Basketball priority No. 1 for me this Saturday has to be the Big East Tournament championship game in New York City, especially if Marquette finds a way to play in it.

About 70 miles away in New Haven, Conn., an unlikely priority No. 2 will be the one-game playoff to determine which team will represent the smart kids and social elites in the NCAA Tournament.

For the first time since — well, ever — the Harvard Crimson earned a share of the Ivy League Championship, splitting the title with traditional Ivy powerhouse, the Princeton Tigers. Imagine Northwestern playing for the Big Ten championship against Michigan State.

And for the first time ever, I’ll be pulling for those haughty jerks from Cambridge, Mass.

If Harvard pulls it out, it’ll be its first NCAA Tournament appearance since the Truman administration, back when there were only eight teams in the tournament.

The fact that Yale’s Payne Whitney Gymnasium is serving as the “neutral” site for the biggest basketball game in Harvard history adds an interesting wrinkle.

For those not privy to the history of collegiate athletics, Harvard-Yale is the oldest rivalry in the country. They like each other about as much as Libyan dictator Muammar Gadhafi likes freedom.

As such, I want to see how Yale supporters react. Will they respect Harvard’s once-in-a-lifetime accomplishment? Or will their Bulldog pride make them boo lustily and openly cheer for the Tigers for the sole purpose of watching the tears stream down the brilliant faces of the Crimson faithful? I’m betting on the latter.

It’s sure to be a great sports atmosphere. And the winner will be rewarded with a first-round beat down in the big dance. Congratulations, Ivy League!