DePaul coach Chris Holtmann saw his players take ownership of a goal this season.
The mark wasn’t necessarily winning the most Big East games since 2006-07 or earning the highest seed in the Big East Tournament in program history. But the Blue Demons did both of those things, finishing 8-12 in conference play to earn the No. 6 seed in this week’s tournament at Madison Square Garden.
“They just set out to say, hey, we want to move this thing forward in a really positive direction,” Holtmann told reporters Monday. “We want to leave a really positive legacy.”
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DePaul’s 16-15 overall record this season improved upon last year’s 14-20, 4-16 finish in Holtmann’s first season. The Blue Demons swept conference series against Marquette, Creighton and Seton Hall.
They’ll look to keep moving in a positive direction starting Wednesday, when they face No. 11 seed Georgetown in the first round at 8 p.m. on Peacock. The teams split two regular-season meetings.
Holtmann expects a physical game and said the Blue Demons need to be better on the glass and at getting to the free-throw line than they were in a 70-61 loss to the Hoyas on Jan. 28 in Washington. They also need to keep relying on a defense that ranks No. 38 in the country, according to KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency ratings.
Led by CJ Gunn’s 13.3 points per game and NJ Benson’s 11.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, DePaul was eyeing a top-five seed and first-round bye heading into the final week of the regular season after back-to-back wins over Creighton and Marquette. But they lost their final two to Villanova — seeded third in the tournament — and Butler at Wintrust Arena.
If DePaul wins Wednesday, it would get a rematch with Villanova in the quarterfinals Thursday.
“I know they’re excited about another opportunity, excited about the stage we’re on,” Holtmann said. “And they know Georgetown’s playing well and going to be good as well.
“We’ve got to have a great response in terms of the adversity of the game. Most times we’ve done that this year. That’s required in tournament play, and I know they’re excited about it.”
Here’s DePaul’s path ahead.
Big East Tournament schedule
At Madison Square Garden, New York
Wednesday’s first round
- (8) Butler vs. (9) Providence, 3 p.m., Peacock
- (7) Marquette vs. (10) Xavier, 5:30 p.m., Peacock
- (6) DePaul vs. (11) Georgetown, 8 p.m., Peacock
Thursday’s quarterfinals
- (1) St. John’s vs. 8-9 winner, 11 a.m., Peacock
- (4) Seton Hall vs. (5) Creighton, 1:30 p.m., Peacock
- (2) UConn vs. 7-10 winner, 6 p.m., FS1
- (3) Villanova vs. 6-11 winner, 8:30 p.m., FS1
Friday’s semifinals
- First two quarterfinal winners, 4:30 p.m., Fox-32
- Second two quarterfinal winners, 7 p.m., FS1
Saturday’s final
- Semifinal winners, 5:30 p.m., Fox-32