Chris Mullin outburst evokes memories of the old St. John's vs Georgetown rivalry at Madison Square Garden

It was — almost refreshingly — like the halcyon days of the Big East all over again when St. John's met Georgetown at Madison Square Garden Wednesday night especially when the Redmen's — I mean Red Storm's — head coach Chris Mullin had to be held back from going after the Hoyas bench in the second half of the opening game of this season's Big East Tournament.

Mullin stormed over to confront Georgetown coach John Thompson III after rough play between players under the basket escalated and probably rekindled the rough house style of play he remembers during the classic battles between the two teams back in the 80's.

With 8:35 left, and the eighth-seeded Johnnies holding a 59-55 lead in the hard fought game, a melee nearly broke out. After Amar Alibegovic fouled L.J. Peak hard on a drive, Peak got up, and got in Alibegovic’s face. Bradley Hayes followed by pushing Alibegovic. That was quickly broken up. But moments later, a fired up Mullin exchanged words with Peak then JT3 before being held back by his players. Alibegovic was assessed a flagrant one foul, and Mullin and Georgetown assistant coach Patrick Ewing Jr. were both given technical fouls.

Chris Mullin Making College Basketball Great Again! pic.twitter.com/k9CScjsqy1

— Busted Coverage (@bustedcoverage) March 9, 2017

Mullin's players responded by hanging on, 74-73, to give their second year coach his first postseason victory and the program it’s first Big East Tournament win since 2011. St. John’s will meet No. 1 Villanova in the quarterfinals Thursday at noon.

After the game, the two coaches shook hands like nothing happened but the names — Mullin, Thompson, Ewing — stirred up visions of Big East glory days past and might signal the resurgence of a new St. John's vs Georgetown era.

All we need is a little Carnesecca.

Georgetown the first college team to wear 'I Can't Breathe' T-shirts (PHOTOS)

They've already made their debuts in the NFL and NBA, and now, The Georgetown Hoyas are the first college team to wear "I Can't Breathe" T-shirts during their pre-game warmups.

The @georgetownhoyas are wearing "I can't breathe" shirts during warmups before Kansa game @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/lUoMEeCv2A
— Kristen B. (@KristenBerset) December 10, 2014

The entire Hoyas roster took its final pregame warmup Wednesday night in black shirts with white letters before their game against No. 10 Kansas. A team spokesman told ESPN.com the decision to wear the shirts was made collectively between the players.

The "I Can't Breathe" quote on the T-shirts are in reference to the last words uttered by Eric Garner, a New York man who died in July after he was placed in a choke hold by police officers for selling cigarettes on the street.

More #Hoyas wearing #ICantBreathe shirts prior to the game. pic.twitter.com/iZWxal7Vib
— Hoyas247 (@Hoyas247) December 10, 2014

It's sort of ironic that Georgetown is the first college team to join the"I Can't Breathe" movement with this public display of free speech because for much of the '80s and early 90's, coach John Thompson's Hoya Paranoia philosophy kept his players muzzled when it came to voicing their opinions to the media.

Although the Hoyas program — now coached by Thompson's son, John Thompson Jr. — was once an in-your-face symbol of urban culture in Washington, D.C. area, some things have not changed.

Only the symbolic Georgetown jacket has been replaced by a T-shirt — and it fits them well.