tournament, and a bye into the quarterfinals, along with 2nd-seed Marquette, 3rd-seed Notre Dame, and 4th-seed Cincinnati. Georgetown, South Florida, Louisville, and West Virginia rounded out the top eight, and all received a bye into the tournament's second round. Play began at noon on Tuesday, March 6 in Madison Square Garden, when 9th-seed Connecticut defeated 16th-seed DePaul, 81–67.[5] Play ended on Saturday, March 10, when Louisville defeated Cincinnati, 50–44, for their second Big East Championship.[6]
The Big East led all conferences in having nine teams selected to the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.[7]
The 2011–12 season marked the Big East's seventh and final season as a 16-team basketball league, with the departure of West Virginia to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012–13 season.
Preseason
Coaching changes
Prior to the start of the 2011–12 season, one Big East program hired a new coach, following the dismissal or resignation of their former coach:
- Providence: After three seasons, Providence fired Keno Davis on March 11, 2011, despite five years remaining on Davis' contract.[8] After an NIT berth in 2008–09, Davis' squad finished 15th and 14th in the conference in 2009–10 and 2010–11, respectively. Davis finished with a 46–50 (.479) overall record and 18–36 (.333) conference record. He was replaced with Fairfield head coach and Providence native Ed Cooley on March 22, 2011.[9]
Conference predictions
At Big East media day on October 19, the conference released their predictions for standings and All-Big East teams.[10][11]
Predicted Big East results
| Big East Coaches[10] | Big East Writers[12] | Rivals.com[13] | |
|---|---|---|---|
| T-1. | Connecticut (7*) | Syracuse (6) | Connecticut |
| T-1. | Syracuse (5) | Connecticut (8) | Syracuse |
| 3. | Louisville (3) | Louisville (2) | Pittsburgh |
| 4. | Pittsburgh (1) | Pittsburgh | Marquette |
| 5. | Cincinnati | Marquette | Louisville |
| 6. | Marquette | Cincinnati | Cincinnati |
| 7. | West Virginia | West Virginia | West Virginia |
| 8. | Villanova | Villanova | Villanova |
| 9. | Notre Dame | Notre Dame | Notre Dame |
| 10. | Georgetown | Georgetown | Georgetown |
| 11. | Rutgers | Rutgers | Rutgers |
| 12. | St. John's | St. John's | DePaul |
| 13. | Seton Hall | Seton Hall | Seton Hall |
| 14. | South Florida | South Florida | St. John's |
| 15. | Providence | DePaul | Providence |
| 16. | DePaul | Providence | South Florida |
| *first place votes |
Preseason All-Big East teams
| First Team | Second Team | Honorable Mention |
|---|---|---|
| Ashton Gibbs, G., PITT Jeremy Lamb, G., CONN Darius Johnson-Odom, G., MARQ Tim Abromaitis, F., ND Kris Joseph, F., SYR Kevin Jones, F., WVU |
Yancy Gates, F., CIN Alex Oriakhi, F., CONN Peyton Siva, G., LOU Scoop Jardine, G., SYR Maalik Wayns, G., VILL |
Andre Drummond, C., CONN Shabazz Napier, G., CONN Cleveland Melvin, F., DEP Jae Crowder, F., MARQ Augustus Gilchrist, F., USF |
Big East Preseason Player of the Year: Ashton Gibbs, G., Pittsburgh
Big East Preseason Rookie of the Year: Andre Drummond, C., Connecticut