Marquette will take on conference foe St. John's during Super Bowl weekend in New York City, as the Golden Eagles will play the Red Storm in FOX Sports' "Super Saturday Hoops" doubleheader on FOX Sports 1.
On Feb. 1 -- the eve of the Super Bowl in New York City -- Marquette will take on St. John's at 11:30 a.m. at Madison Square Garden in the first game of the doubleheader. Game two will feature Michigan State and Georgetown in a Big Ten/Big East showdown -- the first time the schools have met since 1986.
"Super Saturday Hoops is just the first of what will be a week’s worth of tremendous sports events carried by FOX Sports 1, with most, like this one, originating in the New York/New Jersey area," said Eric Shanks, FOX Sports Co-President & Chief Operating Officer. "We’re proud of our long-term association with the new Big East, and it’s through that relationship we look forward to the conference and our new channel growing together."
Marquette clinched a share of the Big East regular-season championship on the Madison Square Garden floor last season, beating St. John's, 69-67, in overtime on Vander Blue's game-winning layup. The Golden Eagles are no strangers to Madison Square Garden, as they've played the Big East tournament there since joining the league.
With the new Big East conference starting in 2013-14, Madison Square Garden will continue to host the men's basketball conference tournament.
"We always look forward to playing in The Garden," Marquette head coach Buzz Williams said. "It obviously has a tremendous amount of tradition and the environment makes it a special place to play. We are fortunate to have had some success there and I know our players are excited about being in New York City the weekend of the Super Bowl."
St. John's returns its three leading scorers from last year's NIT team. The Red Storm finished 17-16 and will be looking to make the NCAA tournament for the second time under head coach Steve Lavin.
"Madison Square Garden will be buzzing on Super Bowl weekend when the Johnnies play host to Marquette and Georgetown meets Michigan State," Lavin said. "With three Big East squads in action and coach Tom Izzo's perennially-tough Spartans, this doubleheader at The Garden will be a great showcase for our league and a terrific experience for college basketball fans."
For how tradition-rich each program is, Michigan State and Georgetown will be meeting for just the second time in school history. The first meeting came on March 15, 1986, when the Spartans knocked the Hoyas out of the second round of the NCAA tournament with an 80-68 victory.
Michigan State returns four starters and six of its top seven scorers from last year's Sweet 16 team.
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