Classification Division I | Teams 13 | |
Site Madison Square Garden
New York City Champions Boston College (1st title) Winning coach Jim O'Brien (1st title) MVP Scoonie Penn (Boston College) | ||
The 1997 Big East Men's Basketball Tournament took place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Its winner received the Big East Conference's automatic bid to the 1997 NCAA Tournament. It is a single-elimination tournament with four rounds and the three highest seeds received byes in the first round. All 13 Big East teams were invited to participate. Boston College and Villanova finished with the best record in the regular season. After tie-breakers, Villanova was awarded the top seed.
Boston College defeated Villanova in the final, 70–58 to earn their first Big East Tournament championship. Future NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb participated in the tournament as a reserve forward for Syracuse.
Awards
Dave Gavitt Trophy (Most Outstanding Player): Scoonie Penn, Boston College
All-Tournament Team