James Stowell gives his week 17 picks for each team in the Big East basketball power rankings.
Week 16 team of the week: St. John’s Red Storm
Week 16 game of the week: Creighton over UConn (91-84)
Week 16 player of the week: Josh Dix, Creighton
Week 17 matchup of the week: #6 UConn vs. #15 St. John’s (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.)
Week 17 under-the-radar matchup of the week: Villanova vs. Butler (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.)
All games are listed as EST.
1. St. John’s Red Storm
Last week’s ranking: 2 (+1)
Record: 22-5 (15-1)
Last week: W at Marquette (76-70), W vs. Creighton (81-52)
Next week: at #6 UConn (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.), vs. Villanova (Feb. 28 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: UConn, at Villanova, Seton Hall
Bad losses: Providence
For the first time this season, a team other than UConn is on top of the Big East basketball power rankings. The St. John’s Red Storm take their place on top of the Big East and extended their winning streak to 13 games.
They faced a tough matchup against a surprising opponent in Marquette, squeezing past them late in the game and staving off multiple comeback attempts.
Bryce Hopkins recorded a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds while shooting 8-14 (57.1%) from the field, 1-3 (33.3%) from downtown, and 6-7 (85.7%) at the line.
2. UConn Huskies
Last week’s ranking: 1 (-)
Record: 25-3 (15-2)
Last week: L vs. Creighton (84-91), W at Villanova (73-63)
Next week: vs. #15 St. John’s (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.), vs. Seton Hall (Feb. 28 – Noon)
Quality wins: at Kansas, Illinois (Neutral), Florida (Neutral), BYU (Neutral), Villanova (2x), at Seton Hall, Texas
Bad losses: N/A
For the first time this season, UConn falls from the top spot. Despite a dominating win over Villanova, the Huskies had trouble against Creighton at home, losing in a close matchup.
Their defense had trouble stopping the Bluejays from both the perimeter and the glass, as their opponents shot 10-21 (48%) from downtown and outrebounded the Huskies 41-35 (37-27 defensively).
Another key factor was poor free-throw shooting, as the team converted 11-18 (61%) of their attempts at the stripe.
The Huskies have a chance to take back the top spot with their upcoming rematch with St. John’s at home this week.
3. Villanova Wildcats
Last week’s ranking: 3 (-)
Record: 21-6 (12-4)
Last week: W at Xavier (92-89 OT), L vs. #5 UConn (63-73)
Next week: vs. Butler (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.), at #15 St. John’s (Feb. 28 – 8 p.m.)
Quality wins: Wisconsin, Seton Hall (2x)
Bad losses: N/A
Villanova remains in the top three after an up-and-down week that saw an overtime win against Xavier before a 10-point loss to UConn.
Bryce Lindsay and Acaden Lewis each hit the clutch free throws necessary to pull off the win, despite each going 1-2 in their final attempts at the line.
Lewis led the team to the win with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 steals. He shot 9-18 (50%) from the field, 0-4 (0%) from downtown, and 3-6 (50%) from the free-throw line.
The Wildcats were pests on defense, recording 12 steals and forcing 16 turnovers from Xavier, which resulted in Villanova outscoring their opponents 22-11 in points off turnovers.
4. Creighton Bluejays
Last week’s ranking: 5 (+1)
Record: 14-14 (8-9)
Last week: W at #5 UConn (91-84), L at #17 St. John’s (52-81)
Next week: vs. DePaul (Feb. 25 – 9 p.m.), vs. Providence (Feb. 28 – 5:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: at UConn, at Villanova, Seton Hall
Bad losses: at Providence, at Marquette, at Georgetown, at DePaul
Creighton, for better or worse, still can’t remain in one spot for long, going from fifth to fourth now in the rankings. Their win against UConn saw them shoot 10-21 (48%) from downtown.
Josh Dix led the way with 21 points and 8 rebounds while shooting 6-10 (60%) overall, 3-4 (75%) from downtown, and 6-6 (100%) at the line. The team overall got to the line more often than not and converted 27-32 (84%) in their free-throw attempts.
5. Seton Hall Pirates
Last week’s ranking: 4 (-1)
Record: 19-9 (9-8)
Last week: L vs. DePaul (57-69), W vs. Georgetown (51-47)
Next week: at #6 UConn (Feb. 28 – Noon)
Quality wins: NC State (Neutral)
Bad losses: DePaul (2x)
Seton Hall drops down to fifth in the Big East basketball power rankings following getting swept in their season series with the DePaul Blue Demons, but they followed that up with a close win and sweeping the Georgetown Hoyas.
Their win against Georgetown was a low-scoring, ugly win. Only one player on each team for this game scored more than 10 points. For the Pirates, this was Najai Hines, with a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds.
The main reason why this win was ugly was Seton Hall’s perimeter shooting, or lack thereof. The Pirates shot 0-18 (0%) from downtown, and still found a way to win.
6. Butler Bulldogs
Last week’s ranking: 9 (+3)
Record: 15-13 (6-11)
Last week: W at Georgetown (93-89), W vs. Xavier (80-75)
Next week: at Villanova (Feb. 25 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: Virginia (Neutral), at Seton Hall
Bad losses: Boise State, at Providence, at Marquette
Butler wins two straight to jump up three spots in the rankings and ended their six-game losing streak with a pair of wins over Georgetown and Xavier.
Michael Ajayi has been the most consistent player for the Bulldogs as of late. When Finley Bizjack gets hot on the stat sheet, he’s always there in the background dominating the glass. When Bizjack goes cold, Ajayi takes over the game.
Against Georgetown, he scored 16 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. In the next match against Xavier, he had 24 points and 9 rebounds. When Ajayi gets hot, the Bulldogs become a bigger threat.
7. DePaul Blue Demons
Last week’s ranking: 8 (+1)
Record: 14-13 (6-10)
Last week: W at Seton Hall (69-57), L vs. Providence (68-71)
Next week: at Creighton (Feb. 25 – 9 p.m.), at Marquette (Mar. 1 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: Seton Hall (2x)
Bad losses: Buffalo, Northwestern, Providence (2x)
An up-and-down week for the Blue Demons. They swept Seton Hall with a win on the road, but got swept by the Friars this season after a close loss at home.
N.J. Benson had another great performance for DePaul, recording 21 points and 8 rebounds while shooting 8-9 (88.9%) from the field and 5-9 (55.6%) at the line.
Despite the team’s going 6-21 (29%) from the perimeter, they made up for that by outrebounding Seton Hall 35-22.
8. Xavier Musketeers
Last week’s ranking: 6 (-2)
Record: 13-14 (5-11)
Last week: L vs. Villanova (89-92 OT), L at Butler (75-80)
Next week: at Providence (Feb. 24 – 7:30 p.m.), vs. Georgetown (Feb. 28 – 1:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: West Virginia (Neutral)
Bad losses: at DePaul, at Marquette
The Musketeers fall two spots after a pair of close losses against Villanova and Butler.
Tre Carroll dominated in both games, scoring over 20 points in each game. Against Villanova, he recorded a double-double with 28 points and 10 rebounds. In the following game, he nearly got a double-double again with 24 points and 7 rebounds.
The issue still seems to be consistency from the perimeter. Against the Wildcats, Xavier shot 10-23 (43%) from beyond the arc. They shot 10-32 (31%) in the following game against the Bulldogs.
9. Georgetown Hoyas
Last week’s ranking: 7 (-2)
Record: 13-14 (5-11)
Last week: L vs. Butler (89-93), L at Seton Hall (47-51)
Next week: vs. Marquette (Feb. 24 – 7 p.m.), at Xavier (Feb. 28 – 1:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Clemson
Bad losses: at DePaul, Xavier
Another rough week for Georgetown with a pair of losses to Butler and Seton Hall.
Their loss to the Pirates stings even more. It is hard to win in the Big East at times, but it’s even harder to win a game while going 0-18 from beyond the arc. Yet the Pirates found a way to do so.
The Hoyas couldn’t buy a bucket from the perimeter either, going 4-23 (17%) in their attempts. Better than their opponents, but that’s not hard to do when their foes can’t score from downtown at all.
10. Providence Friars
Last week’s ranking: 10 (-)
Record: 12-15 (5-11)
Last week: W at DePaul (71-68)
Next week: vs. Xavier (Feb. 24 – 7:30 p.m.), at Creighton (Feb. 28 – 5:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: at St. John’s
Bad losses: at Xavier, at Marquette, Georgetown
Providence ended their short week with a win on the road, sweeping the Blue Demons for the season. Despite the close box score, the Friars outshone their opponents by a wide margin from beyond the arc, going 50% from downtown compared to DePaul’s 23%. They also outrebounded their foes 41-31, much in part due to Oswin Erhunmwunse, who recorded 12 rebounds of his own.
Jaylin Sellers led the way for the Friars with 21 points and 6 rebounds while shooting 9-13 (69.2%) overall and 3-5 (60%) from beyond the arc.
11. Marquette Golden Eagles
Last week’s ranking: 10 (-1)
Record: 9-18 (4-12)
Last week: L vs. #17 St. John’s (70-76)
Next week: at Georgetown (Feb. 24 – 7 p.m.), vs. DePaul (Mar. 1 – 4 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: Maryland, at DePaul, Georgetown
Another week for Marquette at the bottom of the Big East basketball power rankings.
The team had a good performance against a ranked opponent in St. John’s, outscoring them in the paint 38-28.
Nigel James Jr. carried the team on his back in the close loss, recording 25 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. He shot 11-21 (52.4%) overall, 1-3 (33.3%) from downtown, and 2-5 (40%) at the stripe.
A big game on their upcoming schedule for the Golden Eagles is their hated rivals, DePaul. They’re going to be looking to get back back from their last defeat on the road by beating the Blue Demons at home.