I have a few thoughts on the always entertaining (unless you are lovers of offensive basketball brilliance) UConn/Rutgers games at the RAC.

First, the game resembled a WNBA game (and not just because the presence of referee Bonita Spence was guaranteed to provide at least three or four head-scratching calls) in the ebb and flow department. UConn got out to a big lead before Rutgers came storming back only for UConn to regain control before another Rutgers flurry led to the final UConn push. This is not a coincidence. Rutgers is one of the few teams on UConn's schedule (even though six of the teams in the last Coaches' top 25 poll played the Huskies) who can match UConn athletically. If Brittany Ray and Epiphanny Prince could have gotten anything going offensively, it could have been pretty interesting.

Montgomery and Tina Charles came up big as did Kia Vaughn for Rutgers. Just a side note, something tells me if Kia Vaughn is sitting there when the Connecticut Sun pick in the first round of the WNBA draft, she will be the choice. While her inconsistency should be a concern, physically she has everything the Sun needs in a post player coming off the bench.

I pity the Final Four caliber team which is sent to Piscataway for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament. In my opinion, Rutgers will be seeded somewhere between 7-10 meaning that either a No. 1 or No. 2 seed might have to play Rutgers at the RAC just to get to the Sweet 16.

Speaking of the postseason, the Big East tournament begins Friday with four games at the XL Center.

The Big East announced that single session tickets are now on sale
Session 1 (Fri. afternoon doubleheader) $20
Session 2 (Fri. evening doubleheader) $20
Session 3 (Sat. afternoon doubleheader) $20
Session 4 (Sat. evening doubleheader) $20
Session 5 (Sun. afternoon doubleheader) $25
Session 6 (Sun. evening doubleheader) $25
Session 7 (Monday semifinal doubleheader) $30
Session 8 (Tuesday championship final) $30

To charge tickets by phone, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. In addition, tickets can be purchased online by logging on to the XL Center website at www.xlcenter.com or the Ticketmaster website at www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets can be purchased through all Ticketmaster outlets, including Macy’s at Buckland Hills Mall and West Farms Mall are the two retail outlets are the closest locations to the XL Center.

Tickets can also be purchased at the XL Center box office beginning today. Weekday box office hours are Noon-5 p.m. For weekend events, the box office will open four hours prior to the start of an event. All ticket purchases are subject to additional convenience fees.

For group sales (10 or more) information and discounts, please contact the XL Center at (860) 548-2000.


Here is the bracket:
2009 BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Championship Field

Friday, March 6 - First Round (www.BIGEAST.tv)
Game 1 Noon.... #12 Syracuse vs. #13 St. John’s
Game 2 2 p.m... #9 Marquette vs. #16 Cincinnati
Game 3 6 p.m... #10 Georgetown vs. #15 Seton Hall
Game 4 8 p.m... #11 West Virginia vs. #14 Providence

Saturday, March 7 - Second Round (BETV and www.BIGEAST.tv)
Game 5 Noon.... #5 Notre Dame vs. Game 1 winner
Game 6 2 p.m... #8 USF vs. Game 2 winner
Game 7 6 p.m... #7 Rutgers vs. Game 3 winner
Game 8 8 p.m... #6 DePaul vs. Game 4 winner

Sunday, March 8 - Quarterfinals (ESPNU)
Game 9 Noon.... #4 Villanova vs. Game 5 winner
Game 10 2 p.m... #1 Connecticut vs. Game 6 winner
Game 11 6 p.m... #2 Louisville vs. Game 7 winner
Game 12 8 p.m... #3 Pittsburgh vs. Game 8 winner

Monday, March 9 - Semifinals (ESPNU)
Game 13 6 p.m... Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner
Game 14 8 p.m... Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner

Tuesday, March 10 - Championship (ESPN)

Game 15 7 p.m... Game 13 winner vs. Game 14 winner

I find it interesting that only top-seeded UConn and No. 13 St. John's earned the same seed as they were voted in a preseason ballot of the conference's head coaches.

Just a reminder that if you have cable, you probably won't be able to see UConn's first two games in the tournament since they will be carried exclusively on ESPNU so either come out to the XL Center or order either Dish Network or DirecTV.