August. Three months before college basketball starts. Eight months before it ends. Some would call it the perfect time to drop Big East preseason rankings.
Even though I’m confident in these rankings, the Big East is gearing up for another year as a powerhouse conference. Some teams will undoubtedly surprise us this year, like last year’s Seton Hall team finishing fourth overall in the Big East.
And after absolutely dominating March Madness to secure their second consecutive NCAA title, UConn will be on watch to complete the incredibly rare NCAA title threepeat. The only team in history to pull off the threepeat was John Wooden’s UCLA Bruins, who won seven consecutive titles in the 1960’s/70’s.
Below are the teams looking to knock UConn off the mountain (all betting odds as of August 5th, per Vegas Insider).
#1 UConn Huskies (+125 to win the Big East)
Projected Starters:
- G Hassan Diarra
- G Aidan Mahaney (transfer from St. Mary’s)
- F Liam McNeeley (freshman)
- F Alex Karaban
- C Samson Johnson
UConn should be the undisputed favorite to win the conference (again). Any team around head coach Dan Hurley cannot be counted out. But despite losing four of five starters to the NBA draft this year, the team around Hurley is looking like a bonafide problem for the Big East once more.
#2 Marquette Golden Eagles (+800)
Projected Starters:
- G Stevie Mitchell
- G Kam Jones
- G Chase Ross
- F David Joplin
- C Ben Gold
If you’re looking for value, I would consider taking Marquette to win the Big East. However, I cannot in good conscience support betting against UConn.
Despite losing key starters Tyler Kolek (2023 Big East player of the year) to the Knicks and Oso Ighodaro to the Suns, I think Marquette has what it takes to succeed again this year. One big advantage they have is all five of their projected starters are returning from last year. They won’t have to worry about finding team chemistry like transfer-heavy teams will.
Additionally, Marquette has some serious firepower on this squad.
Kam Jones, dog. David Joplin, dog. All five projected starters got minutes last year. They might not land a 2 seed in March again, but I would be very surprised if they didn’t make it to the dance.
#3 St. John’s Red Storm (+500)
Projected Starters:
- G Deivon Smith (transfer from Utah)
- G Kadary Richmond (transfer from Seton Hall)
- F RJ Luis
- F Aaron Scott (transfer from North Texas)
- C Zuby Ejiofor
Are the Johnnies back? I think so. And I’m not the only one.
Legendary college basketball coach and commentator Dickie V has them in the Sweet 16 this year. He believes Kadary Richmond and Deivon Smith will form “one of the best backcourts” in college basketball. Note Kadary Richmond led Seton Hall to the 4 seed in the Big East last year.
Combine Richmond and Smith with returning St. John’s studs RJ Luis and Zuby Ejiofor and suddenly the Johnnies are serious contenders. One thing to watch out for, though, will be their size. For as good of a defender as Ejiofor is, he’s listed at 6’9 and I would expect him to have trouble against the likes of 7’1 Bluejay Ryan Kalkbrenner. Hopefully 7’1 USC transfer Vince Iwuchukwu can help SJU in that department off the bench.
#4 Creighton Bluejays (+375)
Projected Starters:
- G Steven Ashworth
- G Pop Isaacs (transfer from Texas Tech)
- G Jamiya Neal (transfer from Arizona State)
- F Mason Miller
- C Ryan Kalkbrenner
Creighton should have another good year in the Big East. C Ryan Kalkbrenner has shown he’s capable of exploiting any defense. And G Steven Ashworth has proven himself to be a true sharpshooter (one of us!), complete with the clutch gene.
But the key to Creighton’s second best odds to win the Big East might be Texas Tech transfer Pop Isaacs. Isaacs dropped 15.8 points per game for the Red Raiders last season, leading them to the 4 seed in a loaded Big 12 Conference.
My only concern is the loss of star F Baylor Scheierman to the NBA Draft, and undrafted G Trey Alexander to the Nuggets. Isaacs will help fill in as the next man up, but I am unsure if it will be enough to offset what the Bluejays lost.
#5 Providence Friars (+2000)
Projected Starters:
- G Jayden Pierre
- G Wesley Cardet (transfer from Chicago State)
- G Jabri Abdur-Rahim (transfer from Georgia)
- F Bryce Hopkins
- C Christ Essandoko (transfer from St. Joe’s)
Providence has a chance to finish above .500 in the Big East this season. They finished at 10-10 last season in the 6th spot.
But this season, we will see the return of star forward Bryce Hopkins. Hopkins tore his ACL early in January and missed the rest of the season for the Friars. At the time, they were 11-2 with wins over Marquette and Wisconsin, and Hopkins was averaging 15.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. He should be a force to be reckoned with this season, but it’ll be interesting to see who steps up after Providence lost star G Devin Carter to the NBA draft.
#6 Xavier Musketeers (+1000)
Projected Starters:
- G Dayvion McKnight
- G Dante Maddox (transfer from Toledo)
- G Ryan Conwell (transfer from Indiana State)
- F Zach Freemantle
- C Basile Traore (transfer from Long Beach State)
Xavier finished 9th in the Big East last season. Not good.
This season, however, will see the return of star F Zach Freemantle. Freemantle missed all of last season while recovering from his second foot surgery. Prior to injury, he averaged 15.2 points per game and made 14 of 22 threes (63%) on an Xavier team that made it to the Sweet 16. Hopefully his presence will be enough to offset the loss of G Quincy Olivari, who dropped 19.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game for the Musketeers last season.
#7 Villanova Wildcats (+1400)
Projected Starters:
- G Jhamir Brickus (transfer from La Salle)
- G Wooga Poplar (transfer from Miami)
- G Jordan Longino
- F Eric Dixon
- C Enoch Boakye (transfer from Fresno State)
Villanova hasn’t been able to find their stride since Jay Wright left. I think it’s safe to say head coach Kyle Neptune is on the hot seat.
However, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Villanova see some success this season. Returning F Eric Dixon and Miami transfer G Wooga Poplar should keep any defense’s hands full. But it’s important to keep in mind Villanova lost some key players this season, including G Justin Moore (pursuing NBA), G Mark Armstrong (pursuing NBA), and G TJ Bamba (Oregon). It’ll be up to head coach Kyle Neptune to make necessary adjustments in the wake of their absence.
#8 Butler Bulldogs (+4000)
Projected Starters:
- G Kolby King (transfer from Tulane)
- G Jamie Kaiser (transfer from Maryland)
- F Pierre Brooks
- F Jahyml Telfort
- C Andre Screen
Butler knows how to play tough. Don’t expect them to win the Conference, but don’t think a Butler matchup is a bye week either.
They took down Marquette, Creighton, and Texas Tech last year. Returning forwards Pierre Brooks and Jahmyl Telfort can hold their own against anyone. And despite losing star guards Posh Alexander and Dre Davis, Butler should still be competitive this season.
#9 Seton Hall Pirates (+1400)
Projected Starters:
- G Garwey Dual (transfer from Providence)
- G Dylan Addae-Wusu
- G Isaiah Coleman
- F Prince Aligbe (transfer from Boston College)
- C Yacine Toumi (transfer from Evansville)
From what we saw out of Seton Hall last season, I wouldn’t write them off completely just yet.
It will be an uphill battle for the Pirates after losing star G Kadary Richmond and key players Al-Amir Dawes and Dre Davis. I’m interested to see how head coach Shaheen Holloway handles this season.
#10 Georgetown Hoyas (+10000)
Projected Starters:
- G Malik Mack (transfer from Harvard)
- G Jayden Epps
- G Micah Peavy (transfer from TCU)
- F Jordan Burks (transfer from Kentucky)
- C Thomas Sorber (freshman)
It doesn’t look like this will be the year Georgetown gets back on track. They are still dealing with the fallout from the Patrick Ewing head coach era, when they went 6-25 and winless in the Big East in 2022, and 7-25 and 2-18 in the Big East in 2023. It’s proving to be a tough hole to climb out of.
But who knows, it’s almost an entirely new starting five for the Hoyas this year. And returning G Jayden Epps has shown us he’s capable of competing in the Big East.
I still think former Providence head coach Ed Cooley is the guy to turn this program around. I’m just not sure when…
#11 DePaul Blue Demons (+15000)
Projected Starters:
- G Conor Enright (transfer from Drake)
- G Layden Blocker (transfer from Arkansas)
- G CJ Gunn (transfer from Indiana)
- F JJ Traynor (transfer from Louisville)
- C David Skogman (transfer from Davidson)
Godspeed DePaul.
