This group’s success is key to the Big East having more NCAA tournament bids than last year.
Gone are the days of the Big East garnering the most bids in the NCAA tournament. Conference alignment ensures the Big 12 or SEC will always have the sheer numbers to claim themselves the best conferences in basketball. The Big East earned three-bids last year despite being ranked the No. 2 conferences in the country, per KenPom.
Beyond diving into any scheduling gripes, if you look at the middle of the pack teams last year, one was robbed, one suffered an injury blow, and one severely underperformed expectations. Looking ahead to this year, St. John’s, Providence, and Villanova all have strong cases to be dancing come March.
St John’s Red Storm
Head Coach: Rick Pitino (second season)
2023-24 Record: 20-13 (11-9)
Projected 2024-25 Big East Finish: Fifth
Rick Pitino’s return to the Big East last year came with all the hype you’d expect. The Hall of Famer assembled a team of transfers around returnee Joel Soriano that, on paper, was talented enough to finish in the top tier of the conference. Of course, it didn’t go quite as planned. Their blowout home loss to Michigan in the second game of the season set the tone for an uneven year, punctuated by a viral press conference after a loss to Seton Hall in which he ripped the team’s lateral quickness and toughness. Still, the Johnnies almost forced their way into the NCAA Tournament and gave UConn all it could handle in a fun-as-heck Big East semifinal game that the Huskies won, 95-90. When the Red Storm were left on the outside looking in, the program declined a trip to the NIT and turned its focus to 2024-25.
The Johnnies have a chance to make this ‘middle of the pack’ designation look really, really dumb. Rick Pitino, if you’re reading this, if it were up to me, I’d place St. John’s up in the contenders pile. Despite being “disturbed” by the transfer portal, Slick Rick went out and added the two best backcourt pieces that were available. Deivon Smith, a 6-foot guard from Utah, averaged 13 points, six rebounds, and seven assists per game for the Utes last year while shooting 41 percent from three. An explosive two-way, point-of-attack guard, Pitino compared the preseason second team All-Big East to Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, who starred at Louisville.
And to really make it a backcourt of nightmares, Pitino went out and plucked UConn heel Kadary Richmond out from under Seton Hall’s nose. The All-Big East first teamer averaged 15.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game, leading Seton Hall to an NIT championship.
“Well, we’re certainly going to miss the guys that left, but I will say this is as much physical talent as I’ve had in a long, long time,” Pitino told Blue Ribbon. “I’m not concerned about replacing those points at all because of what we are bringing in.”
This could be the best backcourt in the country, a well-rounded pair that can score from all three levels and defend with Pitino’s required intensity. Add in talented sophomore Simeon Wilcher, and it’s a backcourt reminiscent of the Peyton Siva, Russ Smith and Kevin Ware trio that made Louisville National Champions* in 2023. A now healthy RJ Luis is another name to watch, after putting up 11 points, eight rebounds, and four steals in just 22 minutes against Towson in a charity exhibition. Aaron Scott by way of North Texas is another 6-foot-7 switchy, two-way player that can cause a variety of problems.
If there’s a weakness, its in the paint. Vincent Iwuchukwu will pair with junior Zuby Ejiofor, both former top 50 recruit who spent their first years at USC and Kansas respectively. Ejiofor averaged a pedestrian four points per game backing up Joel Soriano but put up 27 points and 13 rebounds against Rutgers in an exhibition game. If that type of production – against two future lottery picks in Ace bailey and Dylan Harper – becomes the norm then the Red Storm will be a load.
St John’s should have made the NCAA tournament last year. A No. 57-ranked KenPom defense last year is now preseason No. 18, and the Johnnies have garnered some votes in the first AP Top 25 poll.
While it’s foolish to read too much into exhibition results, fans have to be encouraged by the Red Storm’s defense in their win over Towson, the team picked to win what should be a pretty good CAA. The Tigers shot 28.8 percent from the field in that game and went 5-25 from three with 25 turnovers.
With the game-breaking ability of Richmond and Smith joining a well-rounded supporting cast, there should be no doubt this year.
Providence Friars
Kim English (second season)
2023-2024 Record: 21-14 (10-10)
Projected 2024-25 Big East Finish: Sixth
You can hate Providence fans, but you have to be rooting for Bryce Hopkins, looking to bounce back from a devastating ACL injury last January.
The 6-foot-7 senior is back, fully healthy, and just earned preseason All-Big East first team honors. Before he went down in January of last year, Hopkins was averaging 15.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, forming a two-headed mismatch nightmare with Devin Carter. Head coach Kim English must replace Carter, the 11th pick in last year’s NBA draft, with the right pieces around Hopkins. Junior Jayden Pierre is a leap candidate after increasing his averages to 12.6 points, three rebounds, and three assists per game in the Big East tournament. Rich Barron earned All-Big-East freshman team honors. Former Husky Corey Floyd Jr. led the team in scoring in an exhibition win versus UMass.
Providence didn’t add any Top 100 transfers, but they fit what English is trying to do. High major transfers Jabri Abdur-Rahim (Georgia) and Bensley Joseph (Miami) are both plug-and-play double digit scorers that shot better than 35 percent from three last year. Paired with Barron, English now has three elite shooters to put around Hopkins.
Wesley Cardet Jr is your classic low major stud (18.7 ppg last year at Chicago State) that looks ready for a step up. Inside, 7-foot redshirt sophomore Christ Essandoko out of Saint Joseph’s is an intriguing talent that has pick-and-pop potential on offense and rim protector ability on the other end.
Providence was 11-2 before Hopkins went down, which was a shame because the Friars looked like a threat to UConn last year. English is a rising star in the coaching ranks that isn’t skipping steps in the way he’s building up the Friar program. It’s evident by their offseason; there’s no need to replace the star power of Carter if Hopkins is fully healthy and ready to go. English instead brought in complementary pieces that can defend and shoot at a high level, while simultaneously banking on the development of Pierre, Floyd, and Barron. It would be wise to be bullish on the Friars this year and beyond.
Villanova Wildcats
Kyle Neptune (third season)
2023-2024 Record: 18-16 (10-10)
Projected 2024-25 Big East Finish: Seventh
Placing Villanova as ‘mid-tier’ could also look foolish come March, but for different reasons. Kyle Neptune and the ‘Cats were offseason darlings in 2023 and followed that up with another lackluster .500 finish in the conference, an unspeakable transgression given Villanova’s pedigree. Preseason first team All-Big East big Eric Dixon is back to help Neptune right the ship, and he’s joined by Miami transfer Wooga Poplar to balance out the roster. The 6-foot-9 Dixon is an inside-out mismatch, a volume scorer that can iso with the best of them. In Nova’s secret scrimmage win against Penn State, he put up 38 points in 26 minutes. Poplar is an uber athletic wing that averaged 13.1 ppg and 4.8 rpg last year while shooting 38.5% from three. UConn fans may remember he was held scoreless against the Huskies in the 2023 Final Four , but he’s an intriguing prospect that could benefit from the change in scenery.
Six-foot-five senior point guard Jordan Longino will need to take a step forward and shoulder the ball-handling responsibilities, while La Salle transfer Jhamir Brickus is another floor spacer that can imbue Dixon’s space-eating inside. Losing microwave shooter Brendan Hausen limits ‘Nova’s depth, but a starting five of Longino, Poplar, Brickus, former top 100 recruit Kris Parker (Alabama), and Dixon has promise.
Once more, it’s not a talent issue at Villanova. Per EvanMiya, Villanova is one of 13 teams with three ‘elite’ shooters based on last year’s metrics: Poplar, Dixon, and Brickus. If floor spacing and efficiency is just marginally improved from last year, Villanova will be dangerous.
