Complete 2011-2012 College Basketball Preview Part 2: The Big East

As we move on to part two of the complete college basketball preview, we take a look at the Big East.

Last year the Big East sent an unprecedented 10 teams to the big dance. Although the majority of the conference struggled in the tournament, the nation's deepest league did see the Connecticut Huskies crowned as national champions.

But with Kemba Walker gone, is UConn still the favorite? Let's take a look at how this 16-team conference looks heading into this season.

16. Providence

With new head coach Ed Cooley taking over at Providence, things can only get better for a Friars squad coming off a weak season.

However, Cooley's first season will be a challenge, as Providence will have to play without star guard Marshon Brooks, who moved on to the NBA.

The Friars will rely primarily on returning starters Vincent Council and Gerard Coleman to provide consistent scoring, but Providence simply lacks the talent right now to compete with most Big East teams.

Postseason Prediction: None

15. South Florida

The good news for South Florida and head coach Stan Heath is that the Bulls return six of their top seven scorers from last season. The bad news is that they went just 3-15 in Big East play.

Augustus Gilchrist provides some optimism, as he will look to build off his over 13 PPG average from last season, and Jawanza Poland will be the team's primary weapon out of the backcourt. 

The problem for South Florida, however, is the lack of a true point guard with any experience. After Anthony Crater, the team's leading assist man from last year, was dismissed from the team, South Florida will now be forced to go to an unknown at the point guard position, which could stunt any potential growth.

Postseason Prediction: None

14. DePaul

Unlike the last few seasons at DePaul, there is a sense of careful optimism around this year's Blue Demon squad.

The reason for that optimism comes in the form of DePaul's two outstanding sophomores, Brandon Young, and reigning Big East rookie of the year, Cleveland Melvin.

Both of these players are outstanding talents, averaging 12.6 and 14.3 PPG respectively last season. If either of them goes off in a game, DePaul could score some major upsets. 

The problem is the rest of the cupboard is still bare, and Oliver Purnell's squad is coming off a season in which they were last in the Big East in scoring defense and rebounding margin. 

While they will be better then last year, DePaul is still one of the bottom feeders in the Big East.

Postseason Prediction: None 

13. Seton Hall

Now that Jeremy Hazell is gone, Seton Hall is in desperate need for a top dog to replace him.

The most likely candidates this year are Jordan Theodore and Herb Pope, who each have a chance to surpass the 1,000 career point mark this season.

Seton Hall defeated four NCAA Tournament teams last season, but with six new freshmen and no Hazell to bail them out in difficult times, offense could really be an issue for this squad.

However, they are still well-coached under second year man Kevin Willard, and any Big East foe will make a grave mistake if they take the Pirates lightly.

Postseason Prediction: None

12. Rutgers

Rutgers' 12th-place finish last year is a prime example, more than anything, of the Big East's depth.

Rutgers will look to sneak up on some teams this year, thanks to a top-notch recruiting class brought in by head coach Mike Rice.  

Headlining the incoming group is 6'9" Kadeem Jack, who will look to be one of the Scarlet Knights' best players next season. Other top players include newcomers Myles Mack and Eli Carter and returners Dane Miller and Gilvydad Biruta.

Rutgers will look to improve on an offense that was just 15th in the Conference last year in scoring—they have the roster to do it. 

Expect Rutgers to win some games in the league this year and even taste the postseason.

Postseason Prediction: Secondary Tournament

11. Villanova

Villanova fans have become accustomed to watching the Wildcats compete for the Big East championship under Jay Wright. This year, however, that will simply not be the case. 

The Wildcats lost three of their top four scorers from last years squad, including Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes, who formed the backbone of the team the last two seasons.

Coach Wright does have some talent to work with, including Maalik Wayns—the team's third leading scorer from last season—and starting center Mouphtaou Yarou. 2010 McDonalds All-American JayVaughn Pinkston will finally join the squad after being suspended last spring.

Villanova is far from an incompetent team, but they will struggle to gain an NCAA Tournament berth against fierce Big East competition.

Postseason Prediction: Secondary Tournament

10. Georgetown

If there is any team in the Big East that has failed to meet expectations more than Georgetown in the last three seasons, I don't know who it is.

John Thompson III's team has fallen two straight years in wild upsets in their opening NCAA tournament games. Two years ago, the Hoyas lost in the first round as a No. 3 seed to 14-seeded Ohio University, and last year they bowed out as a sixth seed to eventual regional winner VCU.

This season, expectations are much lower for the Hoyas after the losses of Austin Freeman and Chris Wright. 

Georgetown will rely on Jason Clark and Hollis Thompson and an incoming recruiting class led by Otto Porter and Mikael Hopkins. 

While they won't be in contention for a Big East Championship, Georgetown can play much more relaxed this season and I expect them to pull off an upset or two. Having said that, the talent is not enough to garner a ticket to the Big Dance.

Postseason Prediction: Secondary Tournament 

9. St. John's

Head coach Steve Lavin's current team is almost the polar opposite of last season's squad.

Last year's senior-laden team helped put St. John's basketball back on the map, making the NCAA tournament as a sixth seed.

This year's team, however, is completely inexperienced—but loaded with talent across the board. After losing nine seniors from last years team, the Red Storm will rely completely on the nine newcomers who will replace them.

Leading the way in that group is Lavin's most prized recruit, God's Gift Achiuwa, who was a junior college All-American. Joining him in the Big Apple this year are six top-100 freshmen. Unfortunately for the Red Storm, three of them are not eligible for the fall semester.  Still, St. John's has the talent to make up for it, with D'Angelo Harrison, Phil Greene, Maurice Harkless and Dom Pointer.

I expect St. John's to be explosive in some games, but with all that youth comes inconsistency. St. John's will lose enough games to keep them out of the tournament mix.

Postseason Prediction: Secondary Tournament 

8. Notre Dame

For coach Mike Brey and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, last season was likely bittersweet.

Although the team surprised the country with its outstanding play and came out of nowhere to finish second in the Big East, the team laid an egg in it's NCAA tournament third-round game versus Florida State. 

Now, with the departures of outgoing Big East player of the year, Ben Hansbrough, and other key players such as Tyrone Nash and Carleton Scott, others need to step up if the Irish will maintain that level of success.

The main candidate is Tim Abromaitis, the team's leading returning scorer. Abromaitis averaged over 15 points a game last season and will be Brey's go-to guy on the offensive end. The other returning starter for Notre Dame is Scott Martin, who will have an increased role on offense. Sophomore guard Eric Atkins will likely start alongside Martin in the backcourt.

Although the Irish are weak up front, they still posses great shooters who can stretch the court—and Brey's ability to adapt his coaching style will keep Notre Dame competitive.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament 2nd Round 

7. West Virginia

Although West Virginia returns just four players from last year's squad, Bob Huggins and company will still be a competitive team in the Big East.

This is in large part due to the return of two of Huggins' most trusted players, Kevin Jones and Daryl "Truck" Bryant. Jones was inconsistent last season but he has all the talent to be an elite player in the Big East—he must be in order for West Virginia to be in contention. Bryant has also had his ups and downs, but he has over 1,000 career points and nearly 300 career assists during his time as a Mountaineer. 

A large factor for West Virginia will be how much productivity they can get out of their six freshmen, led by Jabarie Hinds and Tommie Mccune. They will also need steady play from Deniz Kilici, the Turkish-born center who has shown flashes of greatness but needs to find consistency.

As long as Huggins is coaching this team, it's a safe bet they will be prepared for every game and play tough-nosed defense. The pieces might not be enough to make them a top team in the conference, but they should do enough to land in the big dance.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament 2nd Round

6. Marquette

There's a certain buzz going around the Marquette Basketball program these days. Buzz Williams has secured his spot as head coach of Marquette by leading them to three consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, including a Sweet Sixteen berth last season.

This year's squad has the all the talent to get back to that same spot this season. Returning to the Golden Eagles are three starters, including Darius Johnson-Odom, the team's most productive player. Johnson-Odom put up nearly 16 PPG last season and was named second team all-conference. He will be joined by Jae Crowder in the frontcourt, forming one of the most dynamic duos in the Big East.

Chris Otule and Vander Blue will also likely be in the starting lineup—both will play important roles in this year's success.

Marquette was third in the Big East in scoring last season and that will likely be the team's strength once again this season.  Although the team lacks that one explosive player that would put them in the national title picture, Marquette is not a team to take lightly.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament 3rd Round

5. Cincinnati

Quick quiz time: What is the only high-major conference school to improve its win total in each of the past five seasons? Maybe the slide's title gave it away, but the correct answer is Mick Cronin's Cincinnati Bearcats. 

Last season, Cronin saw his best team yet win 26 games and advance to the NCAA Tournament. This year, the Bearcats could be even better. 

Cincinnati returns its top four scorers from last season including senior Yancy Gates, who is their best all-around player and is a dominant threat on offense and defense. Also returning are Dion Dixon (who was right behind Gates in the scoring column last year), Sean Kilpatrick (who was third on the team in scoring, despite averaging just over 20 minutes of playing time), and the team's leading assist man from last season, Cashmere Wright. 

What is troubling about Cincy, though, is their lack of depth after graduating six seniors from last year. They will need young, unproven players—particularly in the frontcourt—to produce immediately. The good new for Cronin is that if his team continues to dominate on the defensive end, they may not need to score more than 50 or 60 to win.

Cincinnati fans have good reason to be optimistic about this squad; a win or two in the big dance is not out of reach.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament 3rd Round

4. Pittsburgh

It may take a national championship run for Pittsburgh fans to get over how their season ended last year.

Despite winning the Big East regular season championship, Pitt was bounced by eventual national runner-up Butler in one of the most insane endings to a game you will ever see.

Now, Jamie Dixon is forced to pick up the pieces in 2011-2012.

Pittsburgh is not as talented as last year after losing players like Gilbert Brown, Gary McGhee and Brad Wanamaker.  

However, all hope is not lost, as senior Ashton Gibbs decided to forgo NBA draft to return to the Panthers. Gibbs is an All-American candidate and will be this team's go-to scorer.

Also returning is Nasir Robinson, the team's effective starting power forward from last year. Dante Taylor is a former McDonalds All-American and will look to make his name in 2011-2012, and Travon Woodall is an efficient player in the backcourt.

Pittsburgh will struggle to match their success from last season, but they still are one of the elite teams in the Big East Conference.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament 3rd Round

3. Louisville

Rick Pitino's Louisville squad has all of the talent needed to be a Top 10 team all year long.

The Cardinals start the season ranked 9th in the AP Poll, and I expect them to remain that high all season.

This tremendous team returns two thirds of its scoring from a squad that finished third in the Big East last year. Peyton Silva, Chris Smith and Kyle Kuric all return—each brings a unique skill set that allows him to be the team's best player on any given night. 

Also coming back is forward Jared Swopshire, a junior who was forced to miss the entire season due to a groin injury. Swopshire averaged nearly eight points a game as a sophomore two years ago and will look to make a big impact on the frontcourt if he can remain healthy. 

Lousiville also has several key role players coming back including Mike Marra, Rakeem Buckles and Gorgio Dieng.  

Pitino also has one the nation's best recruiting classes to fall back on, led by 6'7" forward Chane Behanan. 

In a word, Louisville in loaded. Can they avoid a similar collapse in the NCAA tournament as last season? It will be a huge disappointment if they don't.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament Elite 8

2. Connecticut

It is a testament to Jim Calhoun and the consistency of the UConn program that they can lose a player with the talent of Kemba Walker, a once-in-a-lifetime kind of player, and still have a top five team the next season.

The defending national champions certainly have a realistic possibility of repeating. 

Although they lose Walker, Connecticut returns almost everyone else who played key roles in the Huskies' improbable Big East and NCAA tournament runs. The star amongst that group is Jeremy Lamb, who shined brightly in the big dance last season and established himself as a future star.

With Walker gone, this is now Lamb's team. He has the talent to be an All-American type of player for UConn this season.

Also returning are Shabazz Napier, Roscoe Smith and Alex Oriakhi, without whom they would not have won the national title.

Not to mention that UConn brings in two stud recruits in Andre Drummond and DeAndre Daniels, both of whom will have chances to make immediate impacts. Daniels will look to challenge Smith for a starting spot at small forward, and Drummond, a late signee for this season, was widely regarded as the top center prospect in the country.

Connecticut has all the pieces; it won't be a surprise to see them defend their Big East or national titles. 

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament Final 4

1. Syracuse

Syracuse has had several teams capable of winning national championships since they won it all in 2003 with Carmelo Anthony.

Two years ago, the Orange, led by Wes Johnson, looked like a top contender before they were shocked by Butler in the Sweet 16.  This year, however, their chances are even better.

Instead of relying on just one player to take care of business, as they did with Johnson, Syracuse can legitimately lean on seven or eight players, all of whom can take over the game.

Not to sell Kris Joseph, their best player, short, but the Orange also have a dynamic backcourt of Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche, both of whom can score at will when they get hot. In the frontcourt behind Joseph are several talented players who can only improve from last season.

Fab Melo is the biggest name in that group—despite last year's struggles, Melo has the capability to be a top-tier center in the Big East.

C.J Fair and Dion Waiters have tons of talent and will be given even more minutes this year in which to harness it. James Southerland and Baye Moussa Keita know their roles on the team as a shooter and defensive stopper, respectively.

We haven't even gotten to Cuse's two outstanding recruits, Rakeem Christmas and Michael Carter-Williams, who each have the capability to be Syracuse's next big star. This goes especially for Christmas, one of the nation's top big men, who will look to have an immediate impact.

Some may call me a homer for putting Syracuse at No. 1, but they are ranked fifth in the preseason poll, and if Jim Boeheim can work his magic, the Orange will be cutting down the nets at the end of the season.

Postseason Prediction: NCAA Tournament National Champions