The top half of the Big East is loaded with teams who have second weekend potential
The UConn men’s basketball team ran through the Big East last year like no team in the league’s 45-year history had ever done before. The Huskies won 18 conference games in the regular season — a mark no Big East team had ever hit — then won three straight in New York to win their first Big East Tournament since 2011.
Not that there was much doubt before, but it became official at Big East media day last week: The Huskies are favored to win the Big East again.
But being favored and following through are two different things. The Huskies might have been the coaches’ unanimous pick to finish atop the standings, but they have plenty of competition.
Though only three Big East teams made the NCAA Tournament last year (fair or not), the Big East will open the season with three teams ranked in the top 20 of the AP Poll and two others knocking on the door of the Top 25.
From the usual suspects in Creighton and Marquette to a resurgent Xavier program and, dare we say it, a St. John’s team ready to contend, here are UConn’s biggest threats to their Big East repeat dreams.
Creighton Bluejays
Fast Facts:
Head Coach: Greg McDermott (15th season)
2023-24 Record: 25-10
Final 2023-24 KenPom Ranking: No. 11
2024-25 Ranking: No. 12
2023-24 in review
What does Creighton have to do to get over the hump? A year after just barely missing out on the 2023 Final Four with a one-point Elite Eight loss to San Diego State, the Bluejays again reached the second weekend last year, but this time, they couldn’t beat Rick Barnes and Tennessee in an NCAA Tournament game. The Bluejays had all the pieces. Ryan Kalkbrenner was no Donovan Clingan, but he was one of the most productive big men in the game (71% 2PT). Steven Ashworth, Mason Miller, and Baylor Scheierman, as UConn fans can attest, carried on the program tradition of back-breaking shooting. Trey Alexander was consistently brilliant through the last month of the season.
Ultimately, one of the most potent offenses in the game couldn’t get stops when it needed them. Forcing turnovers was a year-long problem for Creighton, and in that Sweet 16 loss, Tennessee coughed it up just four times.
2024-25 preview
Creighton is losing a lot, there’s no way around it. Without Alexander, Scheierman, and Francisco Farabello, the Bluejays will have a new look. Pop Isaacs (Texas Tech) and Jamiya Neal (Arizona State) were McDermott’s two big portal gets, and they’ll join returners Ashworth, Kalkbrenner, and Miller in the starting lineup.
The Bluejays also enroll a pair of ESPN Top 100 freshmen in Jackson McAndrew (No. 38) and Larry Johnson (No. 78). McDermott told CBS’ Matt Norlander at Big East media day that the team was a couple steps behind where it was last preseason, but that’s to be expected with new pieces and returners stepping into larger roles. McDermott also spoke about Kalkbrenner, telling Norlander that at this stage in his career, the big guy can’t afford to be the exact same player he was in 2023-24. He added to that in a discussion with Blue Ribbon.
“I thought he was better in every aspect of the game last year and that just needs to continue,” he said. “I’d like to see him be a little more efficient shooting the 3-point shot. I think that’s something that’s going to bode well for him moving forward after college basketball is complete.”
Kalkbrenner shot 30% from three last year on only 54 attempts. Expect that volume to increase as he prepares for the next level. He also has the potential to be the first player since Patrick Ewing to be named Big East Defensive Player of the Year in four-straight seasons.
On offense, McDermott expects jumps from Ashworth and Isaacs. Ashworth closed last season strong, averaging just under 16 points per game in the Bluejays’ four postseason contests. As for Isaacs, McDermott told Blue Ribbon he hopes Creighton’s offense can get him better looks than he got at Texas Tech, which will hopefully lead to an increase in efficiency.
Those hoping to get an early read on Creighton should look at the gauntlet the team has to run between Thanksgiving week and Christmas. The Bluejays will face San Diego State and Texas A&M in the Players Era Festival, then, after one more matchup, will face Kansas, UNLV, and Alabama in consecutive games before Big East play.
Xavier Musketeers
Fast facts:
Head Coach: Sean Miller (third season)
2023-24 Record: 16-18
Final 2023-24 KenPom Ranking: No. 56
2024-25 Ranking: No. 33
2023-24 in review
Sean Miller isn’t used to having a season like he did in 2023-24. Neither are Xavier fans, as the Musketeers ended with a losing record for the first time since the 1990s. Despite X going 16-18 with losses to Oakland and Delaware, they showed flashes of being a fun team. They played with the fastest tempo in the Big East, per KenPom, behind a pair of studs in Desmond Claude and Quincy Olivari. But any shot they had at the postseason slipped away with a four-game losing streak in February that saw the Musketeers miss out on resume builders against Creighton and Marquette. Their Big East season ended at the hands of the Huskies in a humiliating 87-60 quarterfinal loss.
2024-25 preview
The experts are bullish on the Musketeers. Especially so, considering they lose 10 players from last year’s team. Granted, that team wasn’t very good, but there’s no way around the reality that Xavier is entering the season with a ton of unknowns.
But Miller is no dummy, and he surrounded his returning stars, Dayvion McKnight and Zach Freemantle, with high-quality talent. That starts with junior Ryan Conwell, who transferred in from Indiana State. He averaged 16.6 ppg last year and was one of the best 3-point shooters in college basketball (40.7%). Big East coaches recognized him in the preseason as an all-conference third-team selection.
Dante Maddox Jr. and John Hugley IV should join the above trio in the starting lineup. Maddox is a transfer from Toledo with 1,200 career points to his name and the reputation of a bucket getter. Hugley is a post player who, Miller says, the team needs to provide elite rim protection. He’ll play alongside Freemantle, who has missed the last year-and-a-half with injury. Freemantle was second on the team in scoring before his injury in 2023 and is one of only four Xavier players ever to record a triple-double.
Marcus Foster (Furman), Basile Traore (Long Beach State), Roddie Anderson III (Boise State), and Cam’Ron Fletcher (Florida State) were Miller’s other big transfer gets. They’ll join Jerome Hunter as part of a deep supporting cast.
Marquette Golden Eagles
Fast Facts:
Head Coach: Shaka Smart (fourth season)
2023-24 Record: 27-10
Final 2023-24 KenPom Ranking: No. 13
2024-25 Ranking: No. 22
2023-24 in review
One year after Marquette’s magical Big East championship season ended with an underwhelming second-round NCAA Tournament loss, the Golden Eagles broke through to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2013. That’s where the ride ended, as Tyler Kolek and Kam Jones combined for 37 points but no one else did much of anything in their Sweet 16 loss to NC State.
While Marquette wasn’t quite as dominant in the regular season as it had been in 2023, the Golden Eagles were a major headache. They beat Illinois, UCLA and Kansas in the non-conference and lost a tight one to Purdue in the Maui championship game. In the Big East, they went 14-6, highlighted by an eight-game winning streak from mid-January to mid-February, which included season sweeps of Villanova and St. John’s. In March, they played UConn close in the Big East title game, forcing an ugly first 30 minutes before the Huskies pulled away.
2024-25 preview
Having Marquette ranked in the preseason top 20 despite the program losing cornerstone Tyler Kolek and big man Oso Ighodaro is a testament to what Shaka Smart has built in Milwaukee. Especially considering the Golden Eagles don’t play much in the portal and enroll nobody ranked in the top 75 of ESPN’s recruiting rankings.
That means Marquette needs to develop internally, and there are plenty of pieces remaining to put together another team capable of making a run in March. It starts with Kam Jones, named preseason All-Big East First Team. The rising senior was one of the best all-around shooters in the Big East last year but will need to do even more this year. With Kolek, the nation’s leading assist man, gone, Jones will play more point guard.
Stevie Mitchell will start alongside him. A lock-down defender, Mitchell still has room to grow with his shot, and his success from the outside could play a major role in determining how far Marquette can go.
Former Big East Sixth Man of the Year David Joplin, Chase Ross, and Ben Gold will also return, with Gold poised to move into the starting spot left by Ighodaro’s departure. That creates about as strong a starting lineup as you could hope for if you’re a Marquette fan. The only question now is how deep this team will be.