Just a few days into January, college basketball’s conference season is already in the swing of things as many teams have already played two or three games against their conference foes. Here is a look at how the Big East and Big 12 have fared over the last month and what lies ahead during conference play.
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Big East: Recap
The Villanova Wildcats’ 20-game win streak dating back to last season was snapped Wednesday night as they traveled to Butler and lost a 66-58 matchup in front of a sold-out crowd. It was Villanova’s worst offensive performance of the season by far, scoring only 58 total points and only 27 in the second half. Villanova’s five straight weeks at the top of the college basketball rankings should come to an end this week after the loss. The Wildcats had an incredible start to their season, including an 80-70 victory over previously-undefeated #10 Creighton on New Year’s Eve in front of a raucous, sold-out crowd in Omaha. Despite the loss, Villanova shouldn’t fall far considering their defeat came on the road at Hinkle Fieldhouse against a KenPom top 16 opponent, days after another Top 25 road game. All told, the Big East’s top 4 of Villanova, Creighton, Xavier and Butler continue to have high marks in the traditional and more-statistical rankings and should continue to remain in the top 25 throughout the season, despite the fact that the four teams could beat up on each other.
Big East: Quick Hits
The Big East as a whole should consider their additions of Xavier, Butler and Creighton back in 2013 a complete victory considering each team’s success in the past three years and thus far this season. In my opinion, those three teams also boast the best home arenas and atmospheres of all Big East teams. Both Top 25 matchups thus far (Villanova-Creighton and Villanova-Butler) have been high-intensity games… Speaking of atmospheres, the CenturyLink Center in Omaha has to be one of the most underrated college basketball venues in the country. The Creighton Faithful routinely sell-out the 17,560 arena for Bluejays games… Whoever operates the Hinkle Fieldhouse needs to be fired yesterday. At least four times last night in the final two minutes the clock did not stop (which aided Butler) until a second (or more) later. This isn’t the first occurrence of this happening at Hinkle either… Perhaps the most surprising team to start Big East play is St. John’s, who is now 2-1 and had a nice Top 20 win against Butler last week. I still expect St. John’s to finish bottom three in the conference, but they have some talent that will surely upset more teams by season’s end… The most disappointing team thus far is clearly Georgetown, who has lost three straight to open Big East play…
Big East: Looking Ahead
After Saint John’s and Villanova lost on Wednesday, Xavier is now the lone undefeated Big East team. However, that should change soon as the Musketeers face a gauntlet over a three-week period. After a home game vs. Saint John’s on Saturday, they will have back-to-back road games against Villanova and Butler, followed by home games vs. Creighton and Georgetown, culminating in a Top-25 Crosstown Shootout throw-down on January 26th against Cincinnati… Butler already has 3 Top 25 wins this season and will have the chance for two more in the next nine days as they travel to face Creighton on January 11 and host Xavier three days later… Seton Hall has a chance to distance itself from the middle of the pack as they have three straight winnable games vs. DePaul, at Marquette and at Providence. To improve their NCAA tournaments, the Pirates will need to rack up these wins against the lower rung of the Big East.
Big 12: Recap
Heading in to the 2016-17 college basketball season, the majority of basketball pundits considered many Big 12 teams to take a step back this season, allowing Kansas to cruise to their 13th-straight Big 12 title. Despite Kansas living up to the hype, this mindset has proven to be incorrect, thus far, as Baylor and West Virginia have also been consensus Top Ten teams. West Virginia is one of only two teams in the country to rank in the top ten in KenPom for both offensive and defensive efficiency (the only other team being Kentucky) while Baylor remains undefeated, in large part due to their stellar non-conference resume which featured wins over Oregon, Louisville and Xavier. Similar to the Big East, practically any team 1 through 10 in the Big 12 has the talent to take down another league member, as there are no bottom-feeders in this league. Currently, eight Big 12 teams rank in the top 40 KenPom, while Joe Lunardi has the following six teams dancing in March: Kansas, Baylor, West Virginia, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and TCU, with Texas Tech being in the First Four Out.
Big 12: Quick Hits
Kansas got away with a really lucky win at home against Kansas State on Tuesday, as Svi Mykhailiuk took about five steps on a last-second shot to give the Jayhawks the win… Jayhawks forward Josh Jackson is clearly the Jayhawks’ top draft prospect but Frank Mason III is leading the way for the Jayhawks, averaging 19.5 PPG, 5.8 APG and shooting 51% from 3-point range. If he continues that pace, he should be in the running for National Player of the Year… What is the reason why WVU ranks so high in offensive efficiency? Their turnover rate of 35% for opponents (best in Bob Huggins’ history) is leading to easy, transition buckets for the offense… Kansas State and Texas Tech both entered conference play with 11-1 records (they currently sit 1-1 in conference), but they played cupcakes throughout November and December. I need to see more of them against real competition to give a good outlook… Sophomore Jawun Evans is leading not only Oklahoma State but also the Big 12 Conference with 19.7 PPG. The guard combination of him and Phil Forte will be able to take down elite teams, giving the Cowboys a signature win needed to make the tournament.
Big 12: Looking Ahead
Two teams (Baylor and Kansas) look to remain undefeated in conference play while Oklahoma State and Oklahoma look to notch their first victories… The highlight game over the next few weeks will be on January 10 when Baylor travels to West Virginia in a matchup of two Top Ten teams (7 PM, ESPN2)… Texas, who has been absolutely dreadful in Shaka Smart’s second season with the Longhorns, has a chance for a signature road win against Iowa State this weekend. The Lognhorns will need to rack up conference victories for any chance at the tournament, though that remains a longshot hope.
A graduate of Xavier University, Chris began his writing career as a Xavier Musketeers Athletic Communications Intern where he wrote previews and post-game recaps for men’s basketball, women’s basketball and other Olympic sports. He has worked in the sports industry in various capacities for over 5 years. Chris is a fan of the Xavier Musketeers, the Baltimore Ravens and the Baltimore Orioles. Other hobbies and passions includes Game of Thrones and, as an Eagle Scout, volunteering as a Boy Scout Troop Assistant Scoutmaster. Chris was born in Baltimore, raised in Baltimore County and currently resides in Canton.