Big East basketball preview heading into the 2026-27 season.
Big East basketball has taken a hit as a Power 5 conference over the last few seasons. Part of it is due to a little bit less talent. Part of it is due to only having 11 teams. But the teams can also thank UConn; for being so dominant, it makes everyone else look a little bit worse.
The Huskies represented the Big East in the National Championship game for the third time in four years; however, this time, they fell short to Michigan. It was UConn’s seventh time ever competing in the finals, but just their first time losing. That’s just a remarkable run for an all-time program.
But don’t think there wasn’t competition in last season’s Big East. St. John’s won 30 games and was neck-and-neck with the Huskies during the regular season. Villanova won 15 games in conference and won 24 games, their most since 2021-22, their last season with Jay Wright. Seton Hall also won 21 games, but yet again, were arguably snubbed from competing in March Madness.
And that’s really what’s at stake this season. Big East basketball is still a great product, but the NCAA Tournament committee doesn’t think so. The conference is aching to get more than just three teams in the postseason, and with an expanded 76-team tournament, there’s no excuse to at least get five teams (if not more) in this year. The talent seems better than the last few years, so it’s right out there for the conference to attain.
There are also some new coaches to get to know. Alan Huss, who was the man in waiting at Creighton, finally gets his chance. He did wonders at High Point before returning to the Bluejays’ staff, and is a bit underrated in terms of leading a program, considering he’s done it well in the past. Bryan Hodgson was a hot name in the offseason, and landed on moving from South Florida to Providence. And then there’s Ronald Nored, the former point guard during the Brad Stevens era, who comes in to coach the team now. Those three names should help raise the bar even higher both this season and in years to come.
But as always, it comes down to the players on the court, and based on what we know here in the offseason, it’ll be another race to the crown in Big East basketball.
Big East Basketball Projected Standings
1. St. John’s Red Storm
St. John’s gets my vote at first in the preseason Big East basketball poll thanks to one of the best transfer classes in the country. Baylor star Tounde Yessoufou, Auburn standout Keyshawn Hall, and a mix of international standouts like Babacar Sane make St. John’s an experienced group right off the bat. Add in returning players like Ian Jackson and Ruben Prey, and you have a team built on experience and winning basketball.
Obviously, this team is missing Donnie Freeman. Had the Syracuse transfer been good to play, we could be talking about a preseason top 10 team in the country. Yet while most people have UConn ahead of the Johnnies, I’m siding with Rick Pitino. He seems to always have a few underrated stars we’ve yet to hear about and has more established stars than ever, since taking over at the helm in Queens.
2. UConn Huskies
As long as Dan Hurley is the coach, the Huskies will be a favorite to win the Big East and compete for a National Championship. But this year, things may be a bit less clear than usual. Star guard Solo Ball is supposedly out for the season, although I wouldn’t count on that if the Huskies have a chance to bring him back earlier than expected. Still, for the time being, this team is in the hands of Braylon Mullins and Silas Demary Jr., which is still an elite guard duo.
But really, the Huskies are built on more transfers than they’re used to. Najai Hines comes over from Seton Hall and, after watching UConn’s exhibition against Syracuse, looks like he can be a dominant player in this league. Nik Khamenia is a sharpshooter from Duke, and Oskar Giltay provides depth underneath, coming over from Stanford.
The Huskies will also feature star freshmen Junior County and Colben Landrew, who should see minutes right out of the gates.
There may be a few more question marks than usual, but Dan Hurley is an expert at getting his guys prepared, especially in non-conference play. Fear the Huskies, per usual.
3. Marquette Golden Eagles
I’m a lot higher on Marquette than most, despite the team just winning a dozen games a year ago. But it’s impossible for me to ignore the team’s returning talent, led by a rising sophomore star in Nigel James Jr. He’s an electrifying player and, after one year in his belt, should be prime to both fill up the stat sheet and lead his team to a lot more wins.
James is joined by fellow returning players Royce Parham, Adrien Stevens, Damarius Owens, Michael Phillips II, and Caedin Hamilton. Like always, Shaka Smart has great roster retention, which is always a plus in terms of team chemistry. But this year, Smart didn’t shy away from the transfer portal, picking up an established guard from Liberty in Colin Porter, a mid-major scorer from St. Thomas (MN) in Nolan Minessale, and one of the best big-man transfers in the country, in Louisville’s Sananda Fru.
Overall, the Golden Eagles are deeper, more talented, and much more experienced than last season. Plus, the returners have to be hungry to make up for one of the worst seasons in program history.
4. Villanova Wildcats
On paper, Villanova’s roster may not look as stellar as a couple of teams below them, but Kevin Willard has long proven he can do more with less. And this year, “less” still means a senior point guard in Tyler Perkins, and standout transfer forwards in Kwame Evans Jr. and Devin Royal. That’s a top-tier “big three” to boast, but this season will come down to what Willard can do with the other guys.
Matt Hodge is a breakout candidate after putting up solid numbers as a redshirt-freshman a year ago. Jake Fiegen is a sharpshooter coming in from Cornell, where he also led the Ivy League in efficient FG%. Darryl Simmons II is a small guard from St. Bonaventure who put up big numbers in the A-10.
And then there’s Luigi Suigo, a 7-foot-3 big man who can splash threes from outside. He’s a matchup nightmare and a potential x-factor that could jump Villanova into the top tier of Big East basketball.
5. Creighton Bluejays
I’ve come to the realization that people are sleeping on Creighton far too much. Alan Huss might not be Greg McDermott, but he’s still an established head coach who went 56-15 in two seasons at High Point. Sure, leading a Big East basketball program is a new challenge, but he’s learned from one of the best and at least comes in with some outstanding experience at the helm of a good basketball team.
And Huss has a lot of talent at his disposal. Wes Enis comes over from South Florida and could wind up being a sleeper pick to win Big East Player of the Year. He’s that good. Austin Swartz, Jasen Green, Jackson McAndrew, Hudson Greer, and Isaac Traudt all return, giving Huss some good cohesion to work with. McAndrew was the make-or-break player for the Bluejays last year, and went down with a season-ending injury. If he’s at full strength, the Bluejays are that much better.
But this team will truly go as far as the transfers take them. Oswin Erhunmwense has the potential to be the latest shot-blocking big in Omaha, and the guard duo of BJ Davis and Brody Robinson could lift the depth this team has off the bench. Fredrick King also returns to town after spending a year at Murray State and developing his game some more.
If a lack of coaching experience is the reason Creighton isn’t getting enough love, I’m here to disagree. The roster looks the part, and Huss is one heck of a coach.
6. Providence Friars
Sticking with the theme of bringing in brand new head coaches, Bryan Hodgson takes over for the Friars. He took South Florida to the big dance last year and has gone 70-37 in three seasons with the Bulls and Arkansas State, never winning fewer than 20 games in a season.
Hodgson had to rebuild practically the entire Friars roster, with the exception of rising junior Ryan Mela. But the transfer talent is certainly good enough to compete in the top half of the conference. Malik Mack comes over from Georgetown, Miles Byrd starred on both ends at San Diego State, and Arrinten Page should be useful at the five-spot from Northwestern.
But with recent news coming that Dink Pate has withdrawn from Providence, a lot more is suddenly on FAU transfer Devin Vanterpool’s shoulders. He should now start at the four spot with Buffalo transfer Ryan Sabol moving up to the likely sixth man. It makes things a lot more challenging, but Providence still has enough talent to be competitive in the Big East.
7. DePaul Blue Demons
Is this the year of DePaul? Projecting the Blue Demons to come in seventh in Big East basketball seemed like a joke a few years ago. But Chris Holtmann has raised the bar ever so slightly to where coming in the last couple of spots is no longer a given.
The team brings back a really good duo in starting guards Layden Blocker and Kruz McClure, as well as a few other options off the bench. But the hype is all about landing star big man Magoon Gwath – an addition no one saw coming. Ade Popoola and Koree Cotton are also coming over from Tulsa and UTRGV, respectively, filling out a solid starting five.
DePaul’s success will be dependent on their bench, which definitely lacks star power or proven rotation pieces. But the starting five is good enough to compete with anyone in this conference for a full 40 minutes outside of UConn and St. John’s. DePaul is on the rise, people!
8. Seton Hall Pirates
Doubting Shaheen Holloway is so far out of style it’s not even funny. The Pirates are well known for having an awful NIL situation yet continue to outperform the expectations others place on them.
So this year, I’m not taking that bait. Del Jones is a serviceable guard from Radford and could be the next guard Holloway builds up. Roddie Anderson III and Simeon Wilcher come over from Power 5 teams and will have more freedom to stand out on this SHU team. Devin Williams is a defensive monster, and Terry Copeland Jr. is apparently one of the top JUCO players to make the move up. And this doesn’t even mention returning guard Trey Parker or a projected bench that has the most three-point threats in the Holloway era.
When it comes to Seton Hall, you just have to trust that Sha will get more out of less.
9. Xavier Musketeers
Most people have Xavier a little bit higher than this, but after finishing 15-18 a year ago with just six conference wins, it certainly isn’t a foregone conclusion.
There are a lot of positives: guard play between Tru Washington and Chance Westry, returning talent in Jovan Milicevic, and other likeable transfers like Ruben Dominguez, Mike Nwoko, and a few other mid-major guys.
And against Tennessee in an exhibition on Oct. 15, Xavier looked all the part, winning by 16 points. But as we know, you can’t take a ton of stock in that. With Xavier, finishing top seven in the conference is out there for the taking, but we have to see it to believe it.
10. Georgetown Hoyas
It’s a make-or-break year for Ed Cooley, who started to do some good things in D.C. before the team fell back below .500 last season. Now in year four, Cooley’s expectations have to be to make the NCAA Tournament. However, it won’t be easy.
Jaland Lowe and Elmarko Jackson have potential, but reigning in Lowe’s shot attempts and getting Jackson’s potential to come out will come down to coaching. Vyctorius Miller looked outstanding in Georgetown’s first exhibition game, but you can’t put that much stock into one preseason game. And even if he is the part, will it be enough to lift the Hoyas out of the Big East basketball basement?
Don’t get me wrong – there’s a lot of potential on this roster, and from a roster makeup standpoint, the Hoyas are interchangeable with Seton Hall and DePaul. But Cooley has lost a lot of steam, and it’s not far-fetched to say that this could be his last year if things don’t improve.
11. Butler Bulldogs
This is nothing against Ronald Nored, but there’s just nothing on Butler’s roster that should have them anywhere else but last in the preseason Big East basketball standings. Jalen Jackson and Jordan Ellerbee stood out in Butler’s preseason game against Indiana (which they lost, 96-68). But this seems like a long-term project for Nored instead of a one-year turnaround.
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Player of the Year
Nigel James Jr., Marquette
There are a lot of good options here and no runaway favorite, but James did wonders as a freshman, which leads you to believe he could do extraordinary things as a rising sophomore.
Silas Demary Jr. is another good choice here, but he’s had three years to prove himself. James could burst onto the scene in 2026 and not look back.
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Coach of the Year
Shaka Smart, Marquette
I’m not saying Marquette’s going to have the best season ever, but I could see them doubling their total wins from 12 to at least 24, which has to vault Smart into consideration here. Hurley and Pitino will only win the award if their team is ranked number one in the country, which obviously may be the case. But I like Smart’s chances to revamp the Golden Eagles and even make them a top 20 team in college basketball.
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Freshman of the Year
Junior County, UConn
With no Solo Ball, the Huskies may need a lot more from County than they would have thought previously. But County showed some great flashes in an exhibition against Syracuse. Being a freshman standout is tough in today’s college basketball scene, but County could get into a role of about 15-20 minutes per game for a top 10 team in the country. That’s gonna be tough to beat.
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Transfer of the Year
Tounde Yessoufou, St. John’s
Najai Hines could be dominant for UConn down low, but Yessoufou could rival James for Big East basketball POY. He’s that gifted as a scorer and now comes over from Baylor to St. John’s, where he will be pushed to be the absolute best version of himself. The Red Storm will rely on his scoring and rebounding, and with a more consistent shot from outside, he could go on to lead the conference in scoring.
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball First Team
- G: Nigel James Jr., Marquette
- G: Silas Demary Jr., UConn
- G: Braylon Mullins, UConn
- G: Tounde Yessoufou, St. John’s
- F: Keyshawn Hall, St. John’s
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Second Team
- G: Tyler Perkins, Villanova
- G: Tru Washington, Xavier
- G: Miles Byrd, Providence
- F: Sananda Fru, Marquette
- C: Najai Hines, UConn
CBB Review Preseason Big East Basketball Third Team
- G: Ian Jackson, St. John’s
- G: Wes Enis, Creighton
- F: Devin Royal, Villanova
- F: Royce Parham, Marquette
- F: Kwame Evans Jr., Villanova