Mat Mlodzinski gives his Big East basketball power rankings heading into week 7 of the 2023 season.
Matchup of the week: Creighton vs. Villanova (Dec. 20 – 9 p.m.)
Sneaky good matchup of the week: #5 UConn vs. St. John’s (Dec. 23 – 8 p.m.)
All games listed are EST
1. UConn Huskies
Last week’s ranking: 1 (-)
Record: 10-1 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. #10 Gonzaga (76-63)
Next week: at Seton Hall (Dec. 20 – 7 p.m.), vs. St. John’s (Dec. 23 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: North Carolina, Gonzaga, Texas, Indiana
Bad losses: N/A
UConn added another outstanding win to their resume, taking down Gonzaga by 13 points in a game where the Huskies were clearly the better team. Donovan Clingan was no match for Graham Ike, as the 7-footer went for 21 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks. If Clingan continues to perform at that level, UConn could be the first program since Florida in 2006-07 to go back-to-back as National Champions.
2. Marquette Golden Eagles
Last week’s ranking: 2 (-)
Record: 9-2 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. St. Thomas MN (84-79)
Next week: at Providence (Dec. 19 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Georgetown (Dec. 22 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: Kansas, Illinois, Texas, UCLA
Bad losses: N/A
Marquette struggled to put away St. Thomas, but because Big East basketball has been so top-heavy, there’s no way the Golden Eagles could move down in the power rankings. They’re clearly a top-tier team in the conference, and honestly, are allowed one game like that after the non-conference schedule they’ve already run through. Plus, Tyler Kolek won’t have many more 2-for-6 shooting nighs.
3. Creighton Bluejays
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-)
Record: 9-2 (0-0)
Last week: L vs. UNLV (79-64), W vs. Alabama (85-82)
Next week: vs. Villanova (Dec. 20 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins: Alabama, Iowa, at Nebraska
Bad losses: UNLV
Creighton was in jeopardy of moving down in the rankings after losing by 15 to UNLV, one of the worst teams in the Mountain West. But luckily for the Bluejays, they followed up the head-scratching loss with their best win of the season, over Alabama. Creighton held the Tide to 4-of-22 from beyond the arc, while Baylor Scheierman scored and passed his way to a 20-point, 9-assist outing.
4. Providence Friars
Last week’s ranking: 5 (+1)
Record: 9-2 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Sacred Heart (78-64)
Next week: vs. #6 Marquette (Dec. 19 – 8:30 p.m.), vs. Butler (Dec. 23 – Noon)
Quality wins: Wisconsin, Georgia
Bad losses: N/A
Providence moves up a spot simply for playing a Division I opponent. The Friars took down Sacred Heart by 14 points, improving to 9-2 on the season before Big East basketball play. Providence will have to limit turnovers if they want to stay in the top half of the conference. They’re averaging 14.4 TOVPG and coughed it up 18 times against SHU.
5. Butler Bulldogs
Last week’s ranking: 4 (-1)
Record: 9-2 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Saginaw (96-70)
Next week: vs. Georgetown (Dec. 19 – 6:30 p.m.), at Providence (Dec. 23 – Noon)
Quality wins: Texas Tech, Penn State, Boise State
Bad losses: N/A
Make it six straight wins for the Butler Bulldogs who are only five away from tying last year’s total of 14 wins. Of course, beating Saginaw doesn’t count for much else, but the Bulldogs are 9-2 heading into Big East basketball play. They’ll open with a winable home game against Georgetown before a clash with Providence which may really tell us who deserves to be fourth in the power rankings.
6. St. John’s Red Storm
Last week’s ranking: 7 (+1)
Record: 7-3 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Fordham (77-55)
Next week: vs. Xavier (Dec. 20 – 7 p.m.), at #5 UConn (Dec. 23 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: Utah
Bad losses: N/A
St. John’s bounced back off the Boston College loss with a 22-point win over NYC rival Fordham. Joel Soriano went for 20 and 10 and it’s become a conversation that he might be the best center in the Big East. Ryan Kalkbrenner is terrific, but Soriano has turned into a double-double machine. He’s collected 6 of them in the Red Storm’s 10 games. He could use a couple more in a challenging week featuring Xavier and UConn.
7. Villanova Wildcats
Last week’s ranking: 6 (-1)
Record: 7-4 (0-0)
Last week: No games
Next week: at #12 Creighton (Dec. 20 – 9 p.m.), at DePaul (Dec. 23 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: North Carolina, Memphis, UCLA, Texas Tech
Bad losses: Drexel, Penn
No games for Villanova last week as the Wildcats turn into their Big East slate at 7-4. Villanova enters with four very quality wins but can’t afford many more bad losses after falling to Drexel and Penn in the non-conference.
8. Seton Hall Pirates
Last week’s ranking: 9 (+1)
Record: 7-4 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Monmouth (70-61), W vs. Missouri (93-87)
Next week: vs. #5 UConn (Dec. 20 – 7 p.m.), at Xavier (Dec. 23 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: Missouri
Bad losses: N/A
The Pirates made good with their last chance in the non-conference, beating Missouri on a neutral floor – if you want to call it that – in Kansas City. Al-Amir Dawes caught fire in both wins last week, winning Big East Player of the Week. Can that carry over in the Big East opener against UConn? I’m sure the Hall hopes so. That’s not the easiest way to start conference play.
9. Georgetown Hoyas
Last week’s ranking: 8 (-1)
Record: 7-4 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Coppin State (71-54), W at Notre Dame (72-68)
Next week: at Butler (Dec. 19 – 6:30 p.m.), at #6 Marquette (Dec. 22 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: N/A
Bad losses: Holy Cross
The Hoyas seem much improved, if not for anything else than their 7-4 record. However, they ended non-conference play without any quality wins. Part of that is because they didn’t necessarily challenge themselves, but I also will not forget that the TCU game should have been theirs. Still, beating Coppin State and Notre Dame doesn’t move the needle. A win at Butler would change that.
10. Xavier Musketeers
Last week’s ranking: 10 (-)
Record: 6-5 (0-0)
Last week: W vs. Winthrop (75-59)
Next week: at St. John’s (Dec. 20 – 7 p.m.), vs. Seton Hall (Dec. 23 – 2 p.m.)
Quality wins: Saint Mary’s, Cincinnati
Bad losses: Oakland, Delaware
Quincy Olivari is nothing short of a scoring star, dropping another 20-point game in the win over Winthrop. It pulls Xavier back above .500 but the Musketeers will need someone other than Olivari or Desmond Claude to step up during Big East play. Dayvion McKnight has been a solid third fiddle, but without a consistent third scorer, it could be a rough start to the conference schedule.
11. DePaul Blue Demons
Last week’s ranking: 11 (-)
Record: 2-8 (0-0)
Last two weeks: L vs.#25 Northwestern (56-46)
Next week: vs. Villanova (Dec. 23 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: N/A
Bad losses: Purdue Fort Wayne, Long Beach State, Northern Illinois
Even when DePaul plays an outstanding defensive game and holds a ranked team to 56 points, they lose by 10. The Blue Demons shot 28.9% from the field, 18.2% from three, and only had 8 team assists. It has to be frustrating that they can keep Boo Buie in check on 4-of-14 shooting and not have it even come close to paying off.