The Big East may have returned to its once proud spot in the spotlight of college basketball.
At least in terms of storylines and energy, there's no conference in college hoops that can compete with the Big East entering this season.
Marquette brings back most of its Big East title-winning squad, and Creighton does the same with a team that reached the Elite Eight. UConn reigns as national champs, re-tooling for another run this season. Villanova has a chance to return to prominence. Ed Cooley swapped seats in conference. And Rick Pitino is back.
If there's a conference to earmark as the one to watch this season, you've found it. It may not have the depth of the mega-Big East of the mid-2000s, but with three real title contenders and several teams lurking behind, this should be the premier league in college basketball in 2023-24.
Big East Regular Season NCAAB Conference Title Odds
| Team Name | Odds (Via Caesars) |
| Marquette | +220 |
| Creighton | +260 |
| UConn | +300 |
| Villanova | +650 |
| St. John's | +700 |
| Xavier | +1400 |
| Providence | +3500 |
| Seton Hall | +5000 |
| Butler | +6000 |
| Georgetown | +6000 |
| DePaul | +10000 |
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
The Favorites
Marquette Golden Eagles
This is a team ready-made for a season atop the national rankings. Marquette won the Big East regular season title last year and toughed out three wins to claim the Big East crown at Madison Square Garden, before getting Tom Izzo'd in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Hey, it happens.
Four of five starters return, with the fifth spot simply filled by sixth man David Joplin, who scored 9.2 points per game in 19 minutes of action. It leaves a hole in production on the bench, but with five starters each expected to log big minutes, that's not as much of a concern.
The biggest issue for me is the loss of Olivier-Maxence Prosper to the NBA. "O-Max" was helpful offensively, but he was a cornerstone on the defensive end of the floor. His versatility opened up so much of what Shaka Smart likes to do defensively, and it could take some time for them to settle into an identity on that end of the court.
Ultimately, the continued growth of point guard Tyler Kolek and his tailor-made pick-and-roll partner Oso Ighodaro makes the Marquette offense a dangerous weapon.
Kolek has a chance to repeat as Big East Player of the Year, sparking a repeat Marquette run to the Big East title.
Creighton Bluejays
The Bluejays entered last season's NCAA tournament as a team with ambitions and question marks before rising to the occasion with a run to the Elite Eight.
Three of Greg McDermott's starters from that team have returned, with a fourth quickly replaced by an elite transfer. Expectations are once again sky high.
There are two variables that will define if the Bluejays can win the Big East or simply bounce around the top tier.
The first sits on the shoulders of transfer portal prize Steven Ashworth. Last season, he had a compelling argument as the best shooter in college basketball, hitting 43% of his long range attempts on more than seven tries per game.
He did that playing for Utah State in the Mountain West, a competitive basketball conference but undeniably a step below the Big East. If he can even come close to matching that level of production this season, he'll be the key cog in McDermott's offensive attack, and the Bluejays will have a real chance to win the Big East, or more.
If, however, the 170-pound point guard is bullied off his spots by Big East defenses, Creighton could get stuck in some offensive ruts, like it did at times last season.
The second question sits on the fifth spot in the starting rotation. Will we see Mason Miller (son of former NBAer Mike Miller) build on his 2.3-points-per-game performance as a freshman? Or will Virginia transfer Isaac Traudt thrive upon returning to his home state? Or is Jasen Green ready for the spotlight after a redshirt season?
McDermott and the Bluejays don't necessarily need to have all three of those questions answered with a "Yes," but they certainly can't go without one of those three names stepping into a key role.
Preseason, that totals more questions than I'd like for team priced under +300.
A November 30 trip to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State could be a nice test for Creighton in the non-conference slate.
UConn Huskies
It might seem odd to see the reigning national champs listed beneath two other clubs here, yet when you scratch beyond the surface, it does make some sense.
Let's remember first and foremost that this is a listing of chances to win the Big East regular season title. Last year, UConn finished in a tie for fourth in the regular season standings. At one point, the Huskies lost six of eight games in conference.
UConn also lost a handful of the key contributors from last season's title team, including Jordan Hawkins, Andre Jackson Jr. and Adama Sanogo.
That leaves a lot of production to be replaced, with Dan Hurley expecting returning players to play a larger role, in addition to adding notable transfers and some big name freshmen.
Donovan Clingan was a monster as a bench piece last season, yet never played more than 21 minutes in a game. Many are expecting him to have the kind of linear growth that we saw from fellow 7-footer Zach Edey, though Edey didn't make a real leap into the sport's elite tier until his junior year.
I'm a huge believer in Clingan's talents, but I want to see him produce at a high level — with the conditioning and foul avoidance to match — before believing in him as a game-changing player.
The biggest reason to steer clear of betting UConn right now is its reliance on freshman point guard Stephon Castle. He's a big time recruit with the pedigree and game to step right into the lineup, though again, I want to see it in action before committing to wager.
The three Big East favorites are going to jockey for position all season long. My play is to watch them in the non-conference and re-evaluate in a few weeks, hoping to catch any of the three listed at +300 or better with optimism that they can develop into a conference champ.
The Threats
Villanova Wildcats
In the debut season of the post-Jay Wright era, Villanova disappointed. The Wildcats started the season 2-5 and then did the same in Big East play.
A late-season charge made an at-large bid to the Big Dance look like more than a pipe dream. Villanova fell short, though, with losses to UConn (at home) and Creighton (at the Big East tourney) dooming the Cats to a year watching March Madness from home, their first since 2012.
Head coach Kyle Neptune caught a ton of flack, yet had the unenviable task of taking over a program built on homegrown talent in a year where the talent was either non-existent or often-injured.
Neptune responded this offseason, shaking up the Villanova program by hitting the transfer portal harder than Wright ever did. Four of Villanova's top nine players this season played college basketball elsewhere.
TJ Bamba (Washington State) and Hakim Hart (Maryland) were double-figure scorers in power conferences, Tyler Burton dropped 19 points per night for Richmond last year and Lance Ware brings the size and athleticism he often showcased at Kentucky.
The cadre of transfers join Justin Moore — now 23 years old and in his fifth collegiate season — who didn't quite look like himself last season after an Achilles tear in 2022. Moore is joined in the backcourt by sophomore Mark Armstrong, who played great for Team USA at the U19 FIBA World Cup.
That collection of pieces could make for a pretty picture, if Neptune is able to connect the puzzle. We'll learn about Villanova quickly, as it has four top-50 KenPom opponents locked on the early-season schedule (and more expected in the later rounds of the Battle 4 Atlantis).
I'm bullish on the Wildcats, as I simply see more talent and too much winning pedigree on the roster to ignore. I like them at this price.
| | | | | | | | | | |
St. John's Red Storm
It won't quite have the same impact we saw with Coach Prime at Colorado in college football, but Pitino's return to the big time sidelines of hoops may be the biggest story in the Big East, or anywhere in basketball.
Pitino boasts two national titles, seven Final Four appearances and countless other career highlights, offset by the lowlights that left him coaching overseas and in the MAAC for the last six seasons.
St. John's is turning its program over to one of the most successful college basketball coaches of the last half-century, fully aware of the risks that it poses.
Like Coach Prime, Pitino essentially cleaned house. Just two contributors from last season's team return, joined by a flurry of transfers (nine in total!).
St. John's plucked talent from the benches of UConn (Nahiem Alleyne) and Kansas (Zuby Ejiofor), but has its highest expectations for three small-school players jumping up. Daniss Jenkins followed Pitino from Iona, while Jordan Dingle (Penn) and Chris Ledlum (Harvard) both arrive via the All-Ivy League first team.
If Neptune has a puzzle to put together at Villanova, Pitino has an entire escape room full of tricks and riddles to figure out. His track record says he'll manage it, but early indications — like an exhibition loss to D-II Pace University — say otherwise.
I won't be betting St. John's to win the Big East, yet Pitino deserves a look on a game-to-game basis as one of the best tacticians in the sport.
Xavier Musketeers
Sean Miller will also oversee a program experiencing a ton of turnover. His backcourt will be made up of two players who scored 16.5+ points per game at lower levels, as those talents look to make a name for themselves in the Big East.
Quincy Olivari comes from Rice — alongside Dayvion McKnight from Western Kentucky — looking to replace last year's transfer portal-pick-turned-Xavier-star Souley Boum.
I'm skeptical of Miller hitting gold again, especially with returning big men Jerome Hunter and Zach Freemantle both expected to be sidelined for large portions of this season, if they suit up at all.
The Outsiders
Providence Friars
With Ed Cooley departing Providence for Georgetown, the Friars turn the program over to Kim English, formerly of George Mason.
It's an interesting hire that could look questionable quickly. English led George Mason for two years, not necessarily putting the Patriots on the map in the Atlantic 10.
He did pass his first test at Providence: keeping top talents Bryce Hopkins and Devin Carter on campus for another season. Hopkins should be an all-conference performer and he's surrounded by enough talent to challenge for a tournament berth, but count me as an English-skeptic.
In a league with a ton of great coaches, he'll have his work cut out every time the Friars step on the floor.
Seton Hall Pirates
Shaheen Holloway joined many of his conference rivals, battling among the depths of the transfer portal to build a roster this season.
Four transfers are expected to contribute for the Pirates, though returning guard Kadary Richmond will likely determine Seton Hall's fate. If he can grow on the offensive end, Holloway can scheme a defense able to keep Seton Hall playing in March.
If Richmond is inefficient as the lead guard, the Pirates could feel bogged down at times and struggle to score enough to compete with the better teams in the Big East.
Butler Bulldogs
The second year of the second Thad Matta era at Butler will also hinge on the play of transfers, with a hefty handful of newcomers slated to start.
None of the newcomers are really notable enough — or dynamic enough — to expect Butler to compete for a spot in the top half of the Big East this season, though a trip to Hinkle Fieldhouse will prove more difficult this season than it has been in recent years.
Georgetown Hoyas
Intra-conference coaching changes lead to some dramatic moments. Expect an electric atmosphere when Ed Cooley brings his first Georgetown team to his former employer Providence on January 27.
Cooley has a ton of work to do following the calamitous reign of Patrick Ewing at his alma mater, but nabbing Illinois transfer Jayden Epps was a great place to start. Reports from secret scrimmages have him playing fantastic ball, potentially giving Georgetown its first real star in years.
That's not enough to expect the Hoyas to sniff a winning record, though it must be nice for hoops fans in the nation's capital to finally have some hope.
| | | | | | | | | | |
And Then There's DePaul
DePaul Blue Demons
Amidst the hub-bub of conference realignment, not enough is made of DePaul's presence in the Big East. In 18 years of Big East play, the Blue Demons have just one winning record (9-7, in 2007).
DePaul has won more than one-third of its conference games just twice since joining the Big East.
Tony Stubblefield is trying to rebuild things in Chicago, but the Blue Demons are slated for the basement in the conference until they can prove otherwise.
