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Reports: Big East basketball schools weigh options

With other universities abandoning the Big East in droves, the conference's seven basketball-centric schools are considering their options for the future, multiple media outlets reported.

Officials from DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall and Villanova met Sunday with Big East commissioner Mike Aresco, according to numerous reports.

ESPN.com reported that the sides merely initiated a dialogue and that no plan of action was put in place.

With Syracuse, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Rutgers and Notre Dame (a football independent) all announcing their departures from the Big East, the remaining teams would stand to gain a windfall in exit fees. For that reason, the Sporting News wrote that it's unlikely that the seven basketball-focused schools would also abandon the conference.

The seven Catholic schools could consider creating their own basketball-only league, a source told the CBS Sports. The report said other big-time basketball schools that don't have major college football programs might be asked to join, a list that could include Butler, VCU, Xavier, Saint Louis, Dayton, George Mason and Creighton.