The Xavier Musketeers are expected to host the Houston Cougars in the 2023 Big East-Big 12 Battle, according to a report via Twitter from Jon Rothstein of collegehoopstoday.com.
Houston was a No. 1 seed in last month's 2023 NCAA tournament. The Cougars finished the season with a 33-4 record, losing in the Big Dance to the Miami Hurricanes in the Sweet 16 days after a first-round win against the Northern Kentucky Norse.
Xavier is 0-2 against Houston, with the losses coming on the road in Dec. 1977 and Dec. 1972.
Last August, the Big East and Big 12 announced a two-year extension of the series, which started during the 2019-20 season.
XU defeated West Virginia last December in the 2022 Big East-Big 12 Battle. WVU head coach Bob Huggins said before the two teams met that he doesn't "have any good thoughts of Xavier whatsoever."
Huggins, who was the head coach of the Cincinnati Bearcats from 1989 to 2005, said last month that he feels sorry for his former team, Houston and others joining the Big 12 Conference because they have "absolutely no idea what they're getting into."
Huggins' Mountaineers are scheduled to host St. John's, led by new head coach Rick Pitino, according to Rothstein. UC, UCF and BYU, soon to be members of the Big 12 along with Houston, are not scheduled to have Big East-Big 12 Battle matchups this year, per Rothstein's report, because there are only 11 teams in the Big East.
With additional wins against TCU (2019), Oklahoma (2020) and Oklahoma State (2021), the Musketeers' record in the series since it began is 4-0.
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