This Week in the BIG EAST - Weekly Overview of NCAA College Basketball's Top Conference

#TWITBE Ep. 10.2 - Guests Shaka Smart, Dan Leibovitz and Adam Zagoria

January 19, 2024 John Rooke & Kevin McNamara Season 10 Episode 2
This Week in the BIG EAST - Weekly Overview of NCAA College Basketball's Top Conference
#TWITBE Ep. 10.2 - Guests Shaka Smart, Dan Leibovitz and Adam Zagoria
Show Notes

This Week In The BIG EAST Radio Show, distributed by Westwood One, continued its 10th season with guests Marquette head coach Shaka Smart, BIG EAST Senior Associate Commissioner Dan Leibovitz and basketball insider Adam Zagoria.

The second episode of This Week in the BIG EAST (TWITBE) takes a look at Seton Hall and UConn’s fast starts to conference play, as well as how each BIG EAST team has fared on the road.

The BIG EAST Spotlight is on Marquette head coach Shaka Smart. Picked first in the BIG EAST Preseason Coaches’ Poll fresh off their 2022-23 BIG EAST regular season and tournament titles, the Golden Eagles (12-5, 3-3 BIG EAST) understand they have a target on their backs and are going into each game with a mindset to continue to grow as a team and fight through adversity. 

The BIG EAST Focus shines on BIG EAST Men’s Basketball Senior Associate Commissioner Dan Leibovitz, who joined the conference in May after spending the past decade working in a similar role at the American Athletic Conference and Southeastern Conference. Leibovitz discusses his role at the conference, as well as where his career began and how it led him to where he is today. 

College basketball insider Adam Zagoria gives a view on the national perspective. Stationed in the tri-state area, Zagoria talks about the buzz behind Seton Hall and St. John’s in New York and New Jersey and the positive impact he sees it having on the BIG EAST. 

The episode’s “Who’s Hot” segment features the return of “Blast from the Past”, rewinding the tape to 1994, when UConn legend Donyell Marshall scored 42 points against St. John’s in an 85-81 win at a sold out put Madison Square Garden. At that point, Marshall’s 42 points set a BIG EAST scoring record, while his 20-for-20 performance at the free-throw line still stands as the best mark in league history. “Who’s Got Next?” takes a look at the upcoming schedule, highlighting the big matchups. 

To join the conversation and send questions to Rooke (@JRbroadcaster) and McNamara (@KevinMcNamara33), use #TWITBE on Twitter. Fans may submit questions to be featured on the show. 

Please subscribe, rate and review to keep #TWITBE top of the podcast charts.

This will air Saturday, Jan. 20 at 11 a.m. ET on Sirius 139 XM 201 Online 964 leading into the Creighton men’s basketball broadcast of No. 18 Creighton @ Seton Hall.