Toyminator's 2000-2001 Big East Conference Preview

Well, we've been here before! The Big East is back to a 2 division league after football-rich, basketball-poor Virginia Tech joins the conference. The school presidents did a better job this time at organizing the teams by preserving such rivalries as Syracuse/Georgetown & UConn/St. John's, and they did reduce the number of teams eligibile for the conference tournament to 12, thus eliminating the unpleasant sight of two pitiful teams going at it, just to get pounded in the next round. The bad thing is some teams will not even play each other this season. Maybe it's me, but I'm just not a big fan of the split conferences. They just bug me...don't know why...but they do!

As for the teams, there will be plenty of good ones to watch this season. In fact, it should be quite a competitive league, even considering some of the cellar-dwellers. Seton Hall, Notre Dame, UConn, St. John's, Miami & Georgetown could all win the title, and each may end up in the NCAA Tourney come March. Look out for Syracuse & Villanova, who are just a few question marks away from joining the others. Even sorry teams like Boston College & Pittsburgh should be competitive. As for the players, we all know about Troy Murphy, but there's a lot of unknown stars in the making who should be able to step it up this season once they get some exposure. Players like Troy Bell, Lee Scruggs, Darius Lane, Deshaun Williams & Ricardo Greer will make major impacts on their teams success/failure. It should be interesting!

ON THE RISE: Notre Dame
Despite the fact their dream coach left after just one season, the Irish are serious contenders and should get into the NCAA tournament for the first time in years. And unlike their football team, this team is more than just hype. Led by POY candidate Troy Murphy, impact transfer Ryan Humphrey, & underrated David Graves, they should be hanging around the Top 25 all season. As for the future, Mike Brey has already done a fine job of getting next season's fine recruiting class to recommit to the program!

IN DECLINE: Rutgers
Even though things were looking up for the Scarlet Knights at the time, the reported "naked practice" incident started the decline of Kevin Bannon's program. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy! Things actually looked OK for this season until August, but then leading scorer Dahntey Jones transferred and their 2 top recruits were ineligible. Combined with last season's transfers, Coach will have a short bench to work with. Some talented players are still here (for now), but this program has been quietly tainted and will need time to recover.

1. UCONN

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Solid team defense. Promising young talent.
Weakness: Lack of inside scoring. Commit too many turnovers.
Outlook: The Huskies will be "rebuilding" thanks to a number of newcomers arriving this season. But, these newcomers are good! It helps that the rest of this division is down too, but make no mistake, UConn is still a Big East powerhouse.

2. ST. JOHN'S

Strengths: Quick, athletic team. Tough, aggressive team defense. Good ball-handling.
Weakness: Poor outside shooting team. Very inexperienced, with little quality depth.
Outlook: The Redman lost their 3 best players from last season, so you'd think they may struggle. But like UConn, they've brought in some impact players to fill the holes around the versatile & steady Reggie Jessie. They may struggle early, but will be tough come March.

3. MIAMI

Strengths: Great team defense. Good team quickness. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Questionable PG. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Trouble scoring in half-court game.
Outlook: The late signing of stud Darius Rice gave the Canes hope for another NCAA berth. He'll be the main offensive weapon until Tyler becomes eligible 2nd semester. If the backcourt gels by then too, this team could be dangerous!

4. VILLANOVA

Strengths: Big, solid frontcourt that can score & rebound. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor ball-handling & distribution. Limited outside scoring. Inexperienced team.
Outlook: Nova's big frontcourt will win some games, but for them to reach the postseason, there must stability in their backcourt.

5. BOSTON COLLEGE

Strengths: Young, quick team. Decent team defense. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor shooting & rebounding team. Lack true PG - poor ball-handling & distribution.
Outlook: Improving faster than most expected! NIT is a slim possibility, but look for them to upset at least one ranked team this season!

6. PROVIDENCE

Strengths: Good team defense. Solid frontcourt.
Weakness: Horrible shooting team that struggles to put points on the board. Commit way too many turnovers. Little depth.
Outlook: Things can only get better after a horrible off-season, which saw many players get the boot! Some decent one's remain (Shabazz & Maxey) to post some wins, but it will be a rough season for the Friars.

7. VIRGINIA TECH

Strengths: Chase & Mims (but little else). Good team defense.
Weakness: Poor ball-handling & distribution. Poor outside shooting. Little experience or depth. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: It will be a rude awakening for the depleted Hokies in their first season in the Big East. Assuredly, the league's worst team!

1. SETON HALL

Strengths: Good team defense. Well-balanced offense. Deep, talented backcourt. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. Need better ball-handling & distribution.
Outlook: Coach Amaker has done a surperb job of accumulating talent and this season it pays off! Their inexperience will show at times, but the Pirates will be tough down the stretch. Sweet 16 should be within reach.

2. NOTRE DAME

Strengths: Excellent shooting team from everywhere. Big, deep frontcourt that can rebound & score. And obviously, Troy Murphy.
Weakness: Team defense needs to improve, especially with quick teams. Poor ball-handling.
Outlook: Their best team in years! If their backcourt can hold up for 30+ games, they should make a run at both the conference, and possibly, the national title!

3. GEORGETOWN

Strengths: Big, deep, talented frontcourt. Good rebounding team. Solid team defense. Lots of depth.
Weakness: Horrible shooting team from everywhere. Poor ball-handling & distribution.
Outlook: Hoyas still can't shoot! But thanks to their excellent frontline, led by future draft picks Scruggs & Boumtje, they'll be able to get plenty of shots at the basket. Probably won't be higher than this, but that may be enough to reach the NCAA's.

4. SYRACUSE

Strengths: Solid team defense. Good outside shooting team. Limit their turnovers.
Weakness: Inept PG play. Questionable rebounding team. Lack of depth.
Outlook: Orangemen will rebuild this season, but still have enough talent to reach the postseason. Williams could have a breakout year!

5. PITTSBURGH

Strengths: Excellent, deep froncourt who can rebound with the best of them, and score a little too!
Weakness: Poor team defense. Poor FT & 3-pt shooting team. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: Could be the surprise team in the conference. An excellent frontline, led by the underrated Greer, will be tough to stop. So, it's up to the inexperienced backcourt to get them the ball without turning it over all the time!

6. RUTGERS

Strengths: The Big 3...Billett/Greer/Kent. BIG frontcourt. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Too many turnovers. Poor FT shooting team. Very little depth. Terrible on the road.
Outlook: The past few seasons of mediocrity will be fondly remembered as this program starts its decline! Postseason play would be a surprise.

7. WEST VIRGINIA

Strengths: Decent backcourt. Well-balanced offense.
Weakness: Poor perimeter defense. Need to improve their ball-handling. Poor FT shooting team. Little quality depth.
Outlook: A decent starting 5, but their bench sucks! Tend to overachieve, so they may move up a few spots, but nothing to get excited about!

You are visitor number since 9/20/00

Last updated on 10/2/00 by toyminator@prodigy.net