Wow, who knew this was such a big rivalry? Boston College and Connecticut will face up in next season’s 2K Sports Classic at Madison Square Gardens and everyone seems excited. The winner will take on either Indiana or Washington.
While this is technically a “tournament” game, everyone is excited because this could be the first step taken to renew this former rivalry in both basketball and in football.
You see, back in the day Boston College was in the Big East and when they bolted, UConn’s head coach Jim Calhoun wasn’t happy about the way they did it.
From Yahoo Sports:
“We won’t play BC after they leave here,” Calhoun said at the time. “I have no desire to play Boston College. Not for the fact that they are leaving but how they did it. I will not play Boston College as long as I’m here.”
Well, Calhoun is no longer there and neither is former B.C. athletic director Gene Defilippo, who also swore never to renew the series.
The two teams have not faced off since 2005, when the Eagles defeated the Huskies 75-70. Overall though, Connecticut owns the series 54-35.
For Tom Donahue and Boston College, it’s a great move, especially for next season. The Eagles are a young team, but a young team on the rise. In fact, I think they are a potential sleeper to make it into the NCAA Tournament.
To help make this happen, they need not just wins, but quality wins on a neutral site (although I would expect a lot of Huskies fans at MSG). Connecticut is expected to challenge Memphis and Louisville for first place in the new AAC, so a win over them would be a resume builder.
