Big East preseason poll

[HomerCecil]

1. DePaul (8) 79
2. Creighton (2) 67
3. St. John's 62
4. Villanova 56
5. Marquette 55
6. Georgetown 36
7. Butler 31
8. Providence 25
9. Xavier 20
10. Seton Hall 19

I guess the league didn't get word that Amy is out. The release reads, sort of embarrassingly:

Xavier was tabbed for ninth place. Head coach Amy Waugh, a former player and assistant coach for the Xavier program, introduces five letterwinners and seven newcomers for the Musketeers' first season in the BIG EAST. Senior guard Ashley Wanninger is the team's top returning scorer, averaging 9.3 points per game last season.

http://www.bigeast.com/sports/w-baskbl/spec-rel/101613aaa.html

[X-band '01]

Apparently they got the word that Georgetown's coach resigned; they didn't even mention their coaching situation since they don't even have an interim label for their coaching staff. I gotta wonder what this season will be like for the top teams who no longer have what amounts to guaranteed losses to UConn, Notre Dame and Louisville on an annual basis.

DePaul has been the most consistent winner among the C-7; it's not by accident that they're hosting the Big East Tournament in Chicago to cater to their fanbase.

[HomerCecil]

The Big East is definitely a top men's basketball league. It's definitely a bump up from the A10 on the women's side, too, but that has more to do with losing the bottom of the A10 teams than anything else. Dayton is probably going to be better than anyone in the Big East this year, but the challenge for Xavier will be finding wins against teams that aren't the likes of Rhode Island, UMass, etc.

And, frankly, the RPIs of DePaul, Villanova, St. John's, etc., are probably going to take a hit from not playing the likes of Connecticut, Notre Dame, Rutgers and Louisville 1-2 times during the regular season, as well.

Team (last year's RPI)
Big East
DePaul (26)
Villanova (28)
St. John's (39)
Creighton (41)
Marquette (67)
Georgetown (77)
Butler (123)
Seton Hall (198)
Providence (207)
Xavier (212)
Average: 101.8

A10 (teams that are in the A10 for 2013-14)
Dayton (12)
Saint Joseph’s (32)
Duquesne (36)
Fordham (69)
La Salle (81)
Richmond (103)
George Washington (154)
Saint Louis (201)
St. Bonaventure (216)
Virginia Commonwealth (218)
George Mason (289)
Massachusetts (301)
Rhode Island (304)
Average: 155.5

[X-band '01]

It's true that they'll take a hit on the SOS front, but if they're able to play the RPI game like their male counterparts, the top teams in the Big East should be fine. Creighton was also an NCAA team last year, and I would be hard-pressed to find a scenario where DePaul and St. John's miss the NCAAs. It's been a while since the A-10 was a consistent multi-bid conference on the women's side.

[HomerCecil]

Definitely agree this should be a 3- or 4-bid league. And with only 10 teams, that's a strong conference.