The best week of college basketball is upon us. Frankly, it’s better than the Final Four, which the NCAA foolishly has moved into domes where some seats seem to be in a different zip code than the basketball.
The Big East tournament is basketball as it should be, played in the Garden. It’s a college hoops fan’s dream come true. And it’s about to get better.
Later this year, the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, a stunning basketball cathedral, will open. The Barclays Center isn’t trying to kid anyone — the Garden is the Garden — but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for another elite hoops address, another court where kids, especially those in the greatest borough, the County of Kings, can dream about making that highlight basket or buzzer-beater.
“I’m very respectful of the legacy of the Garden and the place it has as an entertainment venue,’’ Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark told The Post on Thursday, before flying to Lexington, Ky., with his son, Drake, to watch Kentucky manhandle Georgia, 79-49. “As far as I’m concerned, the Garden isn’t on my radar.
“Our vision is for the Barclays Center to become a local, national and international destination,’’ he added. “We’re going to have the best teams in the nation here, and we’re going to give local colleges and high schools a chance to experience playing on the same court that the Nets and the greatest players in the NBA and performers such as Jay-Z and the greatest entertainers perform.’’
Barclays already announced Kentucky, which could be the reigning national champion, will play Maryland in the inaugural Barclays Center Classic on Nov. 9. LIU-Brooklyn and Morehead State will be the second game of a national/local doubleheader Yormark said is the flavor he wants to serve on a consistent basis.
The Atlantic 10 Conference, of which Fordham is a member, has announced it will move its league tournament to Barclays next year. LIU, said a source who requested anonymity because he isn’t authorized to discuss the matter, will play at least four home games per season in Barclays.
The same source told The Post that Michigan and West Virginia, a matchup teeming with subplots (primarily involving Wolverines coach John Beilein, who left the Mountaineers in 2007 to coach at Ann Arbor, just as football coach Rich Rodriguez did a year later), have agreed to face each other on Dec. 15 in the inaugural Brooklyn Hoops Winter Hoops Festival. Fordham will take on Princeton in the local game.
One week later, LIU and Seton Hall will square off in the Brooklyn Hoops Holiday Invitational, followed by Manhattan against South Carolina. Coaches vs. Cancer also will be played in the arena, which was constructed for basketball — there isn’t a bad seat.
Yormark, who played basketball at Morristown (N.J.) High School, where former Notre Dame and current Kansas football coach Charlie Weis was an assistant, and took a college course at Indiana taught by Bob Knight, said there isn’t a game he won’t consider.
“I want people years from now to be able to say that they went to an event they never dreamed they would be able to go to because it was in Brooklyn and it was priced right,’’ Yormark said. “I want them to be proud to say they went to the Barclays Center and regardless of where their seat was, they were treated like a celebrity.’’
The college players certainly are going to get that treatment. A source said the Barclays Center has signed an agreement with New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge to accommodate visiting schools.
Imagine coming to the Big Apple for the first time, looking out your hotel window and seeing the Brooklyn Bridge and New York skyline? Sweet.
Yormark has other grand visions. He wants to host a national high school triple-header matching three local powers against three national powers. He’s going to open the arena to local colleges for practices. He has hired the Disney Company to train all Barclays Center employees on customer service.
So come next March you can choose between watching St. John’s play in a transformed Garden or Fordham play in the new Barclays Center. If the schedules fall right, you might see them play in their respective conference tournaments on consecutive days.
It always has been great to be a college hoops fan in this city. And it’s about to get better — much better.
lenn.robbins@nypost.com