We’re roughly a third of the way through the Big East conference season and a clear big three of Marquette, Connecticut and St. John’s has emerged. They are somewhat safe bets to make the NCAA Tournament.
One game separates the three. Marquette remained undefeated after beating DePaul Tuesday night, while St. John’s, which held off Georgetown, 63-58, and UConn have only one loss, narrow setbacks on the road to Creighton and Villanova, respectively.
The three lead the league in every national ranking metric, from the NET to KenPom.com to Bart Torvik.
There are also Quad 1 opportunities at home and on the road for the rest of the conference, since the trio are also ranked in the top 30 of the NET, the sorting tool the selection committee relies upon.
They have yet to face one another, meetings that will almost certainty decide the regular-season champion.
The first such showdown will take place on Feb. 1 when No. 7 Marquette hosts No. 14 Connecticut. That same week, on Feb. 4, Marquette will visit St. John’s at the Garden and the Johnnies will then travel to Storrs, Conn., three days later.
A big few days for the top tier of the conference.
A few other takeaways on the state of the Big East:
CHECK OUT THE LATEST BIG EAST STANDINGS AND ST. JOHN’S STATS
Villanova is dangerous
The team that dropped November games to Columbia, Virginia and St. Joseph’s has come a long way in a few months.
The Wildcats have the look of an NCAA Tournament team, even if those losses may prevent them from getting there.
They have won eight of their past 10 games, with the lone losses at Creighton and St. John’s.
That includes a home victory over UConn.
Eric Dixon is the nation’s leading scorer, Miami transfer Wooga Poplar has hit his stride, and another transfer, Jhamir Brickus of La Salle, fits this roster well as a pass-first point guard who can make shots from deep.
The Wildcats will need a huge league season to go dancing.
Three wins the rest of the way against St. John’s, Marquette and Connecticut without another bad loss could get them in.
At the moment, I believe they are the fourth-best team in the conference, slightly ahead of Creighton.
Seton Hall is no pushover
The 6-10 overall record and 1-4 league mark may not say much, but Seton Hall is getting better.
Sophomore Isaiah Coleman is becoming a difference-maker, averaging 21.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in his last seven contests, and freshman guard Jahseem Felton has been a bright spot of late.
The Pirates have lost six of seven, but outside of the rout at Xavier, they were in all the other contests.
This feels like a team that can ruin someone’s resume, like Villanova or Creighton.
Will history repeat itself?
Last year, the Big East received only three NCAA Tournament bids, its fewest since 1993.
Seton Hall, Providence and St. John’s were all snubs. It’s not crazy to think it could happen again.
Creighton is firmly on the bubble, with Villanova right behind the Bluejays. Both are in good spots with their NET rankings, Villanova at No. 51 and Creighton 54.
Ultimately, I think Creighton gets in. They own home wins over Kansas, St. John’s and Villanova and don’t have a bad loss.
Creighton’s 2-5 record away from home is worrisome, and the Bluejays will need to be better on the road to punch their ticket.
One factor that will help the Big East: The Mountain West and ACC are done.
Last year, those two leagues sent a combined 11 teams to the tournament. That won’t happen this March.
