| Year: | 1980 |
| Firsttournamentever: | yes |
| Conference: | Big East |
| Gender: | Men's |
| Teams: | 7 |
| Arena: | Providence Civic Center |
| City: | Providence, Rhode Island |
| Champions: | Georgetown |
| Titlecount: | 1st |
| Coach: | John Thompson |
| Coachcount: | 1st |
| Mvp: | Craig Shelton |
| Mvpteam: | Georgetown |
The inaugural Big East men's basketball tournament took place at the Providence Civic Center in Providence, Rhode Island, in March 1980. It is a single-elimination tournament with three rounds.
Georgetown, St. John's and Syracuse finished tied for the regular-season championship at 5–1. In head-to-head matchups, Georgetown defeated Syracuse, Syracuse defeated St. John's, and St. John's defeated Georgetown, giving each team a 1–1 head-to-head record. The conference conducted a coin flip to determine to no. 1 seed in the tournament. The no. 2 seed would be determined by the head-to-head result.[1] Syracuse won the coin flip and was seeded first, receiving a bye into the semifinals; St. John's received the no. 2 seed by virtue of its victory over Georgetown.[2]
Georgetown defeated Syracuse in the championship game 87 - 81.
Most Valuable Player: Craig Shelton, Georgetown
All Tournament Team