Mat Mlodzinski gives his Big East basketball power rankings heading into week 2 of the 2026-27 season.
Week 1 team of the week: UConn Huskies
Week 1 game of the week: DePaul – 82, South Florida – 80
Week 1 player of the week: Silas Demary, UConn
Week 2 matchup of the week: Marquette at Michigan (Nov. 11 at 7 p.m.)
Week 2 under-the-radar matchup of the week: Georgetown vs. Clemson (Nov. 13 at 6 p.m.)
1) UConn Huskies
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Gardner-Webb (86-46), W vs. #16 Michigan (85-77)
Next week: vs. Wagner (Nov. 9 – 7 p.m.), vs. Ohio State (Nov. 13 – 7:30 p.m.)
Quality wins: Michigan
Bad losses: None
Death, taxes, and UConn winning big non-conference games under Dan Hurley. The Huskies blew out Gardner-Webb to open the season, before taking down Michigan in Boston, convincingly. Silas Demary was great in the win over the Wolverines and Braylon Mullins has looked outstanding. This week, the Huskies will be in a nationally televised game again, against Ohio State.
2) St. John’s Red Storm
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Monmouth (78-63), W vs. Iona (104-65)
Next week: vs. Colgate (Nov. 11 – 7 p.m.), vs. Syracuse (Nov. 15 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins: None
Bad losses: None
Rick Pitino and St. John’s picked up two wins over mid-majors, but they looked great in both. Defensively, the Red Storm held Monmouth and Iona each to the mid-60s. Offensively, the Johnnies put on a show against the Gaels in a 39-point win. This week, we get to see a bigger challenge, against an always-solid Colgate team and a new-look Syracuse squad. The Red Storm and Orange will play at Madison Square Garden in what should be a great Sunday nightcap.
3. Marquette Golden Eagles
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Mercyhurst (78-43), W vs. Detroit Mercy (93-32)
Next week: at Michigan (Nov. 11 – 7 p.m.), vs. Missouri (Nov. 15 – 2:30 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
I’m not sure if any Big East basketball team had a more dominant week than Marquette. First, they took down Mercyhurst by 35. Then, Detroit Mercy fell victim to a 61-point loss. Four Golden Eagles are averaging at least 10 points per game, and that doesn’t even include star guard Nigel James Jr., who was unusually quiet in both contests. This week, they’ll need James to come to play with two games against power conference teams, a real chance to put Marquette on the map.
4. Creighton Bluejays
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Kansas City (76-61), W vs. Le Moyne (83-55)
Next week: at Kansas State (Nov. 10 – 9 p.m.), vs. Iowa (Nov. 15 – 3 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
Creighton is now coached by Alan Huss, which will be something to track as the season goes on, but so far, so good. The Bluejays won by 15 over Kansas City and then by 28 over Le Moyne. Wes Enis averaged 20.5 points on the week, and Creighton averaged 13 steals per game, putting on some defensive clinics. They’ll need strong defense again with much stiffer competition in K-State and Iowa this week.
5. Xavier Musketeers
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Mount St. Mary’s (97-52), W vs. Eastern Michigan (76-53)
Next week: vs. Detroit Mercy (Nov. 10 – 7 p.m.), vs. Mississippi State (Nov. 13 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
Could Xavier be on the come-up this season? Things didn’t go too well for Richard Pitino in year one, but the Musketeers already look like a much better team after two blowout wins to start the season. Chance Westry was incredible, averaging 15 points and 2.5 steals per game in just 20 minutes per contest. The Musketeers also dished out 41 assists across both games, showing some good offensive potential. They’ve got Josh Hubbard and Mississippi State at the end of this week, which will be a tough test against one of the best scorers in the country.
6. Georgetown Hoyas
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Loyola-MD (80-58), W vs. Maryland (86-74)
Next week: vs. Delaware State (Nov. 10 – 6:30 p.m.), at Clemson (Nov. 13 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins: Maryland
Bad losses:
Have we been sleeping on Georgetown? No matter what way you put it, a win over a Big Ten team is a power conference win, and it came over a Maryland team many thought would be better in year two under Buzz Williams. The Hoyas closed out a lead they held for most of that game, for one of the best wins of the week in Big East basketball. Now they’ll look for another, with Clemson coming up on Friday.
7. Villanova Wildcats
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 1-1
Last week: L vs. Notre Dame (74-72), W vs. Holy Cross (95-66)
Next week: vs. La Salle (Nov. 10 – 7 p.m.), vs. Rider (Nov. 14 – 7 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
Look, I don’t want to put too much stock in a two-point loss against Notre Dame in a game played in Rome, Italy. But when it comes down to it, the Wildcats are the better team (we think) on paper, and they came up short. They looked sloppy, and guard play wasn’t close to as good as advertised. Luckily, they turned things around against Holy Cross and have two more tune-up games this week, which might be just what Kevin Willard and co. need right now.
8. DePaul Blue Demons
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. West Georgia (75-58), W vs. South Florida (82-80)
Next week: vs. Alabama A&M (Nov. 9 – 9 p.m.), at Northwestern (Nov. 13 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins: South Florida
Bad losses:
Could Chris Holtmann seriously have DePaul in a position to be in the mix in the Big East? The Blue Demons handled business against West Georgia and then held on for a quality win over USF. It might not be the Bryan Hodgson-coached South Florida of last year, but Chris Mack leads the way for this team that should still be a competitor in the American. With a road game at local Northwestern this week, it’s another chance for DePaul to show they are for real.
9. Providence Friars
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 1-1
Last week: W vs. Maine (83-56), L vs. Nebraska (67-58)
Next week: vs. Bryant (Nov. 10 – 7 p.m.), vs. Colorado (Nov. 14 – 6 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
It may not have been a downright bad week for the Friars, but when every other team had a good week, and the Friars got exposed by Nebraska, it’s not a great look. Sure, they blew out Maine, but in a borderline home game at Mohegan Sun, the Friars got held to 58 points on 19-of-62 shooting. Neutral site games are never fun, but they just never got anything going offensively. This week, they have a Rhode Island battle against Bryant before taking on a Big 12 team in Colorado.
10. Seton Hall Pirates
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-0
Last week: W vs. Saint Peter’s (66-42), W vs. LIU (67-60)
Next week: vs. Charlotte (Nov. 9 – 9 p.m.), at Alabama (Nov. 13 – 9 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
The Pirates nearly lost what would have been a resume-crusher to LIU, but held on late at historic Walsh Gymnasium. This week, there’s no room for not playing their absolute best, with a neutral site game in Philly against Charlotte (super random) and a true road test at Alabama. The Charlotte game seems like a must-win unless SHU can muck things up against the Crimson Tide, which is probably what Shaheen Holloway plans to do.
11. Butler Bulldogs
Last week’s ranking: N/A (-)
Record: 2-1
Last week: W vs. Lafayette (96-60), W vs. FDU (99-65), L at Boise State (100-81)
Next week: vs. Pitt (Nov. 13 – 6:30 p.m.)
Quality wins:
Bad losses:
I’ll admit, Butler may have legitimately been tired from playing three games in a single week, but ending with a 19-point loss to Boise State just wasn’t what the doctor ordered. We haven’t been too high on Butler, despite a good start in the first two games and it won’t get a lot easier with a hungry Pitt team on Friday.