The AAC, SEC and ASUN conferences will collaborate on officiating, it was announced on Wednesday. Here's the press release:

Commissioner Mike Aresco announced today that the American Athletic Conference, the Southeastern Conference and the ASUN Conference have formed a men’s basketball officiating consortium.

The consortium was established to allow the three conferences to collaborate on all officiating matters related to recruitment, education and training, scheduling and evaluation of officials in the sport of men’s basketball.

Mark Whitehead, recently named coordinator of men’s basketball officials in the SEC, will serve in the same position for The American and the ASUN and will oversee all operations of the consortium.

“I want to thank Greg Sankey for inviting us to join this officiating consortium which includes the SEC and ASUN,” Aresco said. “This partnership will ensure that we have the highest quality basketball officiating as well as the best evaluation and training of our officials group. We look forward to closely working with coordinator of men’s basketball officials Mark Whitehead and our colleagues at the SEC and ASUN.”

“We are pleased to be collaborating with The American and ASUN to continue the enhancement of men’s basketball officiating,” said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey. “We are focused on improving the quality of men’s basketball officiating and this consortium, with the leadership provided by Mark Whitehead, provides officials with coordinated assigning between our three conferences, offers opportunity for efficient evaluation and training of officials, and continues the SEC’s efforts to strengthen its commitment to men’s basketball.”

“Partnering with elite conferences in the SEC and The American continues to showcase our commitment to enhancing the level of basketball officiating with our league,” said ASUN Commissioner Ted Gumbart. “We look forward to the men’s basketball officiating consortium providing top-level training as well as systematic assigning and evaluations for our officials. This collaboration will create great benefits for all three conferences.”

Here's what UConn president Susan Herbst sent out this morning re: Warde Manuel's departure to Michigan:

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

The only downside to hiring fine leaders for key positions at UConn is that their experience and skills are sought after by other institutions across the nation, who also want to hire strong leaders.

When Warde Manuel, our Athletic Director since 2012, told me he was interested in the AD position at the University of Michigan, I was not at all surprised; Michigan is his alma mater where he spent years of his life as a student-athlete, playing football for Bo Schembechler, participating in track and field, and earning his degrees, later becoming assistant and associate AD there.

I was also not surprised when he was recently named to the position; Warde is a terrific AD and any university would be lucky to have him.

While we are sorry to lose him at UConn, we also understand how much the position at Michigan means to him and we wish him all the best.

Warde is expected to begin at Michigan in March. Rachel Rubin, who began her career at UConn as an Associate Athletic Director and is currently Chief of Staff in my office, will serve as interim AD.

We will begin a national search for a permanent successor immediately. I have appointed a committee to lead this search. They will serve in a critically important advisory capacity as we move through the process and I ultimately appoint our next AD. The members of the committee are:

Ø Andrew Bessette (’75) UConn Board of Trustees

Ø Scott Brown, UConn Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor of Educational Psychology, NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative

Ø Andrea Dennis-LaVigne (’03), UConn Board of Trustees (Committee Chair)

Ø Doug Elliot (’82), President of The Hartford

Ø Thomas Ritter (Law ’77) UConn Board of Trustees

Ø Rachel Rubin (’77), Chief of Staff to the President & Executive Secretary to the Board of Trustees

Ø Nancy Stevens, Head Coach, UConn Field Hockey

I look forward to a thorough and efficient search process.

Please join me in thanking Warde for his outstanding service to UConn and in wishing him all the best.

Sincerely,

Susan Herbst


And here's what AAC commissioner Mike Aresco had to say:

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate Warde Manuel on being named the new Director of Athletics at the University of Michigan and to thank and recognize him for the many and significant contributions he has made to the University of Connecticut and to the American Athletic Conference.

Warde has assumed important Conference leadership positions, serving with distinction as our NCAA Council representative and as Chair of our Athletic Directors Finance Committee. I have valued his counsel and friendship, as have his colleagues at our institutions and in the conference office. Warde was instrumental in helping to establish the strong foundation of the American Athletic Conference and has compiled a distinguished record at the University of Connecticut in support of the academic and athletic needs and accomplishments of UConn's student-athletes, coaches and administrators.

Please join me in thanking Warde and wishing him great success as he returns to his alma mater.

AAC commissioner Mike Aresco's statement regarding the NCAA Division I governance structure following Tuesday's business meeting in Orlando:

The American Athletic Conference strongly supports initiatives that contribute to the health, welfare, and enhanced college experience of our student-athletes. We look forward to evaluating the proposed autonomous legislation when released in December. However, our member schools have long provided and continue to provide a number of benefits which have been deregulated under NCAA rules, including extended opportunities for degree completion, scholarship protection, medical support, and meeting the nutritional needs of student-athletes. The American and its members remain committed to funding student-athlete scholarships up to the full cost of attendance if and when such legislation is adopted.

“Our Conference has been in the forefront of the initiatives designed to address the needs of our student-athletes. I am proud of our schools, which have taken a leadership position in committing to fund athletic scholarships up to the full cost of attendance, and which have supported reforms in many areas which will contribute to student athlete health and well-being,” said Commissioner Michael Aresco.

As you likely know by now, the NCAA Division 1 board of directors voted today to give greater autonomy to the 65 schools in the so-called "power five" conferences -- the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12, ACC and SEC.

Obviously, that leaves UConn and the American Athletic Conference out of the party. But AAC commish Mike Aresco has vowed that AAC schools will be able to play by the same rules as the power-five programs (more scholarship money, better health insurance, etc.), and he reiterated that in a statement released this afternoon.

Here's Aresco's statement:

"We are pleased that the NCAA Governance Redesign Model was adopted today by the NCAA Board of Directors. We extend our congratulations to Dr. Nathan Hatch and to the NCAA Steering Committee for its excellent work in designing a model that we believe will enjoy broad acceptance. We also appreciate the exemplary efforts of our NCAA Board representative, Dr. John Hitt of UCF, and our Conference Board chair, Dr. Gerald Turner of SMU, who were deeply engaged in this process.

Our conference membership supports the new governance model and the opportunities it will present to enhance the student-athlete experience and student-athlete welfare. Our presidents and athletic directors are steadfast in their commitment to these ideals and also to providing our student-athletes with the ability to compete at the highest level of collegiate athletics."

At last year's American Athletic Conference Media Day, commissioner Mike Aresco boldly stated: "We will not pay players."

Aresco did, however, say that he would consider stipends for student-athletes to help offset the rising costs of tuition. And it seems the AAC is even more firmly behind that idea now, at the end of its three-day annual meeting down in Florida.

This from the AAC:

The American Athletic Conference completed its Annual Meeting today after three days of sessions. Presidents, Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, Faculty Athletic Representatives, and head coaches for football and men’s and women’s basketball representing all 11 member institutions, and future football-only member Navy, were in attendance.

Following a joint session this morning with Presidents, Athletic Directors and Senior Woman Administrators, The American reinforced its support of NCAA Governance restructuring with the following statement:

“The student-athletes at our member institutions compete and succeed at the highest level and benefit from the significant investments we are making in our men’s and women’s athletic programs, including infrastructure and facilities. Our Conference enjoyed unprecedented success during our inaugural season, highlighted by UCF’s BCS Tostitos Fiesta Bowl victory and UConn’s NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships. We established ourselves as one of the premier conferences in America.

“We continue to support the NCAA governance redesign process and are committed to enhancing our student-athlete experience by embracing full cost of attendance, academic and professional support, and health and safety initiatives, among other items.

“As this process continues, we support the idea of making all autonomous legislation permissive, and we are examining the proposed areas of autonomy to determine if any are more appropriate for shared governance.

“The American continues to be supportive of governance reform and the work of the NCAA Steering Committee. We appreciate the opportunity to address issues and concerns with the Steering Committee during the comment period and look forward to a successful NCAA restructuring that will serve the needs of our student-athletes and our institutions in the years to come.”

In other words, if the Power Five conferences achieve autonomy from the NCAA and decide they want to make things easier for student-athletes financially and in other ways, the AAC is willing to make the same kind of changes.

Win a national championship, get the conference tournament in your backyard.

The 2015 American Athletic Conference tournament will be held at the XL Center in Hartford.

“We are pleased to bring our 2015 men’s basketball championship to the city of Hartford and to this outstanding arena,” said AAC commish Mike Aresco. “The success of UConn’s men’s and women’s teams this year has made Connecticut the center of college basketball nationally. This event will enjoy tremendous fan support and our visitors will enjoy the many attractions in Hartford and its surrounding communities.”

Sounds like it's a one-year deal. The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that the tourney will be held in Orlando in 2016 and 2017. Aresco said an announcement about those years' sites will be made on Tuesday. There will also be announcements on the site of next year's women's tourney, as well as a bowl game, later this week.

Aresco said that moving to Hartford has no bearing on the women's tourney, which was held at Mohegan Sun this season and will likely be held there again next season.

“Today’s announcement puts Hartford back in the basketball tournament business,” said Governor of Connecticut Dannel P. Malloy. “While this is great news for next year, I am even more excited for what this means in the future. I believe we can and should be in consideration for more NCAA tournament events, and I will continue to push to bring those games to our state. I want to thank the American Athletic Conference for making this decision. I also want to send a message to college basketball fans everywhere – come to Hartford next March. You won’t be disappointed.”

“We're honored and proud to have been chosen to host this prestigious event,” said Global Spectrum's Chris Lawrence, General Manager of the XL Center. “Through the commitment and unified approach of Global Spectrum, the Capital Region Development Authority, the city of Hartford and the downtown business community, we're extremely excited and eager to showcase Hartford. Combined with our scheduled summer renovations and an ever-growing events calendar, the American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship will highlight a resurgent XL Center.”

The inaugural AAC tourney was held this past March at FedExForum in Memphis, and the league had a one-year option to remain at FedExForum for 2015. But the league has decided to move to Hartford instead.

Attendance at the inaugural tourney was solid but unspectacular, especially after UConn knocked out the home team in a first-round game. Louisville brought a decent amount of fans from not too far away, but, of course, the Cardinals will be in the ACC next season.

With the conference championships in Hartford, good crowds can be expected -- assuming UConn doesn't get bounced in the first round.

Memphis, which offered Beale Street, blues music, Graceland and several other interesting tourist attractions (not to mention a strong college basketball fan contingency) was a good choice for Year One. Hartford remains to be seen.

Here's what Kevin Ollie and Warde Manuel had to say:

Ollie:

“We are excited and proud that the American Athletic Conference has chosen the XL Center as the site for next season’s men’s championship tournament. It will give more of our great fans in Connecticut a chance to watch the intensity and competitiveness of postseason play. Last year’s tournament in Memphis brought together some of the top teams in the country and I know next year in Hartford will do the same. We want to keep Connecticut in the college basketball spotlight.”

Manuel:

“I am very excited that the American Athletic Conference men’s basketball tournament is coming to Hartford in 2015. I want to congratulate Governor Dannel Malloy and the state of Connecticut, UConn alumnus Andy Bessette and the Connecticut Region Development Authority and Chris Lawrence and the staff at Global Spectrum for submitting an excellent proposal that resulted in the event coming to our capital city. We believe that our loyal UConn fans will once again fill the XL Center for our men’s and women’s basketball games in 2014-15 and that will continue during the 2015 American men’s tournament.”

Great game. Looks like these two teams could form a nice rivalry for years to come, though as Memphis Josh Pastner noted: “We need to get a win to make it a little more of a rivalry. They’re 2-0 against us. But it’s a high-level basketball game, two high-level teams. I think it’ll be fun for the future to keep having high-level games like this.”

No doubt, we could get used to this. As for UConn's 86-81 overtime win on Saturday, Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright were clutch and terrific. But the Huskies likely don't win without Phil Nolan.

Here are some postgame quotes:

PASTNER:

(on the fact that Memphis was whistled for 23 fouls to UConn's 12, and UConn shot 36 free throws to the Tigers' nine)

(on the AAC)

“The league is really good. I said it from the beginning that we should have six teams in. Obviously now, there’s no question we should have five in. You look at our top five, I think our five is the best of any out there in the country. I really believe that. But our league from top to bottom is very good. Rutgers, Houston, South Florida, Central Florida, Temple – they’re very good teams. They’re better than their records. This is a great league. Obviously, Mr. Aresco does an unbelievable job and Paul Brazeau, so we’re very grateful and fortunate to be in the league and for the exposure we get with the TV package. That’s been terrific for the program.”

RYAN BOATRIGHT:

(on stepping up and hitting a big 3-pointer in OT, despite recent shooting slump)

(on becoming 48th player in UConn history to score 1,000 career points)

“Just an honor, man. Coach Cal and KO gave me the opportunity to come in here and play for this great university. Every time I put that jersey on, I just try to give it my all every time. It’s a blessing to be able to score 1,000 points at this wonderful university.”

SHABAZZ NAPIER:

(on the scrum on the floor at the end of regulation in which things got chippy, no fouls were called and Memphis lost possession on a shot-clock violation)

(David) Pellom was on the floor, I felt like he was kicking. Myself, I wouldn’t want one of my teammates getting kicked, on accident or on purpose. I was doing my best to get him up, and he kind of got a hand in. Their teammates came in … it was really nothing big, but they kind of made it big. I wasn’t too worried about it. I wasn’t going to throw any (punches) at anybody. I was just trying to get him off my big man so he wouldn’t get hurt.”

“It was definitely good that we got in a little scrum. Coach got a minute to draw up a good play. The refs had to figure out what the time was, and coach took a little time out and figured out what we were going to do.”

(on his missed 3-pointer that went in and out at the end of regulation)

“I thought it was going in. I thought I came off the pick, Phil (Nolan) set a second one. I got an open space, it just was one of those shots that’s called toilet flush. It didn’t go in, it just clogged up and came back out. It happens.”

(Napier wasn't injured when he sat out for a long span late in the first half. He did, however, grab at his back at one point early in the latter half)

“I shot the ball and I kind of got a stinger in my back. I came down awkward. But it went away.”

(on future rivalry with Memphis)

“Definitely. Memphis is definitely a great talent. They have been since the (John) Calipari days. They’ve got a great program, a great group of players that are going to go there. And Connecticut is one of the top-five programs in the country. It’s going to be a tough rivalry for years to come.”

“I think Cincinnati’s a rivalry, they’ve been there in the Big East, it always comes down to the crunch. Memphis is a godo team. It’s a new league, of course there’s (few) rivalries. But this league has a lot of new rivalries that are gonna happen. Just like the ACC – Syracuse is at the top of the chain right now, somebody has to be a rivalry with them. We’re getting to know each other, and hopefully we’ll find some rivalries.”

(on his relationship with Boatright)

“When we first got here, it was tough. We weren’t working hand-in-hand. But as last season went on, this season went on, we became much closer. The chemistry got much better. Nothing’s perfect, we continue to work on it. We have a brotherhood here. We believe we’re brothers. We don’t have the same blood, but we’re close enough.”

(on Phil Nolan's big offensive rebound to set up his game-tying 3-point play)

“Phillip definitely came in and took care of his minutes. He definitely played Shaq the best (he could), and was getting me open on a lot of picks. He’s definitely one of our best pick-and-roll defenders. He high-hedges really well, and he likes to talk all the time. Today, he definitely did a good job. We continue to need that from him, no matter if he’s not there offensively. When we gave him the ball, he did his best, and he had a couple of layups that he got fouled on and just continued to work.”

KEVIN OLLIE:

(on Boatright)

"He might not be shooting well, but I can never question his heart and his effort and his enthusiasm to win ... We’re not going to agree on everything, him and Bazz – we go at it sometimes. That’s what you’re supposed to do as a team. But at the end of the day, you want to win as brothers. Ryan has one of the biggest hearts I've ever been around."

He added that UConn cancelled practice the other day due to the snowstorm, but every player came to Gampel to get up shots.

(on the scrum, and Nolan's big offensive rebound)

“I don’t even know what scramble you’re talking about. I liked the offensive rebound. Shabazz shot a shot, Phil went to go get the basketball. We got outrebounded, but that was the biggest rebound of all."

(on Napier's shot at end of regulation)

“Phil set a great screen for Bazz to get open. The ball went in and out. That’s all Phil, getting him open. Shabazz will be the first one to say that. It’s not all about Shabazz, it’s not all about Ryan. It’s a team effort. Whoever played in the game came in and did their part.”

It wasn't necessarily just another day at the office today for Mike Aresco, the commissioner of the American Athletic Conference. While his office is the same -- complete with a large Big East Conference sign in the front office -- the league is very different. Aresco is very excited about The American's possibilities:

Here's some more of what Aresco had to say from his office this morning:

"It’s felt like we’ve already launched, in the sense that we’ve got the new name, the new logo. July 1 is more of an official date -- you note it on the calendar. The practical effect is that we have the four new teams come in."

"We look back at where we were in December and January. There were a lot of people who gave us no chance. They thought we would dissolve, or the whole thing would be come completely a litigious mess in every respect. They thought the Catholic 7 would devolve into that kind of situation. They thought that once we got that settled, we’d have a big fight over the money between the old and new schools and we wouldn’t have good cohesion between the newcomers and the core group. They thought UConn and Cincinnati, and maybe South Florida, wouldn’t buy into the new arrangement. And they have. UConn’s been one of our biggest supporters -- in private, too. People can’t see what goes on. Susan Herbst and Warde Manuel have been real champions of our effort."

"We have a really good, solid conference that can achieve some tremendous things if we do what we’re supposed to do. I wanted to make sure, back in those dark days, that this group of schools had a future. This is where they’re going to be. Realignment appears to be over. When things are going like this, you’ve just got to keep your head and take it one day at a time."

It's easy to forget that Louisville and Rutgers are actually bound to the AAC for two more years, though everyone -- including Aresco -- acknowledges that a negotiated agreement will be reached allowing them to leave before their required 27-month stay is over.

On Louisville being in the league for one more awkward season:

"I actually look at it in a positive way. I think it gives us a wind at our back, to have Louisville in for one more year, playing the good teams that we have, it’s going to make everybody better."

(on increased travel in the new league due to geography)

"With Olympic sports, not everybody plays the same sports. Olympic sports are more manageable than you think."

"UConn has Temple right down the road, it’ll have Navy right down the road, it’ll have Cincinnati not that far away. Then there are a cluster of schools where you can arrange scheduling. For football, it’s not a problem ... but with basketball, for instance, with the two Texas schools, two Florida schools, Memphis and Tulsa being close together, Memphis and Cincinnati not too far away. East Carolina is a little bit of an outlier, but not that bad. What we’re trying to do is figure out the twin visits, like the Pac-12 used to do and they might be going back to it."

"It’s funny, our footprint isn’t that different now than the Pac 12, if you look at all the way from Arizona up to Washington, down to southern California; if you look at the Big 10 now, from Nebraska, up to Minnesota, down to Rutgers and Maryland; from the tip of Florida all the way to Boston and Syracuse and Pittsburgh for the ACC. Those are significant distances they have to travel, for a number of schools."

(on AAC's potential strength in football)

"We think we’re closer to the other five. That’s how we feel, that’s how we’ve got to act. There’s no arrogance to that at all. That’s the last thing we are is arrogant. What we are is competitive, we know where we are, what we’ve been, the kind of teams we have."

"We think we’ve got the conference that can challenge those five. It’s our goal to be a challenger, to be a conference that’s talked about in the same breath as those schools. We understand we have a lot of work to do, and while we have really good schools with good histories and good tradition who play at a really high level, we don’t pretend to be the Big 10 or the SEC. Why would we? We understand what they are in terms of their branding and all. But we think we’re going to compete at a higher level, especially compared to some other conferences that we don’t necessarily think we have much in common with."

(on what Aresco, a Middletown, CT native and Xavier High grad, has heard from Connecticut friends about the new conference)

"It’s a mix, although for the most part, lately, it’s shifted to optimism. I think there was a great deal of skepticism before. I think losing the Big East name probably hit people pretty hard. But we’ve come up with a good name. I think there’s another factor here: I think UConn basketball will remain extremely strong, but UConn wants to also have a major football program, and I think it’s built a pretty darned good one over the years. I think Warde and Susan are focused on that, as well."

As the "new" Big East still searches for a commissioner ... and a new building in New York City ... and, well, a staff, the American Athletic Conference is busy putting together its league schedule and preparing for the switch-over on July 1.

The American's staff likely will remain most if not all of the people who worked at the Big East, including commissioner Mike Aresco. The league is currently working on its conference schedule, and it is trying as hard as possible to make it so that teams travel to play in two-or-three-city "pods." In other words, when UConn travels to play SMU in Dallas, it also plays at Houston a few nights later. Or when it goes to Tampa to play South Florida, it makes the trip up I-4 soon after to play UCF.

Likewise, when teams travel to play UConn, they also get Rutgers and Temple within the same timeframe. Cincinnati, Louisville and Memphis would likely be a "pod" as well.

Logistically, it might be hard to make it all work. However, it will be a lot easier with just 10 teams in the conference, as opposed to 16. The league hopes to have its in-conference schedule finalized over the next couple of weeks.

Elsewhere, in news that no one except media members care about: the American's football media day will likely be in Newport, R.I. (where the Big East has held its media day in recent years).

The men's basketball media day will likely be held in Memphis (site of the conference tourney, as well), most likely on Oct. 16. And it appears the women's basketball media day will be held at Mohegan Sun (likewise, the same site as its conference tourney).

It's official: the American Athletic Conference will hold its 2014 men's basketball championships in Memphis, at the 18,400-seat FedExForum.

It's not Madison Square Garden and New York City, but it's a fine alternative. I've never been to Memphis, but those I know who have say it's a great, vibrant city, with Beale Street, great music, cuisine, etc. And it's a tremendous college hoops town, so the whole show should be a good one this year.

Here's the press release from the AAC:

FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn., one of the nation’s premier basketball venues, will be the site of the 2014 American Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Championship, Commissioner Mike Aresco announced.

 

“We are very excited to have the first American Athletic Conference championship at FedExForum,” said Aresco.  “We received significant interest from many outstanding venues.  FedExForum is an outstanding facility and the Forum, the city of Memphis, the University of Memphis and the local community will combine to create a wonderful inaugural event that our teams, coaches, administrators and fans will embrace and enjoy.”

 

The dates of the 2014 championship are March 12-15.  Each game of the 10-team tournament will be televised on the ESPN networks.  The championship game on Saturday, March 15, will be televised on ESPN.  The tournament will begin with two first-round games on Wednesday, March 12.  Two quarterfinal doubleheaders will be played on Thursday, March 13, followed by a semifinal doubleheader on Friday, March 14.  Game times will be announced at a later date.

 

FedExForum has a seating capacity of 18,400.  It is located off historic Beale Street and its vibrant and popular entertainment district.

 

FedExForum is the home to the University of Memphis men’s basketball team and the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies.  The building also has hosted regional rounds of the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships.  After the American Athletic Championship, it will host the 2014 NCAA South Regional. 

 

The first season of men’s basketball under The American banner will include a very strong nucleus of teams, starting with Louisville, the 2013 national champion.  Memphis is coming off a 31-5 season, which included advancing to the third round of the NCAA Championship.  Temple also played in the third round of the NCAAs while compiling a 24-10 mark.  Cincinnati finished 22-12 while participating in its third straight NCAA tourney.  Connecticut, UCF and Houston all enjoyed 20-win seasons.

 

For 2013-14, the American Athletic Conference will include the University of Central Florida, University of Cincinnati, University of Connecticut, University of Houston, University of Louisville, University of Memphis, Rutgers University, University of South Florida, Southern Methodist University, and Temple University.

Mike Aresco held a conference call today to talk about the American Athletic Conference -- which, of course, unveiled its new logo this morning.

Among the highlights of what Aresco had to say:

--- Men's and women's basketball championship tourney sites should be announced in a week or two -- "or sooner". Wherever the men's tourney is held, it will run from Wednesday to Saturday, with the title game on the Saturday before Selection Sunday, as in years past. The men's tourney will be televised by ESPN.

--- The league plans on having a football championship game after Navy joins in 2015, and is "pretty far along with our own bowl," per the commish.

--- The league has an automatic NCAA tourney bid that didn't have to be obtained because, essentially, it never really lost it. In the eyes of the NCAA, the American is really just the Big East with a new name.

--- After Navy joins, Aresco doesn't envision any new members joining. He also doesn't anticipate any more departures anytime soon. "There does appear to be a period of stability now," he said.

--- In all, Aresco feels great about the new league -- sentiments echoed by Susan Herbst earlier in the week.

“It’s a great group I’m dealing with, it really is. There was tension in the old structure … there was always some difficulty because you had some schools that only played basketball. In our league now, everyone in our league plays basketball and football and Olympic sports, except Navy, which will only play football. But we’ll treat them as a full member, in terms of voting and everything else.”

Here's the new American Athletic Conference logo. Commissioner Mike Aresco is slated to have a conference call with media members at 11:30 a.m. More later:

Kinda reminds me of a cross between the AFC logo:











And the NFC logo. But maybe I'm nit-picking:

Be honest, you were going to hate whatever name they came up with. So take a day or two to let the American Athletic Conference sink in, then live with it. Hey, UConn may not be living there long, anyway.

The strangest thing about the whole thing is having Louisville (and Rutgers) hanging in the newly-named league for a year before bolting. Just awkward.

The press release:

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The current Big East Conference has announced that it will be renamed the American Athletic Conference and will rebrand as such across all platforms, associations and media at the conclusion of the 2012-13 sports seasons. The announcement was made today by Commissioner Mike Aresco after unanimous approval by the Conference’s Board of Directors.

“We worked with our institutions, sports marketing experts, media partners, and also solicited opinions and reactions from collegiate sports fans to create a compelling list of names,” said Aresco. “Versions that included the word ‘American’ led every list. American Athletic Conference represents a strong, durable and aspirational name for our reinvented Conference.

“We engaged our fans through social media and focus groups in multiple cities, and we conducted extensive quantitative research,” Aresco added. “We also received terrific input from our partners at ESPN and CBS Sports. Our name is a nod to tradition, but at the same time makes clear our determination to be a Conference with national impact and appeal. The American Athletic Conference will represent core American values of optimism, energy, growth and innovation. We have a broad geographical footprint that represents unity as well as diversity.”

“Our exciting new name is the result of a thorough process that has energized our Conference,” said Judy Genshaft, President of the University of South Florida and Chair of the Executive Committee. “The American Athletic Conference brand will embody the values of competition and sportsmanship that our student-athletes have always exemplified.”

“The American Athletic Conference is a brand that suggests a national scope and quality membership,” said Burke Magnus, Senior Vice President, College Sports Programming, ESPN. “It is an exciting time for the new conference and ESPN looks forward to our future together.”

“We congratulate the American Athletic Conference on the selection of a terrific new name for college sports,” said Sean McManus, Chairman, CBS Sports. “We look forward to partnering with The American as they introduce their new brand and increase their presence as a conference going forward.”

Beginning with the 2014-15 academic year, the American Athletic Conference will consist of the University of Central Florida, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Connecticut, East Carolina University, the University of Houston, the University of Memphis, Southern Methodist University, the University of South Florida, Temple University, Tulane University and the University of Tulsa. The U.S. Naval Academy will become a football-only member in 2015. With 12 football schools in the fold by 2015, it will play a football championship game.

A full set of marks for the American Athletic Conference will be presented in the coming weeks.

It's official: The Catholic 7 is officially splitting from the Big East. Formal Board approval is expected on Tuesday.

Here are a few answers to questions people have been asking about the split:

*** What will be the name of the "old" Big East (since the Catholic 7 and their new friends will be taking the Big East name with them)?

It has been reported that the America 12 is the leader in the clubhouse, since that name has been registered with a branding firm by the league's attorneys. But that was one of a list of names the firm was given, and the league "is not necessarily married to anything," according to a Big East source. In fact, the league is planning on possibly reaching out to fans for suggestions on a new name and "having some fun with it."

Here's what Big East commish Mike Aresco said in a release: “We have not chosen a new conference name at this time and there are no favorites. We are going through a thoughtful evaluation of potential names for our conference, and will select a name in a timely manner through a comprehensive and deliberate process that involves our presidents and athletic directors as well as constituents from inside and outside the conference. We are excited about the prospect of re-branding and look forward to working with our institutions and our fans as we engage in this process.”

*** Who will be in this new league -- the one that UConn is in?

Well, for next year, anyway, it'll be UConn, Cincinnati, South Florida, Temple, Memphis, Central Florida, Houston, SMU, Rutgers, Louisville and (possibly) Notre Dame. Louisville and Notre Dame, you ask? Aren't they off to the ACC? Well, yes, but not until 2014-15. The new conference's football schedule is already out, and Lousville is on it, so even though Louisville's separation date has yet to be officially determined, it would be extremely problematic if it tried to jump ship now.

As for Notre Dame, since it obviously doesn't play football in the league, an earlier separation is far more feasible. Of course, it will cost them a good chunk of money, but it's feasible. In fact, the ACC reportedly has said it would accept Notre Dame for next season. It's hard to believe Notre Dame would stay with the new Big East (Catholic 7) for a year in limbo.

Oh yeah, and Rutgers isn't supposed to move to the Big 10 until 2014-15, but who really cares? It's Rutgers.

*** With the "new" Big East holding on to Madison Square Garden for its conference championship, where will the new conference championship tournament be?

Unknown at this point. Reports have stated perhaps Memphis, Houston, Orlando, Hartford, or a revolving door (as the Big East did in its infancy). Memphis would make a lot of sense to me, as it's a great basketball town. And I know that UConn is insisting that Hartford is kept in consideration. (And Orlando's got Disney World).

*** Why the hell is all this happening?

Football.

*** Where will the "old" Big East headquarters be?

They'll likely stay in Providence, even though PC is leaving the conference with the Catholic 7, since the league has a lease on its current building for seven more years. Hard to believe the league will stay in Providence for all seven of those years, however.

Mike Aresco will remain commissioner of the conference, but it remains to be seen where other employees of the current Big East will end up. The "new" Big East will be looking for employees, after all, and could certainly take current Big East employees with it.

*** So which conference is better: the new Big East (Catholic 7) or the old one (America 12, or whatever)?

Let's take a look:

2013-14

CATHOLIC 7

Georgetown

Marquette

Butler

Creighton

Villanova

Providence

Xavier

St. John’s

Seton Hall

DePaul

AMERICA 12

Louisville

Memphis

Notre Dame (maybe)

Cincinnati

UConn

Temple

Central Florida

Houston

Rutgers

South Florida

SMU

If you go by this year's results, by my count, the Catholic 7 has four NCAA tourney locks and three bubble teams. The America 12 has three locks and four bubbles (if UConn had been eligible. I'm saying the Huskies would be on the bubble right now, but maybe they'd be more of a lock than I'm giving them credit for). And that's assuming Notre Dame stays for next year.

That's about a wash, though top-to-bottom, I'd go with the Catholic 7. It's only got two awful teams, while the America 12 has three or four.

Of course, Providence could be real good next year, and Marquette should be really, really good. Then again, UConn has the chance to be really, really good next year, too. Overall, for next year, I'd give the Catholic 7 a slight edge, but for 2014-15 ...

AMERICA 12

UConn

Memphis

Temple

Cincinnati

Central Florida

Houston

South Florida

SMU

East Carolina

Tulane

... the Catholic 7 wins in a landslide. It'll also be adding St. Louis and Dayton. Of course, by then, maybe UConn or Cincy or both will be en route to the ACC or elsewhere. Who knows these days?

Mike Aresco had some good news and some bad news for the hometown crowd gathered at the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce breakfast meeting on Monday morning.

The Big East commissioner told the several hundred local businessmen and women gathered at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Cromwell that UConn is “very committed” to the Big East, and promised that the conference will “continue on and be a greater conference than it was.”

But he told a small group of reporters afterwards that the UConn men’s basketball team’s flickering hopes to be included in this year’s Big East tournament have been extinguished.

“That’s over for this year. They won’t be in this year’s tournament,” Aresco said. “But we’ll welcome them back the following year, and we’ll be delighted to have them back.”

UConn is barred from any postseason tournament this season due to recent low Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores. However, school officials have reportedly been lobbying the league’s presidents to at least allow the team to play in the annual conference tournament at Madison Square Garden. The school feels, among other things, that the APR system punishes current players for past players’ academic shortcomings.

“Susan (Herbst, UConn’s president), wasn’t there when all this happened,” he said. “They’ve corrected everything. They’ve got a terrific APR now, they’re doing much better. This is just one of those things. It happened, and it’s something they’re going to have to get through.”

It was a homecoming of sorts for Aresco, the Middletown native and Xavier High graduate. Larry McHugh, the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce president and chairman of UConn’s board of trustees, was Aresco’s football coach at Xavier. In fact, this year’s Xavier football team was honored at the breakfast for winning its third straight Class LL state title.

No doubt, it was good to be among friends and familiar faces for Aresco, who has been besieged by conference realignment and high-profile defections from the Big East ever since he took over as commissioner in August.

“It’s been a lot more interesting than I thought it would be, a lot more challenges, a lot more things to navigate, so it’s been a little more difficult,” Aresco noted. “You basically take it a day a time, with every challenge that will come.”

Aresco told the audience that, while UConn is “very committed” to the Big East, he can’t predict what the school will ultimately do when it comes to realignment.

“You never know what’s going to happen, none of us can predict,” he said. “That’s one thing I won’t do. But as conferences consolidate, get bigger, I think they re-think what they’re doing. I think there will be a period of calm. That doesn’t mean it’s over. UConn has been very committed to this model. It’s a good model.”

Aresco said that the Big East will eventually add a 12^th football-playing member (it will have 10 next year and 11 when Navy joins in 2015). The conference is “getting closer” to a TV deal that could involve multiple network, though he didn’t know when that deal would be finalized.

He noted that there is no animosity towards the so-called “Catholic 7” for breaking away from the conference and looking out for themselves. Nor is there animosity towards Louisville or other schools for departing for other conferences.

“Conference realignment is a fact of life,” Aresco said, “but you have to play the cards you’re dealt.”

Aresco did point out, however, that the conference would be looking to keep the Big East name.

“There’s brand equity in that,” he noted.

He also said that the Big East-SEC Invitational basketball tournament will no longer be continued.

Elsewhere:  I caught up with former UConn star Jim Abromaitis at the breakfast. He said his son Tim, the former Notre Dame standout, is playing professionally for a team called Asvel in Lyon, France, and doing very well. 

UConn held a morning practice today at Gampel in preparation for Tuesday night's home game vs. much-improved DePaul, which is fresh off a nice win at Providence Saturday night and is 4-0 on the road this season.

We'll get to the Blue Demons and old (almost) friend Cleveland Melvin in a bit. But first, a couple of interesting tidbits.

The other day in practice, Ryan Boatright and DeAndre Daniels got in a little scuffle during a box-out drill.

"We were just grabbing each other, one person got mad and it went from there," said Boatright.

Added Daniels: “We’re just out there having fun and competing, trying to make each other better.”


This is not a big deal, folks -- the two are great friends and, in fact, roommates. In fact, it might be a good thing for the team.

“I imagine they’re tired of hitting each other," Kevin Ollie said. "Nobody was going to fight, but it was good to see it … Being around each other for a week, you get testy a little bit. You don’t have classes, you’re living with each other, it’s like you’re around each other all the time. They love each other, we’ve been working hard, we’ve been having some outstanding practices. Today was off-the-charts … I really like their focus.”

Added Daniels: “Me and Boat are best friends. We came (to UConn) at the same time and have always been roommates. It’s all love. We were just on the court, trying to compete.”

*** Also, Ollie noted that both Big East commissioner Mike Aresco and head of officials Art Hyland called to apologize for the snafu in Tuesday's game, where the refs admitted the goaltend of Shabazz Napier's layup attempt at the start of overtime should have counted for two points for UConn.

“It’s overwith," Ollie said. "Satisfied or not, it doesn’t make a difference. I talked to the commissioner, the head of officials, they both apologized. I accept their apology. We move on, things happen. Hopefully, we learn from it, our guys learn from every situation. But like I’ve said before, the past doesn’t equal the future unless you live in it. We’re not going to live in that, we’re going to move on.”

*** As for DePaul, it's 10-5 overall and 1-1 in the Big East. The Demons lost a tough, one-point game at home to Seton Hall last week before beating the Friars at The Dunk.

“They really should be 2-0," said Boatright. "I feel like they’re a better team than last year. We’ve got to compete and don’t take them lightly.”

The Demons are led, of course, by Melvin, who averages 16.7 per game and scored 23 vs. PC. Melvin committed to UConn in the fall of 2009, only to decommit the following spring.

"Melvin's been doing what he does -- just getting buckets, getting buckets," said Ollie. "He's been an outstanding player in the Big East since he got here."

Daniels figures to find himself guarding Melvin quite a bit tomorrow night.

“I heard he’s pretty strong," Daniels said. "Obviously, every guy I play in the Big East is going to be way stronger than me.”

Brandon Young also averages over 16 per game for the Demons, who love to press and forced 23 Friar turnovers on Saturday.

That's all well and good with Boatright.

“When I see a press, my eyes light up," the guard sayd. "I call it ‘Layup City.’ As long as we do our job and break the press, we should be alright.”

*** Ollie and Geno Auriemma were filmed for a public service announcement regarding the Newtown tragedy after practice.

*** Looked like Tyler Olander was working with the starting five today.

*** Despite scoring a career high-matching 29 points vs. Marquette, Napier didn't even earn Big East honor roll recognition this week. Odd.

What's essentially been known for several days now became official today: the Catholic schools -- I like "The Big Priest" -- are breaking off to form their own conference.

Big East commish's Mike Aresco's statement:

“The basketball institutions have notified us that they plan to withdraw from the BIG EAST Conference. The membership recognizes their contributions over the long distinguished history of the BIG EAST. The 13 members of the Conference are confident and united regarding our collective future. We have a strong Conference with respected national universities, and are working together to forge the future. We have a variety of options, and are looking forward with great partnership, collegiality and optimism.”

(I love it how schools are either called "the football schools" or "the basketball schools." Schools do play other sports, you know. In fact, that's a factor when you consider sending money-bleeding programs like field hockey or tennis from Storrs to SMU or Houston or wherever to play their games).

Here's the joint statement from the seven "basketball schools":

Earlier today we voted unanimously to pursue an orderly evolution to a foundation of basketball schools that honors the history and tradition on which the Big East was established.

Under the current context of conference realignment, we believe pursuing a new basketball framework that builds on this tradition of excellence and competition is the best way forward.

We are grateful to our Commissioner, Michael Aresco, for his exceptional leadership of the Big East Conference. We have been honored to be associated with the outstanding group of institutions that have made up the Big East. While we pursue this opportunity for our institutions, we believe the efforts of the past two years have established the foundation for an enduring national football conference.

We look forward to building this new foundation with an emphasis on elite competition and a commitment to the development of our students engaged in intercollegiate athletics. That is where we will now spend our energy as we move forward.

Here's Susan Herbst's tempered response, which I have no problem with:

"The tragedy that took place in Newtown on Friday should be the focus of the thoughts of the people in Connecticut and all Husky fans this weekend.

"The University of Connecticut believes that the BIG EAST Conference will continue to be a strong and exciting conference that is comprised of highly-regarded national universities.

"We ask our fans to steer all passion and concern to Newtown, and we will honor those lost when we gather together as a university community for events this upcoming week."

Meanwhile, the Catholic schools are giddy. Here's the reaction from Providence:

“Providence College has enjoyed a proud tradition as a founding member of the BIG EAST Conference,” Providence College President Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P. said. “I want all our donors, alumni, fans, students and especially our student-athletes to know that we have worked diligently to get to this point. We believe that today’s vote moves us further toward a solution that will put Providence College and the other six basketball institutions in a position for long-term success. We are working toward a model that is very similar to what BIG EAST founder Dave Gavitt first envisioned more than 30 years ago when he left Providence College – a conference comprised of basketball schools that would be branded and which would compete at the highest of levels in the national spotlight.”

“We are also working to provide Head Men’s Basketball Coach Ed Cooley with the resources he needs to compete and excel at this level. We have committed to Coach Cooley that we will extend his contract and we are working on the details of that at present,” Fr. Shanley said.

“This is a monumental day for Providence College and its Athletics Department,” Athletics Director Bob Driscoll stated. “We are taking the necessary steps to secure the future of our basketball programs and of our entire athletics department. We felt it was vital for us to strengthen our bond with the other six basketball institutions and to provide a long-term solution in an ever-changing conference landscape. Having Coach Cooley lead our men’s basketball program for the long-term and ensuring that he has the necessary resources to compete on a national level are key components for a strong and vibrant future for our athletics department.”

“I am very excited about the direction of our men’s basketball program,” Cooley stated. “I want to thank Fr. Shanley and Bob Driscoll as they are working extremely hard to position us and to put the pieces in place that will allow us to continue to build Providence College men’s basketball so that we can compete and win at the highest echelons of the sport. Providence is my home and it is where I want to be. We still have work ahead of us in our quest, but today marks another big step towards our goal.” 

Some statements from Susan Herbst, Warde Manuel and Big East commish Mike Aresco:

UConn President Susan Herbst:


"I know this may seem like a tough moment for our fans, but we need to focus on the fundamentals of academic success across the university and in our athletic program as well. We are winners -- we win, we like to win and we will continue to play the best possible opponents. We will be athletically successful, regardless of our conference, because of our successes in NCAA competition. We will keep building our winning record through the lens of a great university, that focuses on academics, not on the fluid and unpredictable nature of conference realignment. Again, I realize this is a difficult day, but when we focus on research, discovery, and student success, we'll never go wrong."

UConn Director of Athletics Warde Manuel:

“Conference realignment is a prominent national issue in collegiate athletics and will continue to be so into the future. UConn has established a rich history as a very successful academic and athletic institution. We understand that because of that UConn will continue to be brought up in the discussion regarding potential schools considered in realignment.

“We have and will continue to monitor the situation regarding conference realignment and work to ensure that UConn is in the best position for the continued success of our athletic programs. We are proud of the success of our coaches and student-athletes and the tradition that has been established of winning conference and national championships.

“We are proud and appreciative of our great Husky fan base. Husky Nation is strong all over the country and the world. UConn has one of the most captive audiences of any school in the country and we have strong penetration in several of the nation’s largest television markets.”

The UConn men’s basketball program has won three national championships since 1999 – the only school to do so in this time period – and one of just seven programs in the history of the game to win three or more titles.

The UConn football team has made incredible strides since it moved to the FBS in 2002. The Huskies have won two BIG EAST Championships, played in five bowl games – including four over the past five seasons -- and became the fastest program to rise from FBS inception to an appearance in a BCS game in history.

The excellence of the women’s basketball program is unparalleled to any school in the country as UConn has won seven national championships and appeared in 13 Finals Fours, including five straight.

Olympics sports programs at UConn are successful and have competed in and won NCAA national championship play in a number of them.

UConn will further enhance its athletic program in the 2013-14 academic year as its men’s ice hockey team begins play in Hockey East, the premier league in the country for that sport. Connecticut will become one of just nine institutions nationally to play men’s basketball, women’s basketball, football and men’s ice hockey in a major conference.   Mike Aresco:   We enjoyed having Louisville in the Big East Conference and we wish them well.

The Big East has anticipated the continuing realignment that is reshaping college athletics and has already made important additions as part of our vision for the future. We will continue moving forward to fulfill that vision, which includes a strong national football conference and a strong and storied basketball conference. Big East teams will continue to compete and succeed at the highest level and, as always, will combine athletic and academic excellence. With schools stretching from coast to coast and in many of the top U.S. media markets, the Big East has become a truly national conference with outstanding young men and women competing across a full range of sports.

We are committed to a vibrant and dynamic future for the Big East Conference.

Tulane and East Carolina (football only) will be joining the Big "East" in 2014. BYU apparently has shunned the Big East's advances.

As the once-proud conference starts to take on the look of Conference USA, it's truly time for UConn to look for greener pastures. Obviously, the ACC is the top choice, and by all accounts, it certainly could happen. But nothing's definite yet. 

Here's what the Big East and commish Mike Aresco had to say about the addition of Tulane, which will certainly bolster the conference's standing in women's sand volleyball:

Commissioner Mike Aresco has announced the addition of Tulane University, one of the most highly regarded and selective independent research institutions in the United States that boasts one of the oldest and most storied athletics programs in the Southeast, as a full conference member.

The BIG EAST Board of Directors, by a unanimous vote of its Presidents, extended the invitation to Tulane, which will begin competing in the BIG EAST in the 2014-15 academic year.

“I am pleased and excited to welcome Tulane University to the BIG EAST Conference,” said Aresco. “Tulane University is an outstanding academic institution and is committed to excellence in athletics. They will be a valued member of the BIG EAST.”

Founded in 1834, Tulane is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities, an association of 62 leading research universities in the United States and Canada. Located in New Orleans, Tulane has an enrollment of 13,359. The university is ranked by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a university with “very high research activity.”

“Tulane University is pleased to accept membership in the BIG EAST Conference,” said President Scott Cowen. “The BIG EAST is a distinguished collection of institutions that will be a wonderful home for Tulane. We look forward to our mutual association and we are delighted to welcome the BIG EAST to the Big Easy!”

Tulane sponsors 16 sports, 10 women’s teams and six men’s teams. The women’s sports are basketball, tennis, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, cross country, golf, swimming and diving, bowling volleyball and sand volleyball. The men’s sports are football, baseball, basketball, tennis, outdoor track and field and cross country.

Tulane’s football team currently plays in the Mercedez-Benz Superdome. The school is building a new football venue, Yulman Stadium, which will have a capacity of 30,000. It is expected to be completed in 2014. Tulane’s men’s and women’s basketball teams compete on campus at Devlin Fieldhouse. A majority of BIG EAST games will be played at New Orleans Arena.

The football team is coached by Curtis Johnson, who is in his first season. The men’s basketball program is led by coach Ed Conroy who is in his third year. The Green Wave won 15 men’s basketball games last season and are off to a 4-2 start this season.

Lisa Stockton is the head women’s basketball coach. She is the winningest coach in Conference USA history with 372 victories. During her tenure, the Green Wave have enjoyed a nine-year streak of NCAA Tournament berths, four regular-season conference championships and five conference tournament titles.

The baseball program has earned five regular-season conference championships, eight conference tournament crowns and has played in the College World Series twice in the last 11 years. The men’s tennis program has won eight national championships.

Over the last eight years, Green Wave student-athletes have been among the highest achievers nationally in the classroom, according to the most recent multi-year Academic Performance Rates (APR).

The BIG EAST has previously announced other new full members that will be begin playing in 2013. Those schools are: University of Central Florida, University of Houston, University of Memphis, and Southern Methodist University and Temple University. Boise State University and San Diego State University will compete only in football. The Naval Academy will start BIG EAST football play in 2015.

And here's what the Big East has to say about East Carolina:

BIG EAST Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco has announced the addition of East Carolina University, one of the nation’s emerging research institutions, as a conference member that will compete in the BIG EAST in the sport of football.

The BIG EAST Board of Directors, by a unanimous vote of its Presidents, extended the invitation to East Carolina. ECU will begin BIG EAST football competition in the 2014 season.

“We are very excited to welcome East Carolina University into the BIG EAST Conference for football,” said Aresco. “They have a strong football tradition and a consistently successful program that will help elevate our football league. The University is an outstanding academic institution that reflects the values important to the BIG EAST Conference.”

“ECU is excited to become a football member of the BIG EAST Conference,” said ECU Chancellor Steve Ballard. “We know we will be successful and add value to the BIG EAST. While hundreds of dedicated Pirates have contributed to this day, I especially want to recognize the relentless energy of Terry Holland and Nick Floyd in making this day a reality. It is a great day to be a Pirate.”

Founded in 1907 in Greenville, N.C., East Carolina University is a 105-year-old public university and research institution that is nationally recognized for preparing rural family physicians, educational professionals and for its strong performing arts programs.

It enrolls 27,500 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students and is North Carolina’s largest producer of education and primary care professionals. It operates the Brody School of Medicine, a new school of Dental Medicine and a growing undergraduate Honors College in Greenville.

On the football field, East Carolina has been a consistent winner. The Pirates went to five straight bowl games and won two conference championships from 2006-10. Under third-year head coach Ruffin McNeill, ECU has compiled an 8-4 regular-season record this season, which included a 7-1 conference mark. The Pirates will be headed to their 18th bowl game.

The ECU football team plays in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium that has a capacity of 50,000. The team has averaged more than 47,000 fans per game in each of the past three seasons.

The BIG EAST has previously announced new members that will begin playing football in the 2013. Those schools are: Boise State University, University of Central Florida, University of Houston, University of Memphis, Southern Methodist University, San Diego State University. Tulane University will begin play in 2014. The Naval Academy will start BIG EAST football play in 2015.

The Big East's annual Garden party will continue for years to come.

The conference announced on Wednesday that its annual Big East Championship Tournament continue to be held at Madison Square Garden for the foreseeable future. The Big East and Madison Square Garden have agreed to a multiyear extension of their contract.

(My main story from today's Big East Media Day)

“Madison Square Garden has been the Big East’s home for 30 years,” new commish Mike Aresco said, “and has produced some of the signature moments in college basketball history. We are happy that our teams will continue to bring the excitement of Big East basketball to the Garden.”

With the defection of Syracuse to the Atlantic Coast Conference after this season, there has been some worry that the ACC may try to hold its championship tournament at MSG, at least periodically.

The Big East’s current contract with MSG doesn’t expire for another four years. There was no word on how many years the new deal will entail.



Of course, UConn won't be able to participate in this year's event. Or will it? While the chances are extremely slim, UConn is holding out a bit of hope that the league presidents change their mind on their decision last March to bar any postseason-ineligible teams from its conference tourney. The presidents meet again in a couple of weeks in Chicago for what would appear to be the Huskies’ last chance. UConn is hoping that, since the players responsible for the poor APR scores are long-gone (and, now, Jim Calhoun is gone, too), that the presidents may reconsider.

It's very unlikely, however.

“It’s possible that it could be discussed,” Aresco said on Wednesday, “but again, UConn hasn’t indicated yet what they want to do. It could be discussed, but I want to state that that’s our policy of our conference at this point.”

Big East Bonds

First-year UConn coach Kevin Ollie brought in a noted sports psychologist a few weeks ago to help the Huskies bond a little better, and by all accounts, it’s worked.

Ironically, UConn sophomore Ryan Boatright also spent a good part of the summer bonding with some of his Big East rivals. He went up against Louisville’s Peyton Siva, the preseason Big East Player of the Year, at Chris Paul’s CP3 Camp, and also teamed with Siva, Notre Dame’s Jack Cooley, Syracuse’s Brandon Triche and Cincinnati’s Sean Kilpatrick at the adidas Nations camp in August.

At CP3, Boatright and Siva went at each other.

“Same thing as a Big East game,” Boatright noted. “Trying to rip each other’s necks off.”

But at adidas, Boatright got a chance to get to know his fellow Big East competitors a lot better. Bonds developed among all the Big East players.

“They’re all great guys,” Siva said. “Ryan Boatright is a funny guy. He’s very energetic, tough as nails as a guard.”

Added Cooley: “When you compete against somebody for four years, you should know a little bit about him. So it’s good to finally get to meet them and develop some friendships.”

The players teamed together on the court and hung out together off it for the week. Precious little of the talk amongst them dwelled on things like the Big East and its rocky future, or about UConn’s postseason ban – though the latter did come up at least once.

“Boatright kind of said an off-hand joke about how there’s not going to be enough bodies (on UConn’s team),” said Cooley, referring to the mass wave of defections from last year’s squad.

More often, it was the conversations were far more light-hearted fare.

“It was more about how are coaches are, some of the funny quotes our coaches would say,” Siva said.

No doubt, Boatright had some prime material for that after playing for Jim Calhoun last season.

Interestingly, Siva, Cooley and Dieng all earned first team all-Big East preseason honors, while Triche was a second team pick. Boatright received no recognition.

“I don’t really care, it is what it is,” he said. “I’m still going to prepare myself to be the best player I can be, and my team to be the best it can be.”

Sports Psychologist a Success

Ollie’s decision to bring in Dr. Joseph Carr, a sports psychologist who has worked with other college and NBA teams, seems to have been a success – even if UConn players were a bit skeptical at first.

“Nobody really felt like doing it but K.O.,” Boatright confessed, adding that the team spent about eight hours a day over a recent weekend in a circle, learning about each other’s lives.

But he feels the team emerged a better team because of it.

“Once we got it going and it was over, we appreciated that he made us do it, because it really helped a lot.”

Freddie Wilson Surprises

New Haven’s Freddie Wilson figures to be a key element for Seton Hall this season as a sophomore.

“Freddie’s probably surprised me more than anybody this year,” Hall coach Kevin Willard said. “He’s coming in great shape. I think (our) summer trip to Spain really helped him. He’s understanding his role a little more. He’s done a great job of embracing what a point guard really needs to be. Last year, I don’t think he really understood what he had to do. Playing behind Jordan (Theodore), he didn’t have a great opportunity to do it. This year, I expect big things from Freddie.”

Wilson averaged 1.8 points in 8.1 minutes of action as a freshman last season. The 6-2 Hillhouse product will play both the point and shooting guard this season.

“He’s going to have to,” Willard said. “He understands what he likes to do offensively. Freddie’s biggest drawback (is) … I think they only play on the offensive side in Connecticut high school basketball. The more he understands the defensive side, the more playing time he’ll get. He’s got a great scorer’s mentality. He’s got a mentality of being in attack mode, which I like.”

Chicago Hope

DePaul’s Cleveland Melvin, a preseason second team all-Big East pick, committed to UConn while still in prep school but backed out and went to Chicago instead.

His decision was a mixed blessing for the 6-fot-9 junior out of Baltimore. Melvin was the conference’s Rookie of the Year as a freshman and averaged 17.9 points per game last season, making him the top returning scorer in the league. He is a preseason second team all-Big East pick.

Of course, he also missed out on UConn’s national championship run two years ago.

“I’m definitely happy to be in this position I’m at,” Melvin said. “I thought it was the best fit for me. I fit their playing style. I’ve had two successful years. Coming into my junior year, I’m just very excited to get this season started and winning some more games.”