The Catholic 7 Will Stay Under 'Big East' Banner, Will Add Butler and Xavier

The big news out of the college basketball world today is that the seven catholic schools that will be departing the 'Big East Conference' will still retain that Big East banner, sources told ESPN's Brett McMurphy, Andy Katz, and Dana O'Neill. 

Additionally, a source close to the situation says that both Butler and Xavier will be joining the 'Catholic 7' movement and there might not be any more movement after that. This obviously means that this basketball conference will feature Butler, DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall, Xavier, and Villanova. 

This is great news for east coast basketball. When it was suspected that these seven schools would leave, the Big East banner was expected to be no more and would be a deft blow to the east. Instead, now that they are not only retaining this Big East banner, but also adding two good basketball programs in the last decade, it gives them a good sense of relevancy, too. 

This is also a great move for the Butler basketball program, who has shifted from conference to conference over the last few years and continues to climb up the tier of status and relevancy. From being a small school in the Horizon League not too long ago, to the Atlantic-10 this year, and now to the 'Big East' Conference, Butler has done a terrific job of climbing up the ladder in the last few years. It, in all honesty, is incredibly remarkable.

Xavier will make out very well, too. Although they are down this season, there is no doubt that they have become a notable program since the early 2000's. The Musketeers have missed the NCAA Tournament just once since 2001 (2005) and may add to that this season, but with six Sweet 16 appearances, and two Elite Eight appearances since 2001, their brand is strong enough to make this maneuver from the Atlantic-10 Conference and give a boost to the Catholic 7.