#TWITBE Ep. 9.7 - Guests Ryan Kalkbrenner, Stu Jackson and Mike DeCourcy

This Week In The BIG EAST Radio Show, distributed by Westwood One, continues its ninth season with guests Creighton junior center Ryan Kalkbrenner, BIG EAST Executive Associate Commissioner Stu Jackson and FOX Sports and Sporting News Analyst Mike DeCourcy.

The seventh episode of TWITBE reviews the past week of BIG EAST basketball, taking a deep dive into the league’s top contenders for the regular season title. As the home teams continue to dominate, the top four teams in the standings–Marquette, Xavier, Providence and Creighton–are currently 10-0 against each other on their home floors, in addition to being a perfect 30-0 combined at home in overall conference action. 

The BIG EAST Spotlight is on Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner, who entered the year along with his team with high expectations as the reigning BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. After an early season illness threatened to derail those expectations, Kalkbrenner and the Bluejays have stormed back into the BIG EAST and national spotlight. In the thick of the BIG EAST regular season title run, Creighton is No. 18/19 in the national polls winning eight of its last nine games.

The BIG EAST Focus shines on BIG EAST Executive Associate Commissioner Stu Jackson, who discusses how the race to the top of the BIG EAST standings is tighter than ever with only two weeks to go in the regular season. Also, with changes across collegiate athletics within the transfer portal and NIL taking center stage, the BIG EAST is constantly improving and evolving. Jackson takes the time to discuss these changes and the effects they have on college basketball.

FOX & Sporting News Analyst Mike DeCourcy gives a view on the national perspective. With conference play rapidly coming to a close, and conference tournaments right around the corner, DeCourcy talks about the pleasant surprises across the NCAA, as well as a few teams that have disappointed based off preseason projections.

The episode’s “Who’s Hot” segment features the return of “Blast from the Past”, rewinding the tape to 2011. A dozen years ago next week, before the new version of the BIG EAST came into being, Providence’s Marshon Brooks dropped 52 points on Notre Dame. It was the most points ever scored in a BIG EAST game until Markus Howard of Marquette scored 53 points against Creighton during the 2019 season.

The returning hosts for This Week In The BIG EAST (#TWITBE) are John Rooke, a longtime BIG EAST play-by-play voice, and Kevin McNamara, BIG EAST radio host, columnist and author. Rooke and McNamara give a comprehensive look at the teams, coaches, players and storied tradition of the top basketball conference in America in each episode.

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. 

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This will air Saturday, Feb. 18 at 11 a.m. ET on Sirius 134 XM 201 Online 964 leading into the Connecticut broadcast of Seton Hall @ UConn.