SEC–Big East Challenge

SEC–Big East Challenge
Conference	Big East Conference; Southeastern Conference
League	NCAA Division I
Founded	2007
Ceased	2012
Sports fielded	College Basketball;
Last; champion(s)	Big East Conference
Most titles	Big East Conference (3)
TV partner(s)	ESPN

The SEC–Big East Challenge was an in-season NCAA Division I men's college basketball series, matching up teams from the Southeastern Conference and the original Big East Conference. The event, which was held each season from 2007 to 2012, took place in early December each year, before the start of conference play.

The original six-year contract for the series expired in 2013 and was not renewed. This was likely an effect of the 2010–13 Big East Conference realignment, which resulted in the members of the original Big East splitting up into the football-sponsoring American Athletic Conference (marketed as "The American" and the legal successor to the original Big East) and a new, non-football Big East Conference in the summer of 2013.^[1] The SEC proceeded to establish a new series with the Big 12 Conference called the Big 12/SEC Challenge.^[2]

Format

Initially, each annual series included four games featuring four teams from each conference. The games were held as two double-headers in two different, typically off-campus, sites. Though most of the sites were not home arenas for the teams featured in the event, many were in the same cities as one of the participants. Madison Square Garden in New York City hosted a double-header in 2009 that featured the St. John's Red Storm, who use the Garden as their home arena for some games. In 2010, two games were held at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky, which served as the Louisville Cardinals' home arena until the KFC Yum! Center opened for the 2010–11 season. Other venues were occasional home venues for invitational participants. Villanova occasionally plays at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, where they participated in the first year of the Invitational in 2007 (when the venue was known as Wachovia Center). Pittsburgh occasionally hosts games in the Consol Energy Center since it opened in 2010, where they played in the invitational in December of that year.

Starting with the 2011–12 season, the format was changed to allow every SEC team to participate along with an equal number of Big East teams. This format featured 12 games over three days beginning on the Thursday after Thanksgiving of each year. The locations of the games were also changed; they were played at home campus sites with each conference hosting six games a year.

For the 2012 challenge, the SEC's new members Missouri and Texas A&M did not participate, while the departure of West Virginia from the Big East before the 2012–2013 season meant that only three Big East teams were excluded instead of four.

Team records

In the inaugural series in 2007, the Big East won three games to the SEC's one. The two conferences tied, with each team winning two games, in 2008 and 2009. In the 2010 series, the SEC won for the first time, three games to one. In the 2011 series, the first year with 12 games, the Big East won eight games to four. In 2012, the Big East won nine games to three.

Southeastern Conference (15–25)

Team	Won	Loss
Alabama Crimson Tide	0	3
Arkansas Razorbacks	1	2
Auburn Tigers	0	4
Florida Gators	1	2
Georgia Bulldogs	0	3
Kentucky Wildcats	3	1
LSU Tigers	2	1
Missouri Tigers	0	0
Mississippi State Bulldogs	2	2
Ole Miss Rebels	2	1
South Carolina Gamecocks	1	2
Tennessee Volunteers	2	2
Texas A&M Aggies	0	0
Vanderbilt Commodores	1	2
Overall	15	25

Big East Conference (25–15)

Team	Won	Loss
Cincinnati Bearcats	3	0
Connecticut Huskies	1	1
DePaul Blue Demons	1	2
Georgetown Hoyas	3	0
Louisville Cardinals	2	0
Marquette Golden Eagles	0	2
Notre Dame Fighting Irish	1	1
Pittsburgh Panthers	1	1
Providence Friars	2	1
Rutgers Scarlet Knights	1	2
Seton Hall Pirates	1	2
St. John's Red Storm	2	1
Syracuse Orange	3	0
South Florida Bulls	1	1
Villanova Wildcats	2	0
West Virginia Mountaineers	1	1
Overall	25	15

Results

2007

Date	SEC team	Big East team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Conference Leader
December 5	Alabama	#4 Georgetown	BJCC Arena (Birmingham, Alabama)	ESPN		Georgetown, 70–60^[3]	Big East (1–0)
December 5	Auburn	West Virginia	BJCC Arena (Birmingham, Alabama)	ESPN2	10,481	West Virginia, 88–59^[4]	Big East (2–0)
December 6	South Carolina	Providence	Wachovia Center (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)	ESPN2		South Carolina, 68–67^[5]	Big East (2–1)
December 6	LSU	#21 Villanova	Wachovia Center (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)	ESPN		Villanova, 68–67^[6]	Big East (3–1)

2008

Date	SEC team	Big East team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Conference Leader
December 16	Vanderbilt	South Florida	Sommet Center (Nashville, Tennessee)	ESPN2		Vanderbilt, 71–52^[7]	SEC (1–0)
December 16	#19 Tennessee	#23 Marquette	Sommet Center (Nashville, Tennessee)	ESPN		Tennessee, 80–68^[8]	SEC (2–0)
December 18	Mississippi State	Cincinnati	U.S. Bank Arena (Cincinnati, Ohio)	ESPN2		Cincinnati, 75–63^[9]	SEC (2–1)
December 18	Ole Miss	#9 Louisville	U.S. Bank Arena (Cincinnati, Ohio)	ESPN	9,522	Louisville, 77–68^[10]	Tied (2–2)

2009

Date	SEC team	Big East team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Conference Leader
December 9	Georgia	St. John's	Madison Square Garden (New York City, New York)	ESPN2		St. John's, 66–56^[11]	Big East (1–0)
December 9	#4 Kentucky	#12 Connecticut	Madison Square Garden (New York City, New York)	ESPN	15,874	Kentucky, 64–61^[12]	Tied (1–1)
December 10	Mississippi State	DePaul	St. Pete Times Forum (Tampa, Florida)	ESPN2		Mississippi State, 76–45^[13]	SEC (2–1)
December 10	#11 Florida	#6 Syracuse	St. Pete Times Forum (Tampa, Florida)	ESPN	9,353	Syracuse, 85–73^[14]	Tied (2–2)

2010

Date	SEC team	Big East team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Conference Leader
December 8	Arkansas	Seton Hall	Freedom Hall (Louisville, Kentucky)	ESPN2		Arkansas, 71–62^[15]	SEC (1–0)
December 8	#16 Kentucky	#23 Notre Dame	Freedom Hall (Louisville, Kentucky)	ESPN		Kentucky, 72–58^[16]	SEC (2–0)
December 11	Auburn	Rutgers	CONSOL Energy Center, (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)	ESPN2		Rutgers, 63–54^[17]	SEC (2–1)
December 11	#13 Tennessee	#3 Pittsburgh	CONSOL Energy Center, (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)	ESPN	15,166	Tennessee, 83–76 ^[18]	SEC (3–1)

2011

Date	Time	Big East team	SEC team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Challenge Leader
Thurs., Dec. 1	7:00 PM	Providence	South Carolina	Colonial Life Arena • Columbia, South Carolina	ESPNU	7,476	Providence, 76–67^[19]	Big East (1–0)
	7:30 PM	St. John's	#1 Kentucky	Rupp Arena • Lexington, Kentucky	ESPN2	24,119	Kentucky, 81–59^[20]	Tie (1–1)
	9:00 PM	DePaul	Ole Miss	Allstate Arena • Rosemont, Illinois	ESPNU	7,129	Ole Miss, 70–68^[21]	SEC (2–1)
	9:30 PM	Georgetown	#12 Alabama	Coleman Coliseum • Tuscaloosa, Alabama	ESPN2	15,383	Georgetown, 57–55^[22]	Tie (2–2)
Fri., Dec. 2	7:00 PM	#3 Syracuse	#9 Florida	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, New York	ESPN	24,459	Syracuse, 72–68^[23]	Big East (3–2)
	7:00 PM	Cincinnati	Georgia	Stegeman Coliseum • Athens, Georgia	ESPNU	6,796	Cincinnati, 57–51^[24]	Big East (4–2)
	9:00 PM	#6 Louisville	#19 Vanderbilt	KFC Yum! Center • Louisville, Kentucky	ESPN	22,728	Louisville, 62–60 OT^[25]	Big East (5–2)
	9:00 PM	Seton Hall	Auburn	Prudential Center • Newark, New Jersey	ESPNU	6,591	Seton Hall, 81–59^[26]	Big East (6–2)
Sat., Dec. 3	3:15 PM	#10 Connecticut	Arkansas	XL Center • Hartford, Connecticut	ESPN	14,333	Connecticut, 75–62^[27]	Big East (7–2)
	5:15 PM	#17 Pittsburgh	Tennessee	Thompson–Boling Arena • Knoxville, Tennessee	ESPN	17,249	Pittsburgh, 61–56^[28]	Big East (8–2)
	7:00 PM	Rutgers	LSU	Louis Brown Athletic Center • Piscataway, New Jersey	ESPNU	5,534	LSU, 55–50^[29]	Big East (8–3)
	9:00 PM	West Virginia	#21 Mississippi State	Humphrey Coliseum • Starkville, Mississippi	ESPNU	7,529	Mississippi State, 75–62 ^[30]	Big East (8–4)
First year that the invitational featured 12 games – All times Eastern Notre Dame, Marquette, Villanova and South Florida did not participate for the Big East.

2012

Date	Time	Big East Team	SEC Team	Location	Television	Attendance	Winner	Challenge Leader
Thurs, Nov. 29	7:00 pm	Notre Dame	#8 Kentucky	Edmund P. Joyce Center • South Bend, Indiana	ESPN2	9,149	Notre Dame, 64–50	Big East (1–0)
	7:30 pm	St. John's	South Carolina	Carnesecca Arena • Queens, New York	ESPNU	4,902	St. John's, 89–65	Big East (2–0)
	9:00 pm	Marquette	#7 Florida	O'Connell Center • Gainesville, Florida	ESPN2	10,245	Florida, 82–49	Big East (2–1)
	9:30 pm	Seton Hall	LSU	Pete Maravich Assembly Center • Baton Rouge, Louisiana	ESPNU	7,295	LSU, 72–67	Tied (2–2)
Fri, Nov. 30	6:30 pm	#20 Georgetown	Tennessee	Verizon Center • Washington, D.C.	ESPN	13,656	Georgetown, 37–36	Big East (3–2)
	7:00 pm	South Florida	Georgia	USF Sun Dome • Tampa, Florida	ESPNU	5,167	South Florida, 64–53	Big East (4–2)
	8:30 pm	#6 Syracuse	Arkansas	Bud Walton Arena • Fayetteville, Arkansas	ESPN	19,259	Syracuse, 91–82	Big East (5–2)
	9:00 pm	DePaul	Auburn	Auburn Arena • Auburn, Alabama	ESPNU	5,827	DePaul, 80–76	Big East (6–2)
Sat, Dec. 1	12:00 pm	Providence	Mississippi State	Dunkin' Donuts Center • Providence, Rhode Island	ESPNU	6,156	Providence, 73–63	Big East (7–2)
	2:00 pm	Rutgers	Ole Miss	Tad Smith Coliseum • University, Mississippi	ESPNU	4,277	Ole Miss, 80–67	Big East (7–3)
	3:00 pm	#17 Cincinnati	Alabama	Fifth Third Arena • Cincinnati	ESPN2	10,155	Cincinnati, 58–56	Big East (8–3)
	5:00 pm	Villanova	Vanderbilt	Memorial Gymnasium • Nashville, Tennessee	ESPN2	9,365	Villanova, 62–52	Big East (9–3)
All times Eastern Rankings from November 26 AP Poll. #5 Louisville, Connecticut and Pittsburgh did not participate for the Big East, while Texas A&M and #16 Missouri did not participate for the SEC.

References

[1] "SEC-Big East Challenge ends, commissioner says". USA Today.

[2] "News Archives".

[3] "Georgetown vs. Alabama - Game Recap - December 5, 2007 - ESPN".

[4] "West Virginia vs. Auburn - Game Recap - December 5, 2007 - ESPN".

[5] "South Carolina vs. Providence - Game Recap - December 6, 2007 - ESPN".

[6] "LSU vs. Villanova - Game Recap - December 6, 2007 - ESPN".

[7] "South Florida vs. Vanderbilt - Game Recap - December 16, 2008 - ESPN".

[8] "Marquette vs. Tennessee - Game Recap - December 16, 2008 - ESPN".

[9] "Mississippi State vs. Cincinnati - Game Recap - December 18, 2008 - ESPN".

[10] "Ole Miss vs. Louisville - Game Recap - December 18, 2008 - ESPN".

[11] "Georgia vs. St. John's - Box Score - December 9, 2009 - ESPN".

[12] "Kentucky vs. UConn - Game Preview - December 9, 2009 - ESPN".

[13] "DePaul vs. Mississippi State - Game Recap - December 10, 2009 - ESPN".

[14] "Syracuse vs. Florida - Game Recap - December 10, 2009 - ESPN".

[15] "Seton Hall vs. Arkansas - Game Recap - December 8, 2010 - ESPN".

[16] "Notre Dame vs. Kentucky - Game Recap - December 8, 2010 - ESPN".

[17] "Auburn vs. Rutgers - Game Recap - December 11, 2010 - ESPN".

[18] "Tennessee vs. Pittsburgh - Game Recap - December 11, 2010 - ESPN".

[19] "Providence vs. South Carolina - Box Score - December 1, 2011 - ESPN".

[20] "St. John's vs. Kentucky - Box Score - December 1, 2011 - ESPN".

[21] "Ole Miss vs. DePaul - Game Recap - December 1, 2011 - ESPN".

[22] "Georgetown vs. Alabama - Game Recap - December 1, 2011 - ESPN".

[23] "Florida vs. Syracuse - Game Recap - December 2, 2011 - ESPN".

[24] "Cincinnati vs. Georgia - Game Recap - December 2, 2011 - ESPN".

[25] "Vanderbilt vs. Louisville - Game Recap - December 2, 2011 - ESPN".

[26] "Auburn vs. Seton Hall - Game Recap - December 2, 2011 - ESPN".

[27] "Arkansas vs. UConn - Game Recap - December 3, 2011 - ESPN".

[28] "Pittsburgh vs. Tennessee - Game Recap - December 3, 2011 - ESPN".

[29] "LSU vs. Rutgers - Game Recap - December 3, 2011 - ESPN".

[30] "West Virginia vs. Mississippi State - Game Recap - December 3, 2011 - ESPN".

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v t e Big East Conference men's basketball
Teams	Butler Bulldogs Creighton Bluejays DePaul Blue Demons Georgetown Hoyas Marquette Golden Eagles Providence Friars St. John's Red Storm Seton Hall Pirates UConn Huskies Villanova Wildcats Xavier Musketeers
Championships & awards	Big East men's basketball tournament Big East men's regular season champions Coach of the Year Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year Most Improved Player Freshman of the Year All-Big East
Conference challenges	Big East–Big 12 Battle (2019–present) Gavitt Tipoff Games (2015–2023) SEC–Big East Challenge (2007–2012)
Seasons	1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24

v t e Southeastern Conference men's basketball
Teams	Alabama Crimson Tide Arkansas Razorbacks Auburn Tigers Florida Gators Georgia Bulldogs Kentucky Wildcats LSU Tigers Mississippi State Bulldogs Missouri Tigers Ole Miss Rebels South Carolina Gamecocks Tennessee Volunteers Texas A&M Aggies Vanderbilt Commodores
Future teams	Oklahoma Sooners Texas Longhorns (both joining in 2024)
Championships & awards	List of champions SEC men's basketball tournament Player of the Year Rookie of the Year
Conference challenges	Big 12/SEC Challenge (2013–2023) SEC–Big East Challenge (2007–2012) ACC–SEC Challenge (2023–present)
Seasons	1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24