We are a little over half way through conference play in the Big East, and I'm very excited to see how the back half goes. The league is very competitive, with 8 teams sitting at 3 or 4 wins, making every game exciting and high stakes. It's ended up hurting the league's tournament hope, as none of them have established themselves as legit tournament contenders, outside of the top 2. It's certainly something to watch, and I will be doing that and tweeting about it on Twitter @ThreePointRange, so make sure you are following me there.
Thoughts
- Georgetown has been a pretty big surprise for me. I didn't think the Hoyas would be a factor in the Big East this season, but they have exceeded my expectations. I got to seen them live against Syracuse, a game which they lost on this play (Go Orange), and I was impressed them, but I thought it was just one good game. Instead, they have continued to play well in the Big East, currently sitting at 4-5, which is tied for the third best record in the league. Mac McClung has been garnering lots of attention, and rightly so, but Jessie Govan and James Akinjo are the stars of the show. Govan is leading the team with 18.5 points and 8 rebounds, while Akinjo is second in points with 14 a game and leads the team in assists at 5.2. They are ahead of schedule in my mind, and that's good news for Patrick Ewing and the Hoyas.
- As crazy as this is to say, if things keep going the way they are in the Big East, you could make a pretty convincing case that this is a two bid league. I'll get into it a little more in the Tournament Tracker later on, but right now, only Marquette and Villanova have tournament resumes, and they are also the only teams with winning records in the conference. In my power rankings, spots 3-7 could go any way, it really is just personal preference on my part to have them sorted out the way they are. I would expect another team or two to play their way into the tournament over the next six weeks, but right now, there are only two tournament level teams in my opinion.
- Butler got a big win over Seton Hall this weekend, taking down the Pirates 70-68 thanks to a strong performances from Paul Jorgenson and Nate Fowler, who had 18 and 15 points respectively coming off of the bench. Jorgenson had been struggling recently, so it was encouraging to see the sharpshooter find his stroke again, going 4-6 from behind the arc. The ending wasn't something LaVall Jordan will be happy with, and the Bulldogs allowed the Pirates back into the game after having a commanding lead. Credit obviously has to go to Seton Hall, and especially superstar Myles Powell, who scored 16 of his 21 points in the final 11 minutes of the game, but the run was largely brought about by sloppy play on Butler's end. I think both of these teams have tournament level rosters, but they haven't gotten the results to back that up.
- I have a lot more thoughts on Duke than I do on St. John's after their matchup, so I will write about it tomorrow in my ACC Breakdown, so be sure to check back tomorrow for my thoughts on that game.
Power Rankings
1. Villanova (1)
Record: 18-4, 9-0
2. Marquette (2)
Record: 19-3, 8-1
3. St. John's (3)
Record: 16-6, 4-5
4. Creighton (4)
Record: 13-9, 4-5
5. Butler (6)
Record: 13-10, 4-6
6. Seton Hall (5)
Record: 13-9, 4-6
7. Georgetown (10)
Record: 14-8, 4-5
8. DePaul (7)
Record: 12-9, 4-6
9. Providence (9)
Record: 13-9, 3-6
10. Xavier (8)
Record: 11-12, 3-7
What To Watch
- St. John's travels to Marquette for a rematch with the Golden Eagles. Last time they were matched up, the Johnnies won by 20 and they managed to keep Marquette's offense in check, holding them to 69 points (nice). A big part of that was limiting Markus Howard, as the star player for the Golden Eagles only scored 8 points. His counterpart, Shamorie Ponds, was a standout in that game, dropping 26 points, grabbing 7 rebounds, and dishing out 5 assists, all while taking on the bulk of the defensive work on Howard. The two teams are playing much different basketball since then, with the Red Storm going 3-5 since that game and losing by 30 in their last game, while Marquette hasn't lost since, winning 8 straight games. Based on that alone, you'd give it to the Golden Eagles, never mind the fact that they are probably going to make more than the 6 threes they made last time, and this one is being played on their home court. This seems like a Marquette win to me.
- In another rematch, Creighton will look to get revenge on Villanova for the 90-78 loss they took at home. The game was a three point shooting bonanza, with the Wildcats making 12 shots from deep, and the Blue Jays making 14. More of the same can be expected this time around, as both teams rank inside the top 20 of three pointers per shot attempting, with each team taking over 40% of their shots from three point range. Villanova was led by Phil Booth, who scored 28 points and had 7 asissts, and Eric Paschall, 21 points and 7 rebounds, in the last matchup, and there's no reason to think they'll do anything other than that this time, as both of them have been excellent all year for Nova. Creighton will be without Marcus Zegarowski, who broke his hand in their last game, and he is a key piece for the Jays, with a 10/7/7 performance the last time these two teams met. Given Creighton's porous defense and Villanova's conference best offense, this one seems like another high scoring Wildcat win.
- The main event of the Big East this week comes when league leaders Villanova travel to second place Marquette this Saturday. This figures to be an exciting matchup featuring two teams who have excellent offenses, and they both figure to be on display in this one. Not only are the offenses great, but so are the players, as Markus Howard and Phil Booth are contenders for Big East Player of the Year, and their supporting casts, with Sam and Joey Hauser for Marquette and Eric Paschall and Conor Gillespie for Villanova, are very, very good. A big factor will be the pace of play, as the Golden Eagles favor a much quicker tempo than Nova, who prefer a more deliberate pace, especially offensively. I think that pace will play into another key, turnovers. Marquette has struggled with them at times throughout the year, and they will not want to cough the ball up against a Wildcats team that rarely gives the ball away. More than likely though, this game will be won by the team who can make the most threes. I lean Marquette for that, as they are the tenth best shooting team from three in the country, and I'll say they pull off a big road win.
- Butler will be in the nation's capital to play Georgetown in a big time bubble matchup. The Hoyas will be looking to complete the season sweep of Butler, after beating the Bulldogs on the road 84-76. Butler held a large advantage on the boards, especially the offensive glass, getting 15 offensive rebounds. However, they were taken down by Greg Malinowski making 6 threes and scoring 26 points to lead Georgetown to the victory. However, he's really fallen off as of late, being held scoreless in two of his last three games and really struggling to find his stroke from three. I am still a believer in Butler's talent, especially Duke transfer Jordan Tucker, so I'm going to say they pull out the win.
- Creighton faces Seton Hall this upcoming weekend, and I'm really excited for this one. Both of these teams play at fast paces and play some great offense with shoddy defense, which means this has the makings of a fun game. The key here is Seton Hall's three point shooting, as outside of Myles Powell, they have been very hit or miss. If Myles Cale or Quincy McKnight can get hot from three, they'll be in good position to win. I don't think that happens, so I'll say the Blue Jays win this one.
Full Big East Schedule 2/4-2/9
2/5
St. John's @ Marquette
2/6
Georgetown @ Providence
Creighton @ Villanova
2/9
Butler @ Georgetown
Providence @ St. John's
Villanova @ Marquette
Creighton @ Seton Hall
DePaul @ Xavier
Tournament Tracker
Locks: Villanova, Marquette
These teams being locks has less to do with their resumes and more to do with the fact that I don't think they will lose enough games to drop into that mess that is the rest of the Big East, so they'll make the tournament no matter what. Villanova only really has one impressive win, over Florida State, to headline their resume, while Marquette has nice wins over Louisville, Kansas State, Wisconsin, and Buffalo, so they're in great position. Either way, thus far they have been running through Big East play, putting them in great position for a tournament bid.
In the Field: N/A
Bubble: St. John's, Creighton, Seton Hall, Butler, Georgetown, Providence
Wow this bubble is cluttered. As I mentioned earlier, none of these teams have managed to elevate themselves into the field yet, and I'm really interested to see who can get themselves into the field. The Red Storm beat Marquette, which is a great win, but have done nothing else of note thanks to a weak non-conference slate. Creighton has no bad losses, with their worst coming against Butler, but no good wins either, having only beaten Clemson and Butler. Seton Hall has two great wins, beating Kentucky and Maryland, but they got swept by DePaul and have struggled in the Big East. Butler has wins over Mississippi and Florida, but tough losses to Dayton, Saint Louis, and Xavier, so they'll need to get some big wins for their resume. Georgetown and Providence are barely on the bubble, needing lots of good wins to get into the field, which seems unlikely.
Out: DePaul, Xavier
Both of these teams have been eliminated from contention in my mind, and the teams above them on the bubble need to beat up on them in order to get themselves into the tournament, which so far has not happened. It will be interesting to see if these two stick with the pack or fall off in the back half of the Big East play.
Thoughts
- Georgetown has been a pretty big surprise for me. I didn't think the Hoyas would be a factor in the Big East this season, but they have exceeded my expectations. I got to seen them live against Syracuse, a game which they lost on this play (Go Orange), and I was impressed them, but I thought it was just one good game. Instead, they have continued to play well in the Big East, currently sitting at 4-5, which is tied for the third best record in the league. Mac McClung has been garnering lots of attention, and rightly so, but Jessie Govan and James Akinjo are the stars of the show. Govan is leading the team with 18.5 points and 8 rebounds, while Akinjo is second in points with 14 a game and leads the team in assists at 5.2. They are ahead of schedule in my mind, and that's good news for Patrick Ewing and the Hoyas.
- As crazy as this is to say, if things keep going the way they are in the Big East, you could make a pretty convincing case that this is a two bid league. I'll get into it a little more in the Tournament Tracker later on, but right now, only Marquette and Villanova have tournament resumes, and they are also the only teams with winning records in the conference. In my power rankings, spots 3-7 could go any way, it really is just personal preference on my part to have them sorted out the way they are. I would expect another team or two to play their way into the tournament over the next six weeks, but right now, there are only two tournament level teams in my opinion.
- Butler got a big win over Seton Hall this weekend, taking down the Pirates 70-68 thanks to a strong performances from Paul Jorgenson and Nate Fowler, who had 18 and 15 points respectively coming off of the bench. Jorgenson had been struggling recently, so it was encouraging to see the sharpshooter find his stroke again, going 4-6 from behind the arc. The ending wasn't something LaVall Jordan will be happy with, and the Bulldogs allowed the Pirates back into the game after having a commanding lead. Credit obviously has to go to Seton Hall, and especially superstar Myles Powell, who scored 16 of his 21 points in the final 11 minutes of the game, but the run was largely brought about by sloppy play on Butler's end. I think both of these teams have tournament level rosters, but they haven't gotten the results to back that up.
- I have a lot more thoughts on Duke than I do on St. John's after their matchup, so I will write about it tomorrow in my ACC Breakdown, so be sure to check back tomorrow for my thoughts on that game.
Power Rankings
1. Villanova (1)
Record: 18-4, 9-0
2. Marquette (2)
Record: 19-3, 8-1
3. St. John's (3)
Record: 16-6, 4-5
4. Creighton (4)
Record: 13-9, 4-5
5. Butler (6)
Record: 13-10, 4-6
6. Seton Hall (5)
Record: 13-9, 4-6
7. Georgetown (10)
Record: 14-8, 4-5
8. DePaul (7)
Record: 12-9, 4-6
9. Providence (9)
Record: 13-9, 3-6
10. Xavier (8)
Record: 11-12, 3-7
What To Watch
- St. John's travels to Marquette for a rematch with the Golden Eagles. Last time they were matched up, the Johnnies won by 20 and they managed to keep Marquette's offense in check, holding them to 69 points (nice). A big part of that was limiting Markus Howard, as the star player for the Golden Eagles only scored 8 points. His counterpart, Shamorie Ponds, was a standout in that game, dropping 26 points, grabbing 7 rebounds, and dishing out 5 assists, all while taking on the bulk of the defensive work on Howard. The two teams are playing much different basketball since then, with the Red Storm going 3-5 since that game and losing by 30 in their last game, while Marquette hasn't lost since, winning 8 straight games. Based on that alone, you'd give it to the Golden Eagles, never mind the fact that they are probably going to make more than the 6 threes they made last time, and this one is being played on their home court. This seems like a Marquette win to me.
- In another rematch, Creighton will look to get revenge on Villanova for the 90-78 loss they took at home. The game was a three point shooting bonanza, with the Wildcats making 12 shots from deep, and the Blue Jays making 14. More of the same can be expected this time around, as both teams rank inside the top 20 of three pointers per shot attempting, with each team taking over 40% of their shots from three point range. Villanova was led by Phil Booth, who scored 28 points and had 7 asissts, and Eric Paschall, 21 points and 7 rebounds, in the last matchup, and there's no reason to think they'll do anything other than that this time, as both of them have been excellent all year for Nova. Creighton will be without Marcus Zegarowski, who broke his hand in their last game, and he is a key piece for the Jays, with a 10/7/7 performance the last time these two teams met. Given Creighton's porous defense and Villanova's conference best offense, this one seems like another high scoring Wildcat win.
- The main event of the Big East this week comes when league leaders Villanova travel to second place Marquette this Saturday. This figures to be an exciting matchup featuring two teams who have excellent offenses, and they both figure to be on display in this one. Not only are the offenses great, but so are the players, as Markus Howard and Phil Booth are contenders for Big East Player of the Year, and their supporting casts, with Sam and Joey Hauser for Marquette and Eric Paschall and Conor Gillespie for Villanova, are very, very good. A big factor will be the pace of play, as the Golden Eagles favor a much quicker tempo than Nova, who prefer a more deliberate pace, especially offensively. I think that pace will play into another key, turnovers. Marquette has struggled with them at times throughout the year, and they will not want to cough the ball up against a Wildcats team that rarely gives the ball away. More than likely though, this game will be won by the team who can make the most threes. I lean Marquette for that, as they are the tenth best shooting team from three in the country, and I'll say they pull off a big road win.
- Butler will be in the nation's capital to play Georgetown in a big time bubble matchup. The Hoyas will be looking to complete the season sweep of Butler, after beating the Bulldogs on the road 84-76. Butler held a large advantage on the boards, especially the offensive glass, getting 15 offensive rebounds. However, they were taken down by Greg Malinowski making 6 threes and scoring 26 points to lead Georgetown to the victory. However, he's really fallen off as of late, being held scoreless in two of his last three games and really struggling to find his stroke from three. I am still a believer in Butler's talent, especially Duke transfer Jordan Tucker, so I'm going to say they pull out the win.
- Creighton faces Seton Hall this upcoming weekend, and I'm really excited for this one. Both of these teams play at fast paces and play some great offense with shoddy defense, which means this has the makings of a fun game. The key here is Seton Hall's three point shooting, as outside of Myles Powell, they have been very hit or miss. If Myles Cale or Quincy McKnight can get hot from three, they'll be in good position to win. I don't think that happens, so I'll say the Blue Jays win this one.
Full Big East Schedule 2/4-2/9
2/5
St. John's @ Marquette
2/6
Georgetown @ Providence
Creighton @ Villanova
2/9
Butler @ Georgetown
Providence @ St. John's
Villanova @ Marquette
Creighton @ Seton Hall
DePaul @ Xavier
Tournament Tracker
Locks: Villanova, Marquette
These teams being locks has less to do with their resumes and more to do with the fact that I don't think they will lose enough games to drop into that mess that is the rest of the Big East, so they'll make the tournament no matter what. Villanova only really has one impressive win, over Florida State, to headline their resume, while Marquette has nice wins over Louisville, Kansas State, Wisconsin, and Buffalo, so they're in great position. Either way, thus far they have been running through Big East play, putting them in great position for a tournament bid.
In the Field: N/A
Bubble: St. John's, Creighton, Seton Hall, Butler, Georgetown, Providence
Wow this bubble is cluttered. As I mentioned earlier, none of these teams have managed to elevate themselves into the field yet, and I'm really interested to see who can get themselves into the field. The Red Storm beat Marquette, which is a great win, but have done nothing else of note thanks to a weak non-conference slate. Creighton has no bad losses, with their worst coming against Butler, but no good wins either, having only beaten Clemson and Butler. Seton Hall has two great wins, beating Kentucky and Maryland, but they got swept by DePaul and have struggled in the Big East. Butler has wins over Mississippi and Florida, but tough losses to Dayton, Saint Louis, and Xavier, so they'll need to get some big wins for their resume. Georgetown and Providence are barely on the bubble, needing lots of good wins to get into the field, which seems unlikely.
Out: DePaul, Xavier
Both of these teams have been eliminated from contention in my mind, and the teams above them on the bubble need to beat up on them in order to get themselves into the tournament, which so far has not happened. It will be interesting to see if these two stick with the pack or fall off in the back half of the Big East play.
Comments
Post a Comment