The end of the 2013 college basketball season was considered the death of the Big East Conference.
Traditional basketball powerhouses like Syracuse, Louisville, and Pittsburgh departed the conference for the greener pastures of the ACC.
Seven schools were left to wilt and die.
So everyone thought.
The conference hasn’t just survived since 2013.
It’s thrived.
Over half the conference made the big dance this year.
Villanova has developed into a national powerhouse.
They’re back in the Elite 8 after a win over Michigan on Thursday night.
Providence looks to join the Wildcats when they take on Kansas later tonight.
For all the hype about the Big Ten and the ACC during the regular season, the Big East always seems to have a team or two standing at the end.
A conference that was left for dead has gotten up off the mat, started punching, and developed into the premier league in all of college hoops.
We all love a good Saint Peter’s story or Loyola Chicago run, but the Big East Conference may be the greatest underdog story of them all.