The ACC will have 15 basketball schools next season now And the mad dash to escape the Big East continues.
Notre Dame is the latest program to get out of the league earlier than originally planned. Therefore, the Irish will not spend one season competing against any of the incoming Conference-USA members (Memphis, Houston, SMU and UCF).
Notre Dame and the Big East reached an agreement Tuesday morning that allows the Irish to leave the league early for $2.5 million, ESPN.com is reporting; Notre Dame will join the Atlantic Coast Conference effective July 1, 2013. SI.com first reported the news on Monday night.
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It's no surprise Notre Dame wanted to join the ACC early; that has been its desire for months. Men's basketball coach Mike Brey said this weekend after what he expects was his final Big East regular-season game against Louisville, "I'm fully expecting to play in the ACC (next season)."
Next season, the ACC will have 15 basketball schools, including its three newcomers from the Big East: Syracuse, Pittsburgh and Notre Dame. Maryland will leave the following season, which is when Louisville will join.
According to SI.com, Notre Dame's departure fell under the same legal rubric as the Catholic 7's, who announced their official split from the Big East on Friday. That also allows the Irish to keep their NCAA tournament units — like the Catholic 7 did — which affects NCAA tournament payouts.
Also Tuesday, the Catholic 7 presidents announced that they will officially be taking the 'Big East' name for their conference, which will begin play this fall. In a statement, the presidents said the seven schools "have unanimously established the goal of continuing the storied legacy and time-honored traditions of athletic competition so closely associated with the Big East."
The Catholic 7 schools added that they expect information about their expected broadcast media deal, season-ending tournament and new members to be announced in the "near future." The league is expected to keep its postseason tournament in Madison Square Garden, and new members are expected to include Butler and Xavier. Creighton, Saint Louis and Dayton are also possibilities if the league expands to 10 or 12 members.
RANKINGS: THE TOP 10 BIG EAST PLAYERS OF ALL-TIME 
With the Big East Conference Tournament serving as a curtain call for a league of storied tradition and rivalry wars, USA TODAY Sports college basketball editors Daniel Uthman and Scott Gleeson rank the top 10 players in league history.
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1. Patrick Ewing (Georgetown): He led the Hoyas to a national championship in 1984 and two other NCAA title games. He averaged 15.3 points and 9.2 rebounds a game in four years at Georgetown. Ewing, a four-time defensive player of the year in the league, is still the only player in Big East history to be named a first-team All-American three times.
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2. Chris Mullin (St. John's): He was the Big East Player of the Year three times and led St. John's to the Final Four in 1985. As a junior, he averaged nearly 23 points a game while shooting 57% from the field.
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3. Walter Berry (St. John's): Berry, a junior college transfer, was more of a sidekick on the 1985 St. John's Final Four squad. Yet with Georgetown's Ewing and Mullin out of the picture, Berry took over as national player of the year in 1986, averaging 23 points and 11 rebounds in his senior season.
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4. Derrick Coleman (Syracuse): Coleman, shown here celebrating with Rony Seikaly in the 1987 NCAA tournament, helped the Orange reach the national championship game as a freshman, setting a record with 19 rebounds. He finished his career with 83 double-doubles and his 1,573 career rebounds ranks in the top five in the NCAA record books.
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5. Dwayne "Pearl" Washington (Syracuse): Washington had three stellar seasons at Syracuse, was an All-American in 1985 and became a fan favorite for his flashy playground style of play. He also led Syracuse to three NCAA tournaments.
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6. Allen Iverson (Georgetown): Always a scorer at will, Iverson averaged more than 25 points a game as a sophomore, becoming a consensus first-team All-American. Iverson is second in Big East history with 3.6 steals per game in conference play. He led the Hoyas to a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight finish in his time with the team.
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7. Carmelo Anthony (Syracuse): He came, he saw, he conquered. Anthony only spent one season with the Orange and led the team to a national championship in 2003 behind his 22 points and 10 rebounds a game. He was named the most outstanding player of the Final Four as a freshman.
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8. Ray Allen (Connecticut): He wasn't just a marksman in the NBA. Allen made nearly 45 % of his shots from behind the arc in three seasons with the Huskies. He averaged 21.1 points as a sophomore and 23.4 as a junior in 1996, when he was a first-team All-American and the Big East Player of the Year.
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9. Kerry Kittles (Villanova): He scored 2,243 points in college, a Villanova record. He also led the Wildcats to a Big East Tournament Championship.
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10. Alonzo Mourning (Georgetown): He took Big East Defensive Player of the Year three of his four seasons with the Hoyas.
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Long list of Honorable Mentions (in no particular order): Gerry McNamara (Syracuse), Sherman Douglas (Syracuse), Emeka Okafor (UConn), Ben Gordon (UConn), Kemba Walker (UConn), Donyell Marshall (UConn), Richard Hamilton (UConn), Ed Pinckney (Villanova), Sleepy Floyd (Georgetown), Reggie Williams (Georgetown), Charles Smith (Pittsburgh), Troy Murphy (Notre Dame), Terry Dehere (Seton Hall), Dan Callandrillo (Seton Hall), Andrew Gaze (Seton Hall), Ramon Ramos (Seton Hall), Eric Murdock (Providence), Ryan Gomes (Providence), Billy Donovan (Providence), Mark Jackson (St. John's), Malik Sealy (St. John's), John Bagley (Boston College).
Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY
