The Big East had an interesting season. Differing from year's past, they have plenty of teams locked into the tournament, with not many in the middle. In this article, we will breakdown who those teams are, and how they got there.
Tier I: Top 4 Seed Locks
UConn: The Huskies have dominated the Big East all season long, and I doubt they stop now. They are a high speed train, ready to roll through the Big East tournament and into March Madness to defend their title. Although there are other strong teams in the conference, none compare to UConn's talent and chemistry, leaving no viable opponents. Barring a shocking early exit in MSG, Dan Hurley's squad should earn themselves a one seed.
Marquette: The Golden Eagles have had an up and down season, but with a strong conference tournament, they could lock themselves into a 2 seed. They have fallen to UConn twice and Creighton once, and will need a win against the Blue Jays if they hope to make it to the finals, which they may just need. As long as Marquette makes it to the semifinal, they should be good for a 3 seed, but something tells me they want more than that.
Creighton: This team, unlike Marquette, was able to best UConn while also falling to them once. But going 2-2 against the #2 and #10 teams in the country is something I am sure every coach in the country would be (at least) okay with. They hold the #2 seed in the Big East tournament after collecting big wins vs. Marquette and Villanova at the end of the season, and if they can get to the semifinals their, then they should be good for a 2 seed.
Tier II: Should be In
Seton Hall: Holding the #4 seed in the Big East Tournament, Seton Hall may need to win just one game to get in, but they want the momentum of not just taking down St. Johns, but UConn as well. With that victory, they would clinch a conference finals berth, and it would certainly boost their seed in March Madness, giving them more time to get ready before playing a higher seed. I believe they have done enough in the regular season to not have to stress in New York, but a loss to the Red Storm would certainly lead to a nerve racking 4 days.
Tier III: Outside the Bubble
Villanova: Late in the season, Nova made a push and looked like they would get in. Even later in the season, they dropped 2 straight games to round out the year and pushed themselves right back into Joe Lunardi's first four out. They have an easy first round matchup against Depaul, and if they can win there and carry that momentum on into the semifinals or finals, they could be going dancing for the first time in the post Jay Wright era.
St. Johns: As was before mentioned, St. Johns has an important first round matchup against Seton Hall that they certainly need to win. Even if they win that, though, nothing is determined. They may need another HUGE win against #2 overall UConn to secure their spot in March Madness. They had a good enough regular season to the point where they still have a chance in Mid-March, but I am sure every member of this team would prefer to be locked in rather than on the bubble.
Providence: The big story of Providence's season has been an inability to capitalize on big games. The Friars have gone 3-9 against the top 6 teams in the conference (every team above them in this list). The bright side? They play #10 seeded Georgetown in the first round of the Big East tournament, and then Marquette, who they actually have beaten this year. With two wins there, they could be in. But that second one is no easy task.
Tier IV: Need an Auto Bid
Butler
Xavier
Georgetown
Tier V: Depaul
Depaul: They are 0-20 in the Big East and are riding a 19 game losing streak. Read that again, because there was no typo.
-Eli Knight
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