Here's some quick thoughts on each team, and a projected order of finish...this, of course, is subject to significant change based on early entrants, transfers, etc.:
1. Villanova - if everyone is back, top 5 team. Will face a stiff test from Xavier, but no reason to think this team can't/won't repeat as BE champs. If Hart leaves, possibly down to #2, but that's about it. Carrying the banner for the BE for years to come.
2. Xavier - Top 5 caliber team with everyone back, and I think Blueitt will be back. With or without him, they are loaded: Sumner, Reynolds, Macura, Davis, Gates are all back, and they are picking up a really good class as well. Will have two BE teams near the top of the AP poll all season next year also.
3. Seton Hall - this depends entirely on Whitehead's decision. If he comes back, Seton Hall will be ranked all season and will push for Top 10 consideration. If he leaves, they really fall off. No one else can run the point for that team unless Carrington makes major strides with the ball. With Whitehead, the Big East 1-3 is as strong as any in the country. Without him, maybe a mid-pack BE team and the conference really falls off after VU/XU.
4. Creighton - Love this team next season. They lose Groselle and Milliken, but Cole Huff could be a star and Watson could be all BE. Zierden is still around as a sniper too. Kaleb Joseph just transferred in too (although he needs to sit out next season), and they already have three commits for 2017. Think this is a program on the rise - McDermott is doing a great job in the post-McBuckets era. NCAA tournament caliber team next season and potentially beyond.
5. Butler - losing Dunham and Jones really hurts. Kelan Martin stepping up last year was huge, but he'll need to do a lot of it himself next season. Chrabacsz needs to establish himself as a consistent scorer as well. Two frosh this year barely saw any time, so they may make an impact. You know they'll defend - question for me is the scoring outside of Martin.
6. Providence - we know Dunn is going, depends on what Bentil does as well. If he's back, the team can still make some noise, especially at home, and could challenge for an NCAA berth. Bentil/Bullock isn't a bad 1-2 punch. If he goes, it's going to be a tough year. I like Cartwright to come in and make an impact for them, and potentially Jalen Lindsay as a step-up candidate as well. No seniors on the team this past season.
7. Georgetown - unbelievable, but they are a clear seventh in the pecking order, and maybe not even that high. Possibly the sleeper team in the conference though - Peak, Copeland, and Campbell are a good nucleus that could be freed up by DSR graduating. There is way too much talent here to ignore, but they were putrid last year and get very little help, although they do get Paul White back from surgery.
8. Marquette - some are much higher on this team than me...I'm just not seeing it. Ellenson was the absolute focal point of that team and everyone else deferred to him. Without Ellenson, I'm seeing a team without an identity, at least for next year. They are young, though, and they are getting talent in Markus Howard and Reinhardt from USC. Maybe a year away.
9. St. John's - nowhere to go but up, and I think they'll be better. Found their identity toward the end of the season and almost (perhaps, should have) knocked off Seton Hall right before the BET. New recruits coming in will help a ton. Still not good, but trending upward. Give them another year to see how the pieces fit.
10. DePaul - don't know what to say. An awful team last season loses arguably its three best players, Garrett seems completely uninterested, and the coaches are out of whack. New arena might foster some interest but it's a year away. Another long year ...let's just hope the game at DePaul comes late in the season, and on a weekend, so that a road trip might be warm enough to join.
1. Villanova - if everyone is back, top 5 team. Will face a stiff test from Xavier, but no reason to think this team can't/won't repeat as BE champs. If Hart leaves, possibly down to #2, but that's about it. Carrying the banner for the BE for years to come.
2. Xavier - Top 5 caliber team with everyone back, and I think Blueitt will be back. With or without him, they are loaded: Sumner, Reynolds, Macura, Davis, Gates are all back, and they are picking up a really good class as well. Will have two BE teams near the top of the AP poll all season next year also.
3. Seton Hall - this depends entirely on Whitehead's decision. If he comes back, Seton Hall will be ranked all season and will push for Top 10 consideration. If he leaves, they really fall off. No one else can run the point for that team unless Carrington makes major strides with the ball. With Whitehead, the Big East 1-3 is as strong as any in the country. Without him, maybe a mid-pack BE team and the conference really falls off after VU/XU.
4. Creighton - Love this team next season. They lose Groselle and Milliken, but Cole Huff could be a star and Watson could be all BE. Zierden is still around as a sniper too. Kaleb Joseph just transferred in too (although he needs to sit out next season), and they already have three commits for 2017. Think this is a program on the rise - McDermott is doing a great job in the post-McBuckets era. NCAA tournament caliber team next season and potentially beyond.
5. Butler - losing Dunham and Jones really hurts. Kelan Martin stepping up last year was huge, but he'll need to do a lot of it himself next season. Chrabacsz needs to establish himself as a consistent scorer as well. Two frosh this year barely saw any time, so they may make an impact. You know they'll defend - question for me is the scoring outside of Martin.
6. Providence - we know Dunn is going, depends on what Bentil does as well. If he's back, the team can still make some noise, especially at home, and could challenge for an NCAA berth. Bentil/Bullock isn't a bad 1-2 punch. If he goes, it's going to be a tough year. I like Cartwright to come in and make an impact for them, and potentially Jalen Lindsay as a step-up candidate as well. No seniors on the team this past season.
7. Georgetown - unbelievable, but they are a clear seventh in the pecking order, and maybe not even that high. Possibly the sleeper team in the conference though - Peak, Copeland, and Campbell are a good nucleus that could be freed up by DSR graduating. There is way too much talent here to ignore, but they were putrid last year and get very little help, although they do get Paul White back from surgery.
8. Marquette - some are much higher on this team than me...I'm just not seeing it. Ellenson was the absolute focal point of that team and everyone else deferred to him. Without Ellenson, I'm seeing a team without an identity, at least for next year. They are young, though, and they are getting talent in Markus Howard and Reinhardt from USC. Maybe a year away.
9. St. John's - nowhere to go but up, and I think they'll be better. Found their identity toward the end of the season and almost (perhaps, should have) knocked off Seton Hall right before the BET. New recruits coming in will help a ton. Still not good, but trending upward. Give them another year to see how the pieces fit.
10. DePaul - don't know what to say. An awful team last season loses arguably its three best players, Garrett seems completely uninterested, and the coaches are out of whack. New arena might foster some interest but it's a year away. Another long year ...let's just hope the game at DePaul comes late in the season, and on a weekend, so that a road trip might be warm enough to join.
