NEW YORK – Xavier, 26-4 overall, is the No. 2 seed in the 2016 BIG EAST Tournament Presented by the Jeep Brand March 9-12 at Madison Square Garden. Xavier, which finished second in the BIG EAST regular season race with a 14-4 mark, will play its first game on Thursday night at 7 p.m. against the winner of the first round game between Marquette and St. John's.
Villanova, 27-4 overall, is the No. 1 seed. The Wildcats won the BIG EAST regular-season title with a 16-2 league mark. Xavier and Villanova met in last year's BIG EAST championship game with Villanova capturing the title.