Marquette and Georgetown open Big East Tournament on Wednesday

How to watch or stream

Time: 3 p.m ET

TV: FOX Sports 1

Streaming: FOX Sports Go

Betting Odds

Line: Marquette -3

Total: 143.5

Well, we made it.

After a season littered with bubbles, shutdowns, opt-outs, and so much else, the Big East Tournament has finally arrived.

Adding to this year’s fun is the fact that, for the first time since 2012, the first round has more than two games. Since UConn returned to the Big East and the conference now has 11 teams, there will be three games in Wednesday’s first round instead of the usual two.

The first of those three games will feature the #8 Georgetown Hoyas (9-12, 7-9) against the #9 Marquette Golden Eagles (13-13, 8-11).

Both teams will need to win the Big East Tournament in order to see their season continue past this weekend, as there is no path to an at-large bid for either one.

With the exception of two losses to UConn, Georgetown finished the final couple weeks of the season fairly strongly, picking up wins over DePaul, Xavier, Butler, and Seton Hall.

Jahvon Blair led the Hoyas in scoring with 15.9 points per game this season, and Qudus Wuhab looks to be the next premier Georgetown big man at 12 points, eight rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game this season. Additionally, Chudier Bile and Donald Carey each shot better than 40% from long range this year. Turnovers plagued Georgetown, though, as the Hoyas come into the game with a turnover percentage of 22.1, which is 316th in the nation.

While Marquette’s struggled with consistency this year, there have certainly been bright spots. With 13.2 points per game, Dawson Garcia became the first freshman to lead Marquette in scoring since Henry Ellenson. Garcia also led the team in rebounding with 6.7 per game. Garcia had nine points and 14 rebounds in Marquette’s 64-60 win over Georgetown in the teams’ lone meeting this year on January 2, but it was Jamal Cain’s career-high 25 point outburst that led the Golden Eagles past the Hoyas in a game Georgetown led by as many as 18 points in the second half.

All things considered, it’s tough to project anything about this game. It’s one of those where you just hope it’s entertaining, not a blowout, and gets the Big East Tournament started with a bang.