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As a tease to the announcement of the full 2016-17 Big East men’s basketball schedule on Tuesday, the league announced the lineup for the 2017 Big East Men’s Basketball Marathon on Monday afternoon.
While in the past it has been a New Year’s Eve related event, due to the College Football Playoff occupying Saturday AND New Year’s Eve at the same time this year, the Big East will be holding a marathon on Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, which is January 16, 2017. The existence of a work holiday for a majority of people means there’s an audience for 12ish hours of basketball on television, and thus makes that a prime day to hold the marathon.
Here’s the lineup for the day:
This year's #BEMarathon will be held on JANUARY 16, 2017. All 10 #BIGEASThoops teams will be in action pic.twitter.com/QK7ppHaxI1
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
I don’t know about you, but I’m okay with not having an 11am CT tip at the Bradley Center on a Monday morning.
The league even came up with creative reasons to be excited about each match up.
.@MarquetteMBB and @ButlerMBB square off to open up the #BEmarathon in a series that dates back to 1922-1923 pic.twitter.com/EP21vE7uTy
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
.@BluejayMBB is 1 of just 6 teams ever to beat @XavierMBB twice at the @CintasCenter. They meet in the #BEmarathon pic.twitter.com/AZghcgLEU5
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
The last 7 meetings between @StJohnsBBall & @DePaulHoops have been won by the home team. #BEmarathon pic.twitter.com/GPN1r9ifiy
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
The @BIGEAST Champs (@SetonHallMBB) meet the @NCAA Champs (@NovaMBB). Need we say more? #BEmarathon pic.twitter.com/WBfRiANMBW
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
Closing out the #BEmarathon in DC! @GeorgetownHoops leads the series 44-24 but @PCFriarsmbb is 5-1 in last 3 years pic.twitter.com/bIORWxi4dI
— #BIGEASThoops (@BIGEASTMBB) September 12, 2016
With the accidental leak of what we can presume is the real list of Marquette home games on the season ticket sales webpage, this now gives us a date for 10 of Marquette’s 18 Big East games for the forthcoming season. The road trip to Butler comes just two days after MU will (probably) be hosting DePaul at the Bradley Center, but based on the spacing of the next home game, they’ll probably head out on the road for the game after Butler as well.
The league’s Twitter says that the full schedule is coming at 11am CT on Tuesday, so brace yourself for that, y’all.