UConn men’s basketball is the preseason favorite to win the Big East this season, with the Huskies earning the top spot in the preseason coaches’ poll. With the regular season just days away, it’s time to take a look at the entirety of the Big East, starting from the bottom and working to the top. Teams are in order of their ranking in the Big East coaches’ poll, with this preview focusing on the bottom of the conference — No. 9 Seton Hall, No. 10 Georgetown and No. 11 Butler. Each team’s respective preseason KenPom rankings are in parentheses.
Seton Hall (64)
Pirates head coach Shaheen Holloway is arguably one of the top coaches in the conference, but Seton Hall’s lack of funding prevents Holloway from doing much more than trying to turn water into wine. That lack of support expedited Na’jai Hines’ transfer from SHU to UConn, but Holloway found an admirable fill in with Devin Williams, who was one of the best shot blockers in the country last season with Florida Atlantic.
Holloway replenished this roster with nine transfers, including some Power 5 guys like Simeon Wilcher from Texas and Mihailo Petrovic from Illinois. The Pirates’ starting five figures to be all transfers, and it will be up to Holloway to mold it together.
Regardless of what happens, this Pirates team will be relentless on the defensive end. If Holloway can squeeze some more offensive production out of Williams, Wilcher and Radford transfer Del Jones, this team will be better than the preseason ranking pegs them to be. If one team in this tier greatly outperforms expectations, it will be the Pirates.
Projected starting lineup: Jones, Wilcher, Roddie Anderson, Elijah Fisher, Terry Copeland Jr.
UConn at Seton Hall – Saturday, Jan. 9
Seton Hall at UConn – Wednesday, Feb. 17
Georgetown (75)
This was a real quote from Hoyas head coach Ed Cooley — one of the highest-paid coaches in the conference — last season as Georgetown went on to a 16-18 record:
The Hoyas will likely be blessed with another mediocre season under Cooley. Georgetown did put together a strong backcourt in the transfer portal with the additions of Jaland Lowe (Kentucky), Elmarko Jackson (Kansas) and Vyctorius Miller (Okalahoma State), but none of those players earned preseason All-Big East honors. Depth is likely to be a problem, but big man Vince Iwuchukwu being ruled eligible is a big win for Cooley and the Hoyas. Chol Machot, a 7-footer who ranked No. 3 in block rate last season with Charleston, is long but thin and figures to be a key bench piece now that Iwuchukwu can play.
Projected starting lineup: Lowe, Miller, Iwuchukwu, Josiah Parker, Kayvaun Mulready
Georgetown at UConn – Wednesday, Dec. 23
UConn at Georgetown – Tuesday, Jan. 26
Butler (88)
The return of Thad Matta did not go as expected, with the Bulldogs going over .500 in just one of four seasons with Matta at the helm. That lack of success combined with a lack of resources led to Ronald Nored taking over the reins. Nored was key role player in Butler’s legendary 2010 and 2011 Final Four squads, and the hope is that a younger (and cheaper) coach will allow the Bulldogs to return to glory.
Jalen Jackson is back for one last ride after averaging 9.5 points per game last season before his season was cut short with an ankle injury. Eduardo Klafke is a talented shooter (42.6 percent from three) from Ole Miss who can’t do much else. North Dakota State transfer Treyson Anderson was an impactful player in the Summit League who struggled against high-major teams. Jordan Ellerbee from Florida Gulf Coast figures to be a key piece after averaging 13.1 points per game last season. It’s fair not to expect much from Nored and Butler this year, but there is some experience and size up and down the roster. If Nored can coach this team up, the Bulldogs may be able to avoid last in the Big East.‘
Projected starting lineup: Jackson, Anderson, Klafke, Drayton Jones, Asim Djulovic
UConn at Butler – Thursday, Dec. 31
Butler at UConn – Saturday, Jan. 23