Toyminator's 2001-2002 Big East Conference Preview

Last season was a strange one in the Big East! The usual suspects (Syracuse, Georgetown, Notre Dame) made the NCAA Tournament as expected. But then two Cinderellas (Boston College, Providence) came out of nowhere and became the league's best two teams. Of course, the preseason favorites (Seton Hall, St. John's) both had forgettable seasons and didn't even come close to the Party! Nobody predicted such a season! Will something similar happen this season? Probably not, but with the league's parity, there will be some surprises and disappointments for sure!

Led by All-American Troy Bell, Boston College should be back near the top of the standings. They lost a couple key players from last season, but they at least have answers to fill them. Providence, on the other hand, may not be able to cope with the loss of Shabazz & Maxey down low. I don't see them repeating last season's success. Two teams to look out for are UConn & Miami. Both had mediocre seasons a year ago, but they each have a number of talented players who really started to shine late last season. UConn has one of the best small forwards in the country in Caron Butler, who should easily put up about 20 a night. Miami has a pair of underrated wings in John Salmons and Darius Rice. Add in the return of Elton Tyler, and you have the makings of a tough team. On the other side of the conference, the usual suspects will battle for the top. Notre Dame, Georgetown & Syracuse all return key personnel and should look similar to last season's teams. However, both Syracuse & Georgetown lost key backcourt players late in the offseason, which could allow Notre Dame to sneak into the top spot. The one team who could upset that trio is West Virginia, who welcomes McDonald's All-American Jonathon Hargett, who will make many a highlight reel this season. As always, it should be an interesting conference to watch!

ON THE RISE: Miami, Fl
Since Leonard Hamilton left, things haven't been the same in Miami. But this season, Perry Clark has assembled a pretty good cast of players. With the return of Elton Tyler, and continued solid play from James Jones, the Canes have a solid inside game. With an improving Darius Rice and the always consistent John Salmons on the wings, the Canes won't have problems there either. Now if only they get some solid PG play, then they should return to the NCAA Tournament and contend for the conference title!

IN DECLINE: Villanova
Even though I personally didn't like him, I must admit Steve Lappas always got the most from his players and they always seemed to be on the prepetual bubble come March. With him moving on, the Wildcats will be lucky to be in the position again! The early departure of Michael Bradley will leave a huge void in the middle. Losing Aaron Mathews doesn't help either! They'll still have a solid backcourt, which will keep them competitive, but considering the strength of their division, it will be tough to win games once conference play begins!

1. BOSTON COLLEGE

Strengths: Excellent backcourt. Agressive team defense that forces many turnovers. Good FT shooting team.Team quickness.
Weakness: Poor rebounding team. Inexperienced bench.
Outlook: Will prove that last season wasn't a fluke. Besides Bell, look out for Ryan Sidney, who could breakout this season! However, they must rebound better if they want to make a deep tournament run!

2. UCONN

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Solid team defense. Promising young talent.
Weakness: Poor ball handling & distribution. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Road troubles.
Outlook: The Huskies were very mediocre last season, but should be improved. Still inexperienced, but the talent is there to win the division.

3. MIAMI

Strengths: Great team defense. Force many turnovers. Big, yet quick team. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Questionable PG. Poor shooting team. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: How long will it take this season for the Canes to go from sleeper to contender? My guess, not long! Other than at PG, this team is solid and could make a serious run at the conference title if things fall in place!

4. ST. JOHN'S

Strengths: Quick, athletic team. Tough, aggressive team defense that forces many turnovers.
Weakness: Poor outside shooting team. Poor rebounding team. Questionable PG. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: With the loss of Omar Cook, the Storm have a problem at PG. But if JUCO star Marcus Hatten can adjust to it, the Johnnies will be greatly improved from last season.

5. PROVIDENCE

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Good 3-pt & FT shooting team. Good ball handling & distribution. Lots of depth.
Weakness: Poor frontcourt - little inside scoring or rebounding.
Outlook: I was way off last season on this team, and maybe again this season. But I don't see them being as good unless their new frontline comes up big! Either way, still good enough for the NIT at least.

6. VILLANOVA

Strengths: Pretty decent offensive team. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor ball-handling. Shaky team defense. Poor 3-pt shooting team. Not much off the bench.
Outlook: Last year it was their weakness, but this season their backcourt should be stable. On the other hand, the frontcourt could struggle without big Michael Bradley. New coach Jay Wright needs to find some more players, too!

7. VIRGINIA TECH

Strengths: Decent backcourt. Lots of depth.
Weakness: Poor shooting & rebounding team. Poor team defense. Poor ball handling & distribution.
Outlook: Why is this team in the Big East? Oh yeah, cause their football team is awesome. Too bad their basketball team stinks!

1. NOTRE DAME

Strengths: Excellent shooting team from everywhere. Good rebounding team. Solid team defense. Good ball handling & distribution.
Weakness: Inexperienced bench. Loss of Murphy.
Outlook: Even without Murphy, this team could be better than last season's thanks to the arrival of Chris Thomas, who will be one of the top freshman in the nation!

2. GEORGETOWN

Strengths: Big, deep, talented frontcourt. Excellent rebounding team. Solid team defense. Consistent PG play.
Weakness: Horrible shooting team from everywhere. Big hole at SG. Too many turnovers.
Outlook: Hoyas still looking for some consistent shooters, but they've got plenty of big men to clean up on the boards. Probably not as good as last season's squad, but still Tournament bound!

3. SYRACUSE

Strengths: Solid team defense. Good outside shooting team. Good FT shooting team. Limit their turnovers.
Weakness: Who's the PG? Very poor rebounding team. Little inside scoring.
Outlook: Orangemen will always be dangerous with Shumpert & Williams lighting it up. But they need some help from the new guys if they want to make a run. Losing Billy Edelin at PG really hurt!

4. WEST VIRGINIA

Strengths: Solid backcourt. Good rebounding team. Good team defense.
Weakness: Small backcourt. Too many turnovers. Poor 3-pt shooting team.
Outlook: With the loss of Lyles at PG, it's phenom Jonathon Hargett's chance to shine and he should do that! This is the team that could surpise a few teams and move up the division!

5. SETON HALL

Strengths: Deep, talented backcourt. Good ball handling & distribution. High scoring team.
Weakness: Pitiful frontcourt, with little off the bench. Poor shooting & rebounding team. Weak team defense.
Outlook: Coach Amaker never saw the freight train that him last season! Well, this season Eddie Griffin is gone, and so is Amaker. But soph Andre Barrett will emerge as the leader and help them win more than 5 conference games.

6. PITTSBURGH

Strengths: Good, deep backcourt.
Weakness: Little inside scoring. Poor rebounding team. Poor FT shooting team. Too many turnovers. Little depth.
Outlook: A solid backcourt will keep them out of the basement. But their frontcourt looks pretty inept, so postseason play is unlikely.

7. RUTGERS

Strengths: BIG, strong frontcourt. Good rebounding team.
Weakness: Poor backcourt, with little help off bench. Poor ball handling & distribution. Weak offense. Horrible FT shooting team.
Outlook: The best thing going for this team is having coach Gary Waters on the bench instead of that jackass Kevin Bannon. He really screwed up this program!

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Last updated on 10/9/01 by toyminator@prodigy.net