PC Beats Butler in Big East Tournament, But Few Friar Fans Could Watch Game

PC Beats Butler in Big East Tournament, But Few Friar Fans Could Watch Game

The Providence College men’s basketball team won its opening game of the Big East tournament.

The Friars beat Butler University 91-81 on Wednesday afternoon.

That is the good news.

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The bad news is that the game was only available on the Peacock streaming service.

 

Limited Availability

As of January 2026, Peacock has 44 million paid subscribers in the United States, according to Media Play News and TV Tech.  The population of the United States is about 340 million.

The first five games of the Big East will air on Peacock and NBC Sports Network, including three first-round games on Wednesday, March 11, and the first session of quarterfinal matchups on Thursday, March 12.

The streaming deal was part of a bigger media contract announced in 2024.

“The Big East today is formally unveiling its new six-year media-rights pacts with Fox Sports, TNT Sports and NBC Sports, which was approved by school presidents. Allen & Co. and Proskauer were advisers on the deal for the Big East. Sources noted earlier in the week that the conference will see a moderate rights fee uptick. The existing pact was a 12-year, $500M deal with the Big East (an average annual value of around $41.67M),” Sports Business Journal reported in 2024.

 

Win Over Butler Fueled By Trio

The Friars were led by Stefan Vaaks with 28 points, and Jaylin Sellers and Ryan Mela with 23 points each.

The three represented 81% of the offense.

The Friars stroked the ball, shooting 52% from the field and 52% from behind the 3-point line.

The Friars will play St. John's, Rick Pitino, and Bryce Hopkins on Thursday at 12 noon.